We believe that trust is earned through transparency. Here's exactly how we evaluate products, what TrueComb Select means, and how our scores are calculated — with no paid influence involved.
The TrueComb Select badge appears on products that meet our editorial standards across three core areas. It is not a paid designation — no brand can purchase it, and it is not awarded based on affiliate commission rates.
The product label accurately represents its contents — honey type, origin, and processing method are clearly stated and not misleading.
The brand discloses where their honey comes from — country or region of origin is named, and supply chain claims are specific rather than vague.
The brand publishes or provides on request evidence of quality: certifications (UMF, USDA Organic, NMR testing), lab results, or equivalent documentation.
Products that do not meet all three criteria still appear in the Honey Finder — they simply do not carry the TrueComb Select badge. Absence of the badge is not a negative score; many good honeys don't publish documentation simply because they're smaller producers.
Every product in the Honey Finder receives a TrueComb Score from 0–10, calculated from five weighted factors. The score is our editorial assessment — it reflects quality relative to the product's category and price point, not absolute rank across all honeys.
| Factor | Weight | What We Look At |
|---|---|---|
| Purity & Authenticity | 30% | Third-party certifications, NMR or pollen testing, no publicly reported adulteration concerns or inconsistencies |
| Processing Quality | 25% | Raw vs pasteurized, filtered vs unfiltered, heat handling during packaging |
| Value | 20% | Price per oz benchmarked against comparable honeys of the same type and quality tier |
| Brand Transparency | 15% | Sourcing disclosures, beekeeper relationships, testing documentation publicly available |
| Customer Signal | 10% | Verified review volume and consistency; significant negative patterns are noted |
Scores are reviewed when product formulations change, new certifications are published, or when significant new customer feedback warrants re-evaluation. We do not guarantee real-time accuracy and recommend verifying current certifications with the brand directly for high-stakes purchasing decisions.
TrueComb's scores and TrueComb Select designations are determined entirely by our editorial team using the criteria above.
We do not accept payment to alter scores. Brands cannot pay to receive a higher TrueComb Score, to be awarded TrueComb Select status, or to have negative findings removed. Products are included in our database based on editorial relevance, not commercial relationships.
We do maintain affiliate relationships with Amazon and may earn a commission when you click through and purchase a product. These commissions help fund TrueComb's editorial work. However, affiliate commission rates are identical across product categories — a product with a high commission rate receives no scoring advantage over a product with a low commission rate.
In plain terms: if you click a product link on TrueComb and buy it, we may earn a small commission from Amazon at no extra cost to you. This is how we keep TrueComb free and independent.
TrueComb is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Our affiliate tag is truecomb-20. This disclosure applies to all product links across the site.
We only link to products we've evaluated and chosen to include on editorial merit. Our affiliate relationships do not influence which products we feature, how we score them, or what we write about them.
We're always expanding the Honey Finder. If you're a brand or producer and would like your honey considered for inclusion, we welcome submissions — though inclusion and scoring decisions remain entirely at TrueComb's editorial discretion.
To submit a product for review, email us at hello@truecomb.com with:
We do not guarantee review timelines or inclusion. Submission does not constitute endorsement.
Last updated: March 2026. Questions about our standards? Email hello@truecomb.com.