How RanqaScore works
RanqaScore is the public company score you see on every page. It is not a plain average — recent reviews count more, and small samples are softened so one five-star review cannot invent a perfect score.
Recent reviews weigh more
Each review’s influence halves every 180 days. A review from last week carries more weight than one from two years ago, so the score stays current.
Small samples stay honest
We blend in a mild prior (equivalent to a few mid-high reviews). That keeps brand-new pages from jumping to 5.0 after a handful of ratings.
Arithmetic average still exists
For search engines we publish the true star average via Schema.org AggregateRating. RanqaScore is what humans see; the raw average is what machines get for structured data.
Transparency rules
Negative reviews are never hidden. Companies cannot pay to remove ratings. Sorting and filters never bury low scores by default.
In short
RanqaScore = Bayesian blend of a prior with a time-weighted average of published reviews (half-life 180 days), shown from 1.0 to 5.0.
Recommended seal
Companies with at least 10 published reviews and a RanqaScore of 4.0 or higher earn a Recommended seal. It is never for sale.