Advertising Disclosure

Last updated: January 15, 2026

ShopWise is free to read because a portion of our revenue comes from advertising and affiliate relationships. This page explains, in plain English, exactly how those work.

1. Affiliate links

Some articles include links to products at retailers such as Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Home Depot, Costco, REI, and others. When you click one of these links and complete a purchase, we may receive a small commission from the retailer, at no additional cost to you.

Affiliate links do not change the price you pay. They also do not change our recommendations: our editors pick winners before our commerce team looks up which retailers offer commissions. Products that pay us more never displace better products that pay us less.

Where an article contains affiliate links, we say so at the top of the article — usually with a note such as: “When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.”

2. Display advertising

ShopWise serves display advertising through:

• Google Ads / Google AdSense — banner, in-content, and video ads served by Google.
• Programmatic ad exchanges vetted by our advertising operations team.

Ads are labeled and served in dedicated ad slots. They are not written by our editorial team and do not reflect editorial endorsement. See our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy for how ad technology may use cookies and similar identifiers.

3. Sponsored content

When a brand pays us to publish an article, that article is labeled “Sponsored” or “Paid content” at the top and styled differently from editorial content. Sponsored content:

• Is written or approved by the sponsor, not by our editorial team.
• Does not appear in “best of” lists or product rankings.
• Does not carry an editorial byline.
• Is not counted toward our editorial coverage numbers.

4. Product samples

Sometimes brands loan us products to test. When they do:

• The loan is disclosed in the review.
• We test the product on the same criteria as products we buy at retail.
• We return the product within 30 days (or purchase it at retail if we want to continue testing).
• We never accept payment, travel, meals, or gifts in exchange for coverage.

5. FTC Endorsement Guides

These disclosures are made in accordance with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (16 CFR Part 255).

6. Our current commercial partners

The specific affiliate programs and ad networks ShopWise participates in evolve over time. As of January 15, 2026, they include (among others): Amazon Associates, Walmart Affiliates, Target Partners, Rakuten Advertising, CJ Affiliate, ShareASale, Impact, Awin, and Google Ads.

This list is representative, not exhaustive; participation in a program does not imply endorsement of every product a partner sells.

7. Editorial firewall

ShopWise maintains a strict separation between editorial and business staff. Advertising staff have no input on which products we cover, how we test them, or what verdict we reach. Editorial staff have no direct financial incentive tied to any specific advertiser.

8. Contact

For advertising, sponsored-content, or partnership inquiries: [email protected].
For editorial questions about a specific piece of coverage: [email protected].