HOW WE SCORE
Every score is the result of a measurement, then a judgment.
The measurement is done by software. The judgment is done by an editor. Neither happens without the other. Every product on Materialist is graded on the plastic content of the product itself and its packaging — by weight, by component, by polymer.
WHAT GOES INTO A SCORE
01 · 60 pts
Product materials.
The product itself — primary materials, components, hardware, closures, coatings. What is it made of? Scored out of 60 points, because what you're buying matters more than how it arrives.
02 · 40 pts
Packaging.
A great product still arrives in a bag of bubble wrap. Scored out of 40 points — outer packaging, inner fill, tape, labels. When sold loose or in bulk, packaging is marked N/A and materials fill 100 points.
Reviews
Product quality.
Separate from the plastic-free score — sourced from Amazon reviews, Reddit discussions, and brand testimonials. Always shown independently. Never folded into the Overall grade.
Weighting
Category matters.
For kitchen, baby, and food products, packaging counts for 25% of Overall. For clothing and home, materials count for 90%. The category shapes the weight — because context shapes what matters.
THE GRADE RAMP
Sage rewards the pass. Terracotta calls out the fail. The middle isn't gray — it's wheat-to-clay, so a B reads better than a C at a glance.
WHAT THE GRADES MEAN
THE PIPELINE
i.
Source
Product page, packaging, brand sustainability docs.
ii.
Extract
An AI parses materials, components, and packaging claims.
iii.
Score
The rubric is applied. A confidence level is assigned: HIGH, MEDIUM, or LOW.
iv.
Review
An editor checks the work. Low-confidence scores are never auto-published.
v.
Publish
Score and verdict go live. Grades are updated when products change.
A NOTE ON THE SOFTWARE
Most of the work is done by an AI. We are direct about this.
A human cannot read every product page on the internet, weigh every component, parse every polymer code. An AI can. We use one.
It is not good at judgment. So it doesn't make any. The model produces a number; an editor decides whether the number is right and what to say about it.
The score is computed. The verdict is written.
IMPORTANT DISCLOSURES
Editorial assessment, not certification
Materialist grades are editorial opinions based on publicly available information. We are not a certification body. We do not audit supply chains or conduct laboratory testing. Grades can be wrong and are updated when we learn of errors.
Affiliate links
This site contains affiliate links. When you click “Buy” and make a purchase, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. Affiliate relationships do not influence grades. Products are graded independently of any commercial relationship.
Found an error?
If you believe a grade is wrong — because a product reformulated, packaging changed, or we simply got it wrong — please flag it. Accuracy is the whole point. We review corrections within 48 hours.