This Old House Reviews Team Windows Review Methodology
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We are committed to providing comprehensive and unbiased reviews to our readers. This means earning your trust through transparent reviews and data to support our ratings and recommendations. Our team does comprehensive research to make our recommendations, such as analyzing company websites, conducting mystery shopping calls to providers, engaging with on-site chat functions when available, reading more than 50 reviews per company, surveying homeowners, and interviewing industry experts. This allows us to confidently recommend the companies we feature.
Our Window Research Process
Our window research focuses on understanding product and service quality, company reputation and business practices, pricing, and customer satisfaction. We evaluate these for each provider we review using the following research methods.
Customer Insights
To understand customer experiences with the company, we look at customer ratings and reviews across third-party sites. We evaluate both positive and negative themes among reviews and note any active lawsuits or common complaints. When available, we read at least 100 reviews per provider across review sites such as the following:
- Better Business Bureau (BBB)
- Consumer Affairs
- Google Reviews
- Trustpilot
- Yelp
We also collect proprietary data through surveying and conducting focus groups with customers. Our latest survey of 1,500 recent window purchasers gave us insight into company pricing, consultation experiences, customer service, product quality, installation experiences, purchase motivations and preferences, warranty coverage, and perception of return on investment.
Secret Shopping
In addition to hearing from customers, we interact with companies’ websites and customer service teams as a homeowner would. Here are some of the steps we take:
- Browsing company websites
- Calling customer service to ask questions or get a quote
- Chatting with a representative if there’s a chat feature available
- Reading sample contracts
- Requesting a quote online
We include our experiences where relevant, noting especially impressive or disappointing helpfulness, transparency, or convenience.
Industry Interviews
We also interview window experts and other industry professionals to give us further insight into real-life applications and window business trends. We joined a window installation crew on the jobsite to observe and understand what window installation is like.
Factors Evaluated To Compare Window Companies
We take all this customer data and industry insight to create a set of review standards by which we score each company, dividing our standards into six key categories we’ve learned matter most to customers when shopping for windows. Our categories are value, performance, selection, services, customer support, and reputation.
Each of these categories includes common company features that we assign a point value to. We total these points for an overall category score and then add up the category scores for an overall provider score. These standards are on a 100-point scoring system, which is then divided to supply a star rating out of a possible five stars.
We evaluate each category as follows.
Value
We assess a window company’s value by first examining average window pricing using costs reported by actual customers on our proprietary survey. From this data, we determine what a well-priced window is and which companies’ costs are well above or below the industry standard. We award the highest points to companies with lower pricing.
We also look at financing programs and terms since many homeowners finance their window purchases. Financing terms affect the bottom line buyers pay. We read providers’ fine print to note any unusual terms or helpful perks, such as low interest rates, no money down, or delayed payments. We also look for beneficial discounts. We award points for these opportunities to save money or have flexible financing options.
Performance
Evaluating window performance is critical to determining return on investment. We look at two factors in this category: Energy Star certification and warranty coverage.
Energy Star Certification
A window’s performance is based on how energy-efficient it is. We award points to companies with Energy Star-certified windows because this tells us that the window has the following characteristics:
- Efficient materials designed to enhance thermal performance and reduce energy costs
- Low-emissivity (low-e) glass coating to better prevent heat transfer through the glass
- Nontoxic gas filling between panes for increased insulation
- Recommended U-factor and solar heat coefficient gain (SHCG) for the climate displayed
An energy-efficient window increases home comfort, lowers electricity bills, and reduces wear and tear on your HVAC system. Energy Star certification lets us know windows have been thoroughly tested and determined to be of high performance, so we award significant points for this.
Warranty Coverage
The length and scope of a provider’s warranty coverage tell us how much it stands behind its product. There are three primary types of window warranties:
- Lifetime warranty: All aspects of the window (parts, materials, screens, glass, installation, repairs, etc.) are covered for the window’s lifetime.
