Our "5 red flags" checklist tells you what disqualifies a product. This is the scoring system behind it — how we actually rate the ones that pass.
A pass/fail checklist tells you whether a supplement clears the minimum bar. It doesn't tell you how it compares to other products that also clear that bar. That's what this scoring system is for — five categories, each weighted by how much it actually predicts whether a product delivers.
Does the label list every active ingredient individually with its exact amount, or does it hide behind a proprietary blend? This is binary in practice — a product either discloses fully or it doesn't — but it's weighted heavily because it determines whether any of our other scoring categories can even be evaluated.
For each disclosed ingredient, we compare the amount on the label to the dose used in the research behind that ingredient's claimed benefit. A product scores well when its doses are in range with (or above) published research; it scores poorly when doses are a fraction of what studies actually used.
GMP certification and FDA-registered facility status. These don't guarantee a formula works, but they're a meaningful floor — evidence that a third-party standard is being applied to how the product is actually made.
We read the actual return policy, not just the marketing badge. A clear, reasonable window (30+ days) with a straightforward process scores well. Vague terms, short windows, or conditions that make a refund practically unusable score poorly.
Do the claims on the page match what the ingredients and doses can actually support? We flag products that use language implying pharmaceutical-level results from ingredients with modest, gradual effects — even when those ingredients are real and reasonably dosed.
A product can score well on four categories and still lose our recommendation if it fails Ingredient Transparency — you can't verify the rest of the formula if you can't see what's actually in it.
That combination — passing every category, not just clearing the minimum red-flag checklist — is why it's the product we lead with in our full AlphaSteel review.