Editorial standards
How Price Scout validates and compares prices.
Price Scout publishes a comparison only when the product category, package details, retailer source, location, and retrieval time can be explained.
Source requirements
- A displayed price must link to a retailer-controlled source page.
- Every stored result includes a retrieval timestamp and reference ZIP code.
- Unsourced prices are not published as current prices.
- Affiliate links are labeled and are not used as evidence for displayed Amazon prices.
Category validation
Product titles and retailer categories must match a strict category definition. Adjacent items are excluded: diaper wipes are not diapers, litter deodorizer is not cat litter, mugs are not coffee, and food packaged in a bag is not a trash bag.
Category rules are applied when a price snapshot is saved and again when cached data is read. This second check prevents older data from reappearing after a rule improves.
Comparable-unit rules
- Toilet paper and paper towels: price per 100 sheets, with incompatible formats kept separate.
- Laundry detergent: price per labeled load, separated by liquid, powder, pod, or sheet format.
- Diapers: price per diaper within the same diaper size; wipes and training pants are excluded.
- Coffee: price per ounce for bagged coffee or per pod for coffee pods; formats remain separate.
- Batteries: price per battery within the same size and chemistry.
- Other categories use category-specific ounce, pound, count, bag, or fluid-ounce groups.
If at least two stores do not share a defensible comparison group, the page shows source-price references and does not claim a best unit value.
Indexing and freshness standards
A current-price category page is eligible for search indexing only when it has at least three validated prices across at least two stores and its snapshot is no more than 48 hours old. Pages below that threshold remain available to shoppers but use a noindex directive and are omitted from the XML sitemap.
Editorial review and corrections
The Price Scout Editorial Team maintains category definitions, formulas, source requirements, and guide copy. Retailer prices can change after retrieval, so shoppers should confirm the final cart before purchasing.
To report a classification, package-size, source, or calculation problem, use the contact page. Include the Price Scout URL and retailer source URL so the record can be reviewed.