- Limited lifetime warranty: Some aspects of the window are covered for the lifetime of the window, and some are covered for shorter periods.
- Limited: Window aspects are covered at varying lengths of time.
We award the highest points to companies that provide lifetime warranty coverage and the lowest to those with limited coverage. We recommend companies that provide coverage that prevents customers from paying out of pocket when repair or replacement is needed.
Reputation
We assess a company’s reputation by looking at Better Business Bureau scores, customer ratings and reviews, and legal standing. We primarily lean on BBB and Trustpilot, but when these review sites have fewer than 100 combined reviews, we also look at Google Reviews, Yelp, Consumer Affairs, and Reddit.
A company’s BBB profile tells us whether it has any active lawsuits or patterns of unethical business practices, which we take seriously and deduct points for. However, we also know that BBB ratings require meeting BBB criteria, which include some factors that don’t pertain to its products and services. When a company has a low or no BBB score, we use the customer rating and other site reviews as the source of truth.
We award the most points to brands with an A+ BBB score and an average customer rating of 3.6 out of 5 stars or higher. Brands with B scores and customer ratings of 2.1–3.5 are scored midtier, and we deduct the most points from brands with scores below a B and a rating of 2 out of 5 stars and below.
Selection
We judge both inventory selection and quality to rate this category. We first look at how many of the most popular window styles a company has, awarding a point for each. We also look at which frame materials a company uses. This is the more heavily weighted part of the category because materials have varying levels of quality and return on investment. We give the most points to companies with fiberglass and composite blend frame material options, midtier points for those with wood or vinyl, and the least points to those only offering aluminum framing.
Services
To score this category, we first award points to companies that provide in-house installation services. This means the company has its own in-house installation team trained to install its products. This earns companies higher points because having an in-house team means installers should be knowledgeable about the products, and communication and project management should be more streamlined. When a company doesn’t have an in-house crew, customers must look to a third party to install their windows, which could affect quality and communication.
We also give points to companies that provide more than just window installation services. Window companies often install other home improvement projects as well, such as doors, siding, roofing, and sunrooms. This is convenient for homeowners tackling multiple projects at once since bundling projects with one company may reduce time and cost.
Customer Support
We assessed the following criteria to evaluate each company’s level of customer support:
- 24/7 support hours
- Daily support hours
- Online chat availability
- Online service form
- Online education guides
We give the highest points to companies with Monday–Sunday support availability, with extra points for those with 24/7 accessibility. We want customers to get quick, convenient help if their windows break during the night or over the weekend.
Other conveniences we give points for are having an online chat feature on the website for getting quick answers to simple questions, providing a service request form on the website so you don’t have to call for service, and providing online maintenance and education guides to help customers care for their windows.
Factor Weights for Rating Window Companies
Here’s how we weighted each category:
| Factor | Percentage of Overall Score |
|---|---|
| Selection | 10% |
| Services | 10% |
| Customer Support | 15% |
| Reputation | 20% |
| Performance | 25% |
| Value | 20% |
How To Interpret Company Ratings
We consider companies that score 4.5 out of 5 stars or above excellent. A score between 4 and 4.5 stars is still an indication of a good company but may have lost points for factors that are less consequential to some readers, such as not installing home projects aside from windows or not having a 24/7 customer support line. We rarely recommend a company with a score below 4 stars, though when we do, we include an explanation of why the provider lost points and why we still feature it on our list.
How To Choose the Best Window Company
Follow these steps to choose the right window company for your needs:
- Availability: First, check to see if a window provider is available in your state.
- Price: Next, look at the provider’s average window price to see if it’s in your budget.
- Selection: Browse the company’s window types, materials, and customization options to see if it has the styles you’re looking for.
- Reputation: Look at BBB score and customer reviews to see if customers recommend the company.
- Compare: Evaluate at least three companies to see which offers the most for the best price. Get and compare project quotes. If companies are similar, