Hardscape Home Guide is free to read, and it costs money to produce. This page explains where that money comes from, in plain terms.
Last updated: September 2026.
The short version
- We earn money from display advertising and from affiliate commissions.
- Affiliate links do not change what we recommend or how we rank anything.
- We disclose affiliate links on the pages where they appear.
- We do not accept sponsored articles or paid placements in editorial content.
Affiliate links
Some links on this site are affiliate links. If you click one and buy something, the retailer pays us a commission. The price you pay is the same whether you use our link or go to the retailer directly.
Affiliate relationships are how many independent publications survive, but they create an obvious risk: a site could recommend whatever pays best. We manage that risk with rules rather than assurances:
- Commission never determines a recommendation. We decide what to recommend first, on the merits, and then link to it if an affiliate programme happens to exist.
- We recommend things we earn nothing from. If the best answer is a product with no affiliate programme, or no product at all, that is what the article says.
- We disclose on the page. Articles containing affiliate links carry a disclosure near the top, not only in the site footer.
- No partner sees copy in advance. Affiliate partners have no right to review, approve or amend an article before or after publication.
Advertising
We display advertising. Advertisers buy space, not opinions. Advertisements are labelled and kept visually distinct from editorial content, and the presence of an advertiser on the site does not imply that we endorse the product.
Where advertising is personalised, it is delivered by third-party ad networks which may use cookies as described in our privacy policy. Readers in the EEA, the UK and Switzerland see personalised advertising only with consent, and you can change your choice at any time.
What we will not do
- Publish a sponsored article presented as independent editorial.
- Sell a position in a “best of” list, a comparison table or a rating.
- Accept payment to remove or soften criticism of a product or company.
- Accept free products, discounted materials or hospitality in exchange for coverage.
- Allow a commercial partner to review an article before publication.
If a company offers any of the above, we decline. If we ever accept a free product for review purposes, we will say so in the article, and we will still say what we think of it.
How this meets disclosure rules
Our disclosures are written to satisfy the requirements that apply to us and to you as a reader, including:
- The US Federal Trade Commission’s guidance on endorsements and testimonials, which requires that material connections be disclosed clearly and near the recommendation.
- The Australian Consumer Law, under which testimonials and reviews must reflect a genuine opinion and must not be misleading.
- Comparable fair trading and advertising standards in Canada and New Zealand.
- European advertising and consumer protection rules where they apply to readers in those markets.
Prices and availability
Prices shown or referenced in our articles are indicative and change frequently. Where we give a cost range, it is a planning range based on published industry data and regional labour rates, not a quote. Always confirm current pricing with the retailer or contractor before committing. See our disclaimer.
Questions
If you have a question about a commercial relationship, or you think a disclosure is missing somewhere it should appear, write to [email protected]. We would rather fix it.
