How ProScore Works
The most transparent contractor evaluation methodology in Canada. Four pillars. 10+ data sources and 20+ trust signals. Zero pay-to-play. Here is exactly how every score is calculated.
Why One Platform Is Never Enough
A plumber with 4.8 stars on Google might carry an F with the BBB and poor ratings on another platform. A roofer with no Google presence might have dozens of five-star reviews elsewhere. No single platform tells the whole story. Most do not even try.
ProScore is Verified Contractor Intelligence for Ontario. We aggregate 30,000+reviews across 10+ data sources, cross-reference government license databases (ESA, TSSA, HCRA, WSIB, Skilled Trades Ontario), check the Consumer Beware List, and apply AI-powered sentiment analysis across 16,300+ contractors. The result is the ProScore: a single trust score from 0 to 100 that no single platform can replicate.
Four Pillars of Evaluation
Every ProScore is built from four independent pillars. Each measures a different dimension of trustworthiness, combined using a proprietary weighting model that we continuously refine based on real-world customer outcomes.
ProScore uses a proprietary algorithm that is confidential and continuously refined. The relative influence of each pillar is indicated directionally below.
Reputation
What customers across multiple platforms consistently report.Ratings from 10+ data sources are aggregated into a weighted composite. Platforms with more reviews carry proportionally more weight — a 4.5 from 300 reviews is more meaningful than a 5.0 from 3.
We analyze full star distributions, not just averages. A natural spread of reviews indicates authentic feedback. Statistically unusual patterns are flagged.
Cross-platform consistency is a key signal. A contractor rated highly across every source is a strong indicator. Significant divergence between platforms raises questions.
Providers who reply to the reviews homeowners leave on ProScore earn credit for accountability and engagement, and so do providers who respond to the homeowner leads they receive through ProScore. A steady pace of new reviews counts, and verified reviews homeowners leave on ProScore count alongside reviews from other platforms.
Verification
Government credentials cross-referenced against publicly available regulatory databases.Providers in licensed trades are cross-referenced against Ontario regulatory databases: ESA/ECRA for electricians, TSSA for gas fitters and HVAC technicians, HCRA for new-home builders. A business can also declare a licence itself. A declaration earns the same credit as a register match, but its profile labels it self-declared, and a register that shows the licence is not current overrides the declaration.
WSIB (Workplace Safety and Insurance Board) registration is checked against public records, and a business can declare its registration itself. A declaration earns the same credit and is labelled self-declared on the profile. This helps homeowners assess whether a contractor carries workplace insurance coverage.
Consumer Beware List and Skilled Trades Ontario registrations are checked. BBB standing, Google Business status, and contact completeness contribute to the verification picture.
Contact completeness and business registration details contribute to the verification picture.
Sentiment
AI-powered analysis of what customers write, not just the stars they give.Star ratings indicate satisfaction levels. They do not explain why. Our AI reads the review text and evaluates providers across six dimensions of service quality — revealing insights star averages cannot.
Providers with more detailed reviews and higher confidence scores earn more credit. Weaknesses identified across multiple reviews reduce the score proportionally.
This is the layer that separates ProScore from every other platform. No one else reads reviews at this depth across this many sources.
Transparency
How visible, accountable, and verifiable the provider is across the industry.Providers present on multiple independent review platforms are more accountable than those on one. Breadth of presence is rewarded.
Profile completeness — photos, contact information, business description, review history — indicates a provider who takes their public reputation seriously.
The more independently verifiable data points available, the higher the confidence in the final score.
AI-Powered Review Analysis
Star ratings indicate satisfaction. They do not explain why. Our AI reads the review text and evaluates each provider across six dimensions of service quality — revealing patterns that star averages conceal.
Example: A contractor might score highly on quality and expertise but lower on communication and value. This means excellent work, but potentially slow callbacks or premium pricing. This level of nuance is impossible to derive from a single star rating.
Score Tiers
Based on their total ProScore, every scored provider is classified into one of five tiers. A provider without enough data for a score is shown as not yet rated, never as a low tier. Tier thresholds are calibrated to reflect meaningful differences in trustworthiness.
Exceptional across all four pillars. Government credentials on record, outstanding customer sentiment, strong multi-platform presence. The standard for Ontario trade professionals.
Strong, consistent performance with credentials on record. A reliable choice backed by data across multiple sources. Minor gaps in one area at most.
Solid ratings with room for improvement in verification or multi-platform presence. Worth considering with standard due diligence.
Limited data available. May be newer to the industry or missing key credentials. Score improves as more verifiable data becomes available.
Significant concerns identified. Consumer complaints, missing required credentials, or red flags detected. Review the provider’s full profile before proceeding.
Not enough data yet. We publish a score only once we have enough review and credential data to rate a business fairly — so this is not a low score, and not a mark against the business.
What Impacts a ProScore
While the exact algorithm is proprietary, here are the directional factors that influence a contractor's score across each pillar.
