Editorial Standards & Review Methodology
Happycapy Guide is an independent publication. We are not affiliated with, employed by, or funded by Happycapy AI. Every article reflects our own research and testing. This page documents exactly how we work.
Last updated: April 2, 2026
1. Independence and conflicts of interest
Happycapy Guide earns revenue through affiliate commissions. When you sign up for Happycapy through our links, we receive a commission at no extra cost to you. This relationship is disclosed in every article and in the site-wide affiliate banner.
Our affiliate relationship does not influence editorial decisions. We publish articles that highlight Happycapy's limitations, document cases where competitors outperform it on specific tasks, and recommend alternatives when a different tool is a better fit for the reader's needs. Our Happycapy vs ChatGPT and vs Claude comparison pages explicitly identify features where Happycapy is weaker.
We do not accept sponsored content, paid placement, or payment for reviews. We have no equity or financial relationship with Happycapy AI beyond the standard affiliate program available to any user.
2. How we test AI tools
Reviews and comparisons on this site are based on hands-on use. Our testing process:
- Active account required: We maintain paid accounts on every platform we review — Happycapy Pro, ChatGPT Plus, Claude Pro, and Perplexity Pro. We do not review platforms on free tiers when paid tiers differ significantly.
- Task-based testing: Comparisons use identical prompts and tasks run on each platform in the same session. We test the same workflows (research tasks, writing tasks, coding tasks, document analysis) across all compared tools.
- Minimum testing period: Feature guides and tutorials are written only after at least one week of regular use of the feature. Full reviews require a minimum of four weeks of daily use.
- Pricing verification: All pricing figures are verified directly from the platform's official pricing page at publication time. The verification date is included in pricing-heavy articles.
- Model specification sourcing: Technical claims about AI model capabilities, context windows, and benchmark scores are sourced from official documentation, company research blogs, or peer-reviewed papers. Each factual claim includes a source link.
3. Content types and standards per type
Tutorials and how-to guides
Every copy-paste prompt published in a tutorial has been personally tested. We do not publish prompts or workflows that have not been validated to produce the stated output. Screenshots are taken from actual sessions where practical.
Comparisons
Comparison articles use a consistent scoring rubric across categories (pricing, memory, skill library, agent capability, ease of use). Scores are assigned after hands-on testing, not from reading marketing materials. Verdicts are clearly labeled and separated from factual data sections.
AI industry news
News articles covering AI product launches, funding rounds, and policy developments are sourced from primary announcements (company blog posts, SEC filings, press releases, and official documentation). We link to primary sources. Analysis and interpretation are clearly labeled as editorial opinion.
Reviews
Reviews include explicit scoring on stated criteria, a clear "verdict" section with a direct recommendation, and a disclosure of the testing period. We do not publish reviews after fewer than four weeks of use.
4. Accuracy, updates, and corrections
AI tools change rapidly. Pricing, features, and model capabilities can change without notice. Our commitment:
- Publication date: Every article shows the original publication date and last-updated date.
- Active maintenance: Pricing pages and comparison articles are reviewed and updated when platforms announce changes. We aim to update within 48 hours of a significant change.
- Corrections: If you find an error — factual, technical, or typographic — email contact@happycapyguide.com with the URL and the correction. We respond to correction requests within 48 hours and update the article with a correction note if the report is substantiated.
- No stealth edits: Substantive corrections to factual claims are noted at the bottom of the article with the correction date. Minor corrections (grammar, formatting) are made without notation.
5. Use of AI writing tools
Some articles on this site are drafted using AI writing assistance and then edited, fact-checked, and expanded with original research by a human editor. All AI-assisted content is:
- Reviewed and edited by a human editor before publication
- Fact-checked against primary sources
- Supplemented with original testing data, screenshots, or analysis where applicable
- Held to the same accuracy and sourcing standards as fully human-written articles
We do not publish unedited AI output. The editorial judgment, testing data, and analytical conclusions in all articles are human-produced.
6. Contact
For corrections, questions about methodology, or editorial inquiries:
For general questions about Happycapy AI (the product), contact Happycapy support directly — we are not affiliated with Happycapy AI and cannot answer product support questions.