Editorial Policy

What "best" means here

It means: the product whose formulation most directly addresses the specific problem this page is about, for the hair type stated, among products currently sold.

It does not mean most expensive, most popular, highest-commission, or best overall in some abstract sense. A page about fine hair and a page about coily hair will name completely different products as best, and both are correct.

Selection is based on research — the process is written out step by step — covering ingredient function, manufacturer documentation, formulation suitability for the stated problem, and current availability.

We have not tested these products

This is stated on every page carrying recommendations, and it is the single most important line in this policy.

There is no testing panel, no lab, no long-term trial. Writing in a "we tested these" voice — which is the standard register in this category — would be a false claim, and it is the easiest false claim to make by accident, because it is how everyone else writes.

No star ratings, no scores

We do not publish numeric scores or star ratings, because we have no first-party rating data to base one on. A score implies a measurement, and there is none.

Each pick gets a role instead — the drugstore option, the one for high porosity, the strongest pigment, the gentlest of the set. That is a claim traceable to the formulation, and it is more useful anyway: knowing which product suits your hair beats knowing which scored 8.4.

For the same reason, this site emits no Review or AggregateRating structured data. The machine-readable version of a page should not assert something the visible page refuses to.

No brand pays for anything

No brand has paid for inclusion, for placement, for a favorable word or for a particular ranking. No brand has been given copy approval or a preview. No brand has supplied a product to us, because we do not use products.

We name drugstore products as the top pick on plenty of pages where a salon brand would pay us more, and we do that deliberately and routinely. If a cheap product is the right answer, it is the answer.

Claims we will not make

• That we tested something. We have not.
• Any credential nobody holds. No expert, no dermatologist-approved, no salon professional, no clinically proven — except where quoting a specific cited study about a specific product, attributed.
• That a cosmetic treats a medical condition. Nothing on this site treats, cures, prevents or reverses hair loss. The whole growth section is written under that constraint.
• Prices we cannot verify. We have no live price data, so buttons read "Check price on Amazon" and prose never describes a product as cheap or expensive in dollar terms.
• Before-and-after results. No before-and-after imagery appears anywhere on this site. We have none that is real.
• Invented reviews or testimonials. There are none on this site, and there never will be.

How we handle weak evidence

By describing it accurately, including when that undercuts a product we link to.

Where a claim rests on one small study, we say it is one small study and name its limitations. Where it rests on a consumer perception survey, we say so and explain what that kind of evidence is worth. Where a manufacturer makes a claim, it is labeled as the manufacturer's claim rather than restated as fact.

A page that accurately represents thin evidence is more useful than one that rounds it up, and in this category it is also rarer.

Commercial disclosure

Product links are affiliate links and we earn a commission if you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. A disclosure appears above the first affiliate link on every commercial page, and under every buy button, in every state. The full disclosure is here.

Corrections

If something here is wrong, tell us at contact@strandandsuds.com or through the contact form.

Corrections to factual claims are made and noted on the page with a date, not quietly edited. The visible "updated" date changes only when something substantive changed — bumping a date to look fresh is a spam signal and we do not do it. A product that is discontinued or reformulated is replaced, not left as a dead recommendation.

Who writes this

Every page is written by Janet H., who owns and runs the site. There is no content team, no freelance pool and no AI-generated filler published without her. More on the about page.