Reputation
- Higher average ratings across multiple platforms
- More reviews
- Consistent ratings across all sources
- Replying to reviews homeowners leave on ProScore
- A steady pace of new reviews
- Responding to homeowner leads received through ProScore
- Low or inconsistent ratings across platforms
- Statistically unusual review patterns
- Very few reviews available
Verification
- Valid government licensing (ESA, TSSA, HCRA), confirmed by the register or declared by the business
- WSIB registration, confirmed by the register or declared by the business
- Verified Google Business profile
- Complete contact and business information
- Missing required trade licenses
- No WSIB coverage
- Appearing on the Consumer Beware List
Sentiment
- Positive feedback across all six quality dimensions
- Detailed, substantive customer reviews
- Consistent praise across multiple sources
- Recurring complaints about specific service areas
- Negative sentiment patterns across reviews
- Low confidence due to few detailed reviews
Transparency
- Presence on multiple independent review platforms
- Complete business profile: description, hours, photos and the services offered (free estimates, emergency or 24-hour service)
- More independently verifiable data points
- Limited to a single review platform
- Incomplete or sparse business profile
- Few verifiable public data points
These factors indicate directional impact only. The exact weights, curves, and thresholds used in the ProScore algorithm are proprietary and continuously refined.
Where the Data Comes From
ProScore aggregates data from 10+ sources across three categories: review platforms, government regulatory databases, and AI analysis. It adds what a business does on ProScore itself: the credentials it declares (always labelled self-declared), its replies to reviews, and how it responds to homeowner leads.
Review Platforms
Star ratings, full review text, owner responses, reviewer signals, verification status
Letter grades, accreditation status, complaint history, dispute resolution records
Ratings, review counts, and review text from additional verified industry platforms
Government & Regulatory Databases
Electrical Safety Authority — mandatory licensing for all Ontario electricians
Technical Standards and Safety Authority — required for gas fitters and HVAC technicians
Home Construction Regulatory Authority — licensing for Ontario new-home builders
Workplace Safety and Insurance Board — workplace injury coverage protecting homeowners
Provincial trades registration and certification verification
Ontario government list of contractors with enforcement actions or consumer complaints
AI Analysis
Proprietary NLP model evaluating review text across six dimensions of service quality
What We Flag
Beyond scoring, our system identifies risk factors that homeowners should know about. When something stands out, it is surfaced on the provider's profile.
Statistically unusual review distributions that may indicate fake, incentivized, or manipulated reviews. Providers corroborated across multiple independent platforms receive appropriate consideration.
When a provider’s rating on one platform is significantly different from another, it may indicate that reviews on one platform are not authentic.
Providers with persistently poor ratings across multiple platforms are flagged so homeowners can make informed decisions.
For trades that require specific licenses or insurance in Ontario, missing credentials are flagged as a material concern.
When very few reviews or data points exist, the score is flagged as lower confidence. The provider is not necessarily poor — there is not enough verifiable information yet.
Scoring Principles
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a provider pay to increase their ProScore?
No. Every point in the ProScore can be earned on the free plan: no point requires a paid plan, and paying never raises a score by itself. The score is calculated from government records and review platforms, plus what a business does on ProScore itself: the credentials it declares, its replies to reviews and, for a business that takes homeowner leads, how it responds to them (a business that takes no leads is scored without that measure, never marked down for it). Advertising and scoring are completely separate systems.
Why is the exact formula proprietary?
For the same reason credit scoring formulas are proprietary: if exact weights and thresholds were public, bad actors would engineer around them. Every factor that influences the score is described on this page. The methodology is transparent; the implementation is protected.
How are search results ordered?
By relevance to your search first, then by ProScore. When a search is specific, relevance does most of the work. When a search is broad — an entire province, or a trade with thousands of matching providers — nearly everything is equally relevant, so the ProScore decides what you see first.
How often are scores updated?
Scores are recomputed regularly as new reviews, ratings, and verification data become available. Algorithm updates are applied across all 16,300+ providers simultaneously to ensure consistency.
What if a provider believes their score is inaccurate?
Providers can claim their profile for free and declare their credentials through the ProScore portal. A declared credential counts toward the score and is labelled self-declared until a public register confirms it. When government records or verifiable business information change, the score updates accordingly.
Why use AI sentiment analysis?
A provider with a 4.5-star average could excel at craftsmanship but score poorly on communication. Star ratings compress everything into one number. Our AI decomposes review text to show where a provider excels and where they fall short across six quality dimensions.
Which trades require specific licenses?
Electrical work for hire must be done by an ESA/ECRA Licensed Electrical Contractor. Gas technicians require TSSA certification. Plumbing, and air conditioning and heat pump work, are compulsory trades: the person doing the work needs a Skilled Trades Ontario Certificate of Qualification (313A or 313D for air conditioning and heat pumps) or a registered apprenticeship. New-home builders require an HCRA licence; renovators need no provincial licence. For trades without mandatory provincial licensing, we check WSIB registration, Skilled Trades Ontario status, and BBB standing against publicly available records.
How is ProScore different from other review sites?
Other platforms show their own ratings. ProScore aggregates publicly available data from multiple verified sources, cross-references government credential databases, and applies AI sentiment analysis. No other platform in Canada combines these capabilities.
See the ProScore in Action
Browse 16,300+ evaluated Ontario trade professionals. Profiles show the ProScore, AI-analyzed sentiment, credentials (registry-confirmed ones apart from self-declared ones), and ratings from multiple platforms.