The Scope Grade

Every product claim we review gets one letter, A to F. The letter answers a single question: does the published evidence, read against this formula, support what the label says? It is not a verdict on texture, scent or whether a product will suit your skin. It is a verdict on the claim.

We publish the full rubric so you can check our work, disagree with it, and apply it yourself in a store aisle.

The five grades

Grade	Label	What it takes
A	Well supported	Multiple controlled human trials of the ingredient at a matching concentration, in a similar vehicle, ideally independently funded. The label claims no more than the trials showed. For label claims (such as “fragrance-free”), the ingredient list fully matches the wording.
B	Supported, with caveats	At least one good randomized controlled trial, or strong human trials at a different dose or in a different vehicle. Or the formula is right but undisclosed ratios or percentages stop us from matching it to the studied dose.
C	Plausible, thin evidence	Small, open-label or brand-run studies; unpublished brand testing; or a sound mechanism with little direct human data. The claim may well be true. The evidence just doesn’t show it yet.
D	Weak or undercut by formula	Evidence only from cell cultures, skin models or animals; or human data stretched well beyond what was tested; or the formula itself undercuts the claim or the positioning, even when the wording is legally permitted.
F	Unsupported or contradicted	No credible evidence, evidence that points the other way, or a label that contradicts itself (for example “fragrance-free” with Parfum on the ingredient list).

The six checks

Each grade is built from six checks, applied in this order. The first sets a starting grade. The other five can only hold it or pull it down.

Criterion	What we check	Effect on the grade
Study type	Systematic review > randomized controlled trial > controlled study > open-label study > consumer perception survey > in-vitro or animal work	Sets the base grade
In-vivo vs in-vitro	Was it tested on human skin, or on cell cultures, skin models or animals?	Lab or animal evidence alone caps the grade at D
Concentration match	The disclosed percentage, or the INCI position, compared with the dose that was studied	A mismatch, or no way to tell, drops one grade
Vehicle & delivery	Formula type, pH, stability, packaging, and whether the active can reach where it needs to work	An unfavorable vehicle drops one grade
Conflicts of interest	Who funded the study, who ran it, and the authors’ affiliations	Brand-run or brand-funded evidence alone caps the grade at C
Claim match	Does the evidence prove what the label actually says, at the timescale it promises?	Overreach drops one or more grades

How a grade is built

1. Capture the claim exactly as worded, from the brand’s own page or pack, with the date we captured it. We grade the words a shopper sees, not a paraphrase.
2. Capture the formula. We record the full INCI list from the brand where it publishes one, otherwise from the printed pack via a major database, and we link it.
3. Find the best evidence for that specific claim. We search the peer-reviewed literature and regulator guidance for the ingredient, the dose and the outcome the label promises.
4. Set the base grade from the strongest relevant study type.
5. Apply the caps and drops from the other five checks. Caps are absolute: no amount of mechanism lifts lab-only evidence above D.
6. Write the caveats. Every grade above F comes with a plain-English reason it isn’t one letter higher.

When a dossier covers several products, each product gets its own grade, and the headline grade at the top of the page belongs to the product named in the verdict box.

Evidence weighting

Not all evidence counts the same. Here is how we weigh it, strongest first:

1. Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of human trials, when their included studies match the claim.
2. Randomized, double-blind, vehicle-controlled trials on human skin. A vehicle control matters: many “results” come from the moisturizing base, not the active.
3. Controlled, non-randomized human studies.
4. Open-label studies with no control group, where everyone knows what they’re using.
5. Consumer perception surveys (“87% said skin felt smoother”). We report them as what people said, not as what happened to their skin.
6. In-vitro, skin-model and animal studies. Useful for mechanism. Not proof that a cream works on a face.
7. Mechanism and expert opinion. A reason to look, never a grade on its own.

Within any tier we also weigh:

• Size and duration. A 12-person, 2-week study can’t support a 12-week promise.
• Measured vs self-assessed outcomes. Instrument readings (corneometer, TEWL, profilometry) and blinded expert grading carry more weight than self-assessment.
• Population. Results in one age group, skin type or condition are not assumed to apply to everyone.
• Publication. Peer-reviewed and findable beats “clinically proven” with no study we can read. Unpublished brand testing counts as brand-run evidence of the lowest weight.
• Funding and affiliation. We state it next to every study, whoever paid for it. Industry-run research isn’t wrong by default, but it can’t carry a grade alone.

Label claims

Some claims aren’t about efficacy at all: “fragrance-free”, “unscented”, “for sensitive skin”, “non-comedogenic”, “free from synthetic fragrance”. For these, the ingredient list is the evidence, read against what regulators say the term means. A means the list matches the label. D means the formula undercuts the claim or the positioning, even if the wording is legally allowed. F means a direct contradiction.

How we read an INCI list

INCI (International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients) is the standardized ingredient list on the pack. It tells you more than most marketing copy, if you know how to read it.

• Order is a rough guide to amount. US and EU rules require ingredients above 1% to be listed in descending order of concentration. Below 1%, they can appear in any order. Preservatives such as phenoxyethanol are usually used at 1% or less, so ingredients listed after them are generally present at low levels.
• Low on the list is not automatically a red flag. Many actives, including ceramides, retinal and peptides, work at fractions of a percent. What matters is whether that amount matches what was studied.
• A disclosed percentage beats an inferred one. When a brand prints a percentage or a ppm value, we use it, and we credit the brand for disclosing it. When it doesn’t, we say the dose is unknown and the concentration check takes a drop.
• Fragrance lives near the end. We read the last third of the list for Fragrance / Parfum / Aroma, fragrant plant oils, and named fragrance allergens such as Linalool, Limonene, Citronellol and Geraniol.
• The same name can hide a different formula. Products are reformulated, and the same product can have a different formula in different countries. We cite where and when we read each list, and we tell you to check the pack you actually buy.
• Marketing names aren’t INCI names. “Triple lipid complex” or “peptide solution” must map to real ingredients on the list. If we can’t trace a marketing name to an INCI entry, we say so.

Conflicts of interest

We hold ourselves to the same standard we apply to the studies we read.

• No sponsorships, no paid placements, no paid re-grades. Brands cannot buy coverage, a position in a comparison, or a different letter.
• No free product. When we test in hand, we buy at retail and keep the receipt in the evidence file.
• No brand review of drafts. Brands may send factual corrections with evidence after publication, like any reader.
• Grades are set before links are added. Affiliate commissions are never part of the grading discussion, and we grade products we can’t earn anything from. Products graded D or F get no buy links.
• People declare their conflicts. Anyone who works on a dossier declares any brand employment, consulting or financial interest, and doesn’t work on that brand’s coverage.

How we earn money is explained in full on How we make money.

Review cadence

Every dossier shows a last reviewed date and a next review date.

• Efficacy dossiers are reviewed at least every 6 months.
• Label and regulatory dossiers are reviewed at least every 3 months, because labels and rules change faster than the science.
• We review early when a product is reformulated, a significant new study is published, a regulator changes its guidance, or a reader reports something we missed.

Prices and availability are checked whenever a dossier is reviewed, and again on the day it’s published. If a review changes a grade, the old grade, the new grade and the reason go in the corrections log.

What a Scope Grade is not

• Not a measure of how a product feels, smells or performs on your skin.
• Not a lab assay. Unless a dossier says otherwise, we did not test the product’s actual contents.
• Not medical advice. If you have a skin condition, are pregnant, or are treating a child, talk to a board-certified dermatologist or a pharmacist. Every dossier includes a “when to see a professional” section for this reason.

Questions about a grade? Email support@formuscope.com. If we got something wrong, we’ll fix it in public.