Our methodology
How we independently score, test and rank UK casino operator groups and their sister sites — with no operator influence on the numbers.
Last updated:
The principle: data over opinion
Every trust score, payout figure and ranking on SisterSitesHub is derived from a fixed, published formula — not editorial preference. Operators cannot pay to change their score, and affiliate relationships never influence the numbers. This page documents exactly how the scoring works so you can judge our judgements.
The trust-score formula
Each operator group receives a trust score out of 100, calculated as a weighted average across four pillars:
| Pillar | Weight | What it measures |
|---|---|---|
| Licence integrity | 40% | Validity and standing of the UKGC licence, regulatory history, any enforcement actions or licence conditions on the public register. |
| Payout speed | 25% | Verified average withdrawal time across payment methods, measured on a rolling basis. |
| Complaint volume | 20% | Volume and resolution rate of player complaints relative to the operator's player base, drawn from public sources and adjudicator data. |
| Responsible gambling | 15% | Breadth and accessibility of RG tooling — deposit limits, time-outs, reality checks, GamStop integration. |
Licence integrity carries the heaviest weight because, for a Your Money or Your Life topic like gambling, regulatory standing is the single biggest predictor of whether players are treated fairly and paid promptly.
Our 30-day withdrawal testing
Where we publish an "Our Testing" section on a review, the data comes from a structured hands-on test:
- We register a real account and complete standard KYC verification.
- We deposit and play through across multiple payment methods.
- We request withdrawals on each available method and time them to the minute, from request to funds received.
- We submit live-chat and email queries on common topics and record the actual response time.
- We review public complaint patterns to surface recurring themes — always paraphrased, never reproduced verbatim.
Testing data is timestamped on each review so you can see how recent it is. Figures reflect a specific test run and can vary with account history, payment method and verification status.
The 90-day refresh cycle
Trust scores are fully recalculated every 90 days, and sooner if a material event occurs — a licence suspension, a change of ownership, or a spike in complaints. Each page shows its last-updated date. We never silently change a score: material changes are reflected in the page's dateModified.
Editorial independence
SisterSitesHub earns commission from some operators we list (see our affiliate disclosure). This funding model has zero influence on scores or rankings. We score operators we have no commercial relationship with using the identical formula, and we routinely rank non-partner operators above partners where the data supports it.
Sources we use
- The UKGC public register for licence verification
- Companies House for corporate ownership and group structure
- Independent testing-lab certifications (eCOGRA, iTech Labs, GLI) for RTP and fairness
- Public complaint and adjudication data (IBAS and similar)
- Our own hands-on account testing
Corrections
If you believe any figure on this site is inaccurate, contact us via the contact page and we'll investigate and correct it promptly. Accuracy on a YMYL topic matters more to us than any single ranking.