How We Rank: Dad Math
Every time we rank products on Dadzilluh, we use a system we call Dad Math. It's not fancy. It's not secret. It's just a way to make sure we're scoring things based on what actually matters to a dad making a real decision.
The four factors
Every product gets scored on four things. The weight of each factor changes depending on the category (a savings account cares more about APY; a stroller cares more about ease of use). But these four always show up:
How fast can you set it up? How much ongoing effort does it take? We're dads. We have maybe 20 minutes of free time. If it takes a weekend to configure, it loses points.
What does it cost? What does it save? Is the free version good enough? We always check whether the paid tier is worth it or if the free plan does the job.
Could you set this up at 10pm after the kids are down? Does it work on your phone? If it needs a tutorial longer than 5 minutes, that's a problem.
This is the gut check. If my friend asked me "what do you use for X?" would I actually say this product? If not, it doesn't make the list.
How scores work
Each product gets a score out of 10. The weights shift by category. A savings account page might weight "saves money" at 40%. A project management tool might weight "saves time" at 40%. We show you the exact weights on every roundup page so you can see our logic.
The product with the highest total score gets the #1 spot. Simple.
About affiliate links
Some of the links on Dadzilluh are affiliate links. That means if you click one and sign up or buy something, we might earn a small commission. It costs you nothing extra.
Here's the important part: affiliate commissions never affect rankings. We score products using Dad Math first. Then we check if the brand has an affiliate program. If they do, great. If they don't, the product still keeps its rank.
We'd rather recommend the right thing for free than the wrong thing for a commission. That's how you build trust. And trust is the only thing that matters for a site like this.
How we research
For every roundup, we do three things:
Use it ourselves. If we can sign up for a free trial, we do. If we can buy the product, we buy it. First-person experience always comes first.
Check the data. We look at third-party sources: FDIC rates for savings accounts, app store ratings for software, independent testing for physical products. When we cite a fact, we link to the source.
Read what other dads say. Reddit threads, app reviews, forums. Real users often catch things reviewers miss.
We're not perfect. If we get something wrong, tell us. marc@dadzilluh.com.