Transparency

Methodology

How scores are calculated and how rankings work.

The Four Dimensions

Every review on ProteinRater scores a product across four dimensions, each rated 1 to 5:

Taste: how the product tastes when mixed as directed. Accounts for flavour accuracy, sweetness, and aftertaste.
Mixability: how well it dissolves. Considers clumping, foam, and how it performs in a shaker vs. a blender.
Value: price relative to what you get. Reviewers weigh cost per serving against protein content and quality.
Ingredient quality: the calibre of what's inside. Considers protein source, additives, artificial fillers, and label transparency.

These dimensions were chosen because they reflect the things people actually care about when buying protein powder, and because they're things a real user can evaluate independently of marketing claims.

How Scores Are Calculated

Each product's score per dimension is the straight average of all submitted scores for that dimension. The overall score is the average of the four dimension averages, weighted equally.

Example: A product with avg. taste 4.2, mixability 3.8, value 4.0, ingredient quality 4.5 gets an overall score of 4.1, the simple mean of those four numbers.

Rankings are sorted by overall score in descending order. Ties are broken by review count, so products with more reviews rank higher when scores are equal.

Keeping It Honest

No sponsored rankings. Products cannot pay to appear higher in the rankings. Every position is determined solely by user scores.

One review per user per product. Each account can submit one review per product, preventing score manipulation through repeat submissions.

Anonymous reviews count. Choosing to post anonymously does not affect a score's weight. It only hides your username from public view.

Scores update in real time. When a review is submitted or edited, the product's averages recalculate immediately. There is no editorial delay.