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How Wayfind ranks

The method behind every list — published, not hidden

Most apps keep their ranking a secret and blur the line between what earned a spot and what paid for one. We do the opposite. Every ranked list on Wayfind comes from one documented method, and the number at its center — the Wayfind Score — is our editorial opinion, shown in full below.

The Wayfind Score is our editorial opinion

The Wayfind Score is a single 0–100 number that reflects our considered judgment of a place's proven quality. It is an opinion — our editorial assessment, expressed through a fixed model we publish — not a claim of objective fact about any business, and not a statement that one place is "better" than another for you. It means the same thing wherever you see it — the app, city pages, and guides. A business cannot buy it, argue it upward, or pay to change it, because there is nothing to buy — no ad slot, no premium tier, no paid ranking. For most places the Score is computed from the model below; for a small, hand-vetted set (such as the hotels in Stay Tonight) it reflects our team's direct editorial rating instead. Either way it is merit, and merit only.

1. Proven quality beats a perfect small sample

The Score starts from a place's star rating and weights it by how many people actually rated it, pulling small samples toward a category baseline. A 5.0 from eight reviews can never outrank a 4.7 from thousands — hype can't fake a track record. That review-weighted rating is the base of the Score. Distance, open-now status, price, and weather are separate signals that can shape the order of a list or filter it, but they are never baked into the Score itself. There is exactly one thing that is: local creator evidence — see below.

2. Junk is filtered before ranking

Service businesses, parking lots, offices, and stale or unverifiable listings are removed before anything is ranked. A place must be operational and carry real review evidence — or be a genuine outdoor landmark like a park or pier — to appear at all.

3. Right now matters

Distance from you, whether a place is open at this moment, and context like the weather and time of day shape the final order. A great spot that's closed tonight shouldn't win tonight. These affect where a place lands in a list — never its Score.

4. Real member signals, privately

When Wayfind members like a place, it earns a modest ranking lift for everyone once there's enough signal. We never display private counts, and no member action can be bought.

5. Local creator evidence — the one signal inside the Score

When a local creator we credit by name has published a real post about a place, that counts as evidence of quality, and it is the one signal that raises the Score itself rather than only the order of a list. It is deliberately bounded, and the bounds matter more than the boost:

A creator's post is also shown on the place itself, credited and linked, so you can watch it and judge for yourself rather than take the number on trust.

Money lives in a separate, labeled layer

There are no ads and no paid placement on Wayfind. Anything we can earn a commission on — the "Book it", tickets, and tours & experiences links — lives in a distinct layer that is clearly labeled and disclosed, and it appears only after a place has already been ranked on merit. Affiliate potential never changes what ranks or where. We will never quietly raise a Score for money or dress a paid placement up as a merit pick; if a sponsored slot ever appears, it is labeled as one. Our editorial policy covers this in full.

Our opinion, held openly

We publish our method because a recommendation you can inspect is one you can trust — and because we'd rather show our work than ask you to take it on faith. The Wayfind Score is our editorial judgment, and like any honest opinion it can be wrong. If a pick disappoints or a fact is off, tell us at hello@gowayfind.com and we'll verify and correct it.