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This page explains how editorial decisions are made at FixYourVPN: how our guides are written and kept current, how VPNs are selected for recommendation, and how we handle affiliate relationships.

How we stay independent

Every guide on FixYourVPN is written by us, based on our own research, testing, and judgement. We do not accept payment for reviews, rankings, or editorial coverage. A VPN provider can't buy a recommendation from us, and not having an affiliate deal does not stop us covering a provider.

VPN providers sometimes offer temporary account credentials so we can test their service. We accept test credentials but do not accept gifts, loaned equipment, hospitality, sponsored travel, or payment of any kind in exchange for editorial coverage. Beyond test credentials, we accept no form of compensation that could create a conflict of interest.

How we write our guides

Each troubleshooting guide is built around the actual problem a reader is trying to solve. We start with the most common causes of each issue, explain why the problem happens in plain English, and walk through fixes in order of how likely they are to work. We aim to test fixes ourselves before recommending them. Testing is conducted on real consumer devices (including Windows and macOS laptops, iOS and Android handsets) on a residential UK broadband connection.

We do not reproduce manufacturer claims or press releases. Where we state that a VPN does something, we aim to have verified it ourselves first.

How we keep guides up to date

Streaming services regularly update their VPN detection systems, and VPN providers change their server infrastructure. A guide that was accurate six months ago may need revising. Core guides (BBC iPlayer, Netflix, ITVX, Channel 4, Disney+) are re-tested monthly; other guides quarterly, or sooner when reader reports or our own monitoring indicate something has changed.

When a guide is updated, the revised date and a note describing what changed are shown alongside the article. We do not silently rewrite content.

How we use AI tools

We use AI tools to assist with tasks such as structuring and editing content. All VPN testing is conducted personally by us, and all conclusions and recommendations are based on that hands-on testing. AI is not used to conduct tests, generate test results, or make any editorial or publishing decisions on this site.

How we select VPNs for recommendation

We only recommend VPNs that we have tested ourselves. Our testing process covers streaming performance (across BBC iPlayer, Netflix, ITVX, Channel 4, Disney+, and others), DNS and WebRTC leak resistance, kill switch reliability, speed, and privacy policy quality. The full methodology is described in our How We Test VPNs guide.

A VPN must pass our core tests to appear in our recommendations. There are no exceptions: a provider that fails DNS leak testing or whose kill switch lets traffic through does not get recommended regardless of commission rates or commercial relationships.

We test providers with no affiliate relationship alongside those that have one. Not having a commercial deal does not stop us covering a provider. You can see the results of our testing in our VPN reviews.

Some pages on this site contain affiliate links. If you click through to a VPN provider's website and subscribe, we may receive a commission. This is how we fund the site.

Affiliate commissions do not influence what we write. Our rankings are determined by testing performance, not commission rates. If the highest-paying affiliate partner performed poorly in our tests, they would receive a poor review or not be recommended at all. Commission rates are not a factor in editorial decisions.

Pages containing affiliate links carry a disclosure note. Readers should be able to tell when a recommendation may result in compensation to us. For more detail, including a full list of our current affiliate partners, see our Affiliate Disclosure.

Accuracy and corrections

When something we have published turns out to be wrong, we correct it publicly. Updated articles display a revised date and a note describing what changed; we do not rewrite content silently. We aim to make corrections as quickly as possible once a credible report reaches us.

If you find an error in one of our guides, or if a fix we recommend stops working, please report it via the contact form. We aim to review every report within 3 working days and publish corrections with an amendment note describing what changed. Reader reports are one of the main ways we find out about changes to streaming detection and VPN server behaviour.