CBD Clinicals Reviews and Rankings Methodology
What Do We Consider When Ranking Products?
CBD Clinicals (CBDC) reviews CBD brands and products to help customers make the best informed purchase decision.
We are committed to earning the trust and confidence of customers who seek to improve their health.
We apply a particular methodology to bring readers fair and objective reviews and rankings, and below are the factors that affect how we review a CBD brand.
Overall we score higher points for greater bioavailability and effectiveness of CBD in the product bought. While we consider factors such as flavor, they are weighted lower as the focus of our ratings is on the impact of CBD in the product being bought.
Each product is given an overall score out of 5 based on their scores on the following individual factors:
Extraction Method
Our reviews give the highest ranking to CBD companies that use nanotechnology to extract CBD from hemp plants.
Nanotechnology is an extraction method that creates nano-sized particles from the extracted compound for improved absorption(1).
The second-highest ranking goes to brands that use the moonshine (ethanol-based extraction) and CO2 extraction methods. Many top brands today use these extraction methods to manufacture effective, highly potent CBD products.
CBD brands that use other extraction methods like olive oil extraction or the Rick Simpson extraction procedure get lower ratings.
Purity
CBDC also notes if a company offers products made with the purest ingredients. We award the highest rating to brands with products made from CBD and hempseed oil only.
For other products we evaluate the type of carrier oil, the presence of flavor additives and impurities such as herbicides, pesticides or fertilizers to provide a purity rating that contributes to the overall score for the product.
Source
CBDC gives a higher rating for CBD sourced from the US and a lower rating for CBD sourced from other markets where the growing practices used are not as focused on maximizing the cannabinoid content as it is in the US.
Type
The brands offering full-spectrum CBD products get the highest rating, followed by brands with broad-spectrum CBD products. Brands offering CBD isolate products receive the lowest rating. This is due to the impact of the entourage effect in the effectivess of the CBD product.
Value
CBDC features CBD products at all price points. We help our readers determine the products that offer the best value for the cost by computing how much CBD they get from a given CBD per unit of volume. Those with the lowest prices of CBD per mL get the highest “CBD Value” score.
Potency
We feature CBD brands that offer products with a wide range of CBD concentrations. In our reviews, we rank the CBD product by determining the amount of CBD (in milligrams) per volume of product (in millilitres). Those with the highest amounts of CBD get the highest ratings for “Potency”.
Absorption
We award the highest ratings to companies with products that come in forms that are likely to be fully absorbed into the body. So tinctures with droppers get a higher score than CBD found in food or gummies. On top of that we also take into account the type of CBD and the carrier oil used to determine the absorption score.
Transparency
Transparency of lab results and independent third-party testing are important. Lot- and batch-specific results, preferably within the last year, need to be available.
We award the highest rating to brands with certificates of analysis (COAs) dated within the last 12 months. The COA must be from third-party labs and show test results for ingredients. We also check for the reporting of impurities in the product such as preservatives, fertilizers, pesticides, solvents, and microbes. in rating a product for transparency.
If lab results are older than 12 months, the product gets a lower transparency rating.
CBDC gives the lowest possible transparency rating to brands that do not post COAs.
Customer Service / Review
CBDC also factors in customer service when reviewing CBD brands.
We take into a number of factors in determining this as objectively as possible including:
- The number and rating of online reviews on independent customer review platforms such as Google, Facebook, Trustpilot and so on. We do not take into account any reviews on the Brand’s own website.
- The shipping policy for the product
- The product returns policy for the product.
- The experience of our team members with the brand.
All of this information is collated and a customer service score is given, which then contributes to the overall score.
Identifying Trustworthy CBD Review Sites
We objectively review CBD oil brands to help you find the product tailored to your personal needs, thus saving you time and eliminating any confusion.
Trustworthy CBD review sites like CBDC can:
- Provide unique information about the CBD company and its products
At CBDC, we conduct thorough research on the brands we review so our readers can receive relevant information.
Our reviews include information about the company’s source of hemp, types of CBD offered, and even the CBD potency and concentration of the products. - Provide information from third-party lab results and COAs
We compare the label’s information with the data presented in independent lab reports and COAs to provide accurate information. - Discuss how products are reviewed and ranked
At CBDC, every page with a comparison of products has a link that redirects our readers to this article. We want to keep our readers informed about how every featured brand is rated and what are the factors we consider when rating CBD products.
- Conte, R., Marturano, V., Peluso, G., Calarco, A., & Cerruti, P. (2017). Recent Advances in Nanoparticle-Mediated Delivery of Anti-Inflammatory Phytocompounds. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 18(4): 709. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5412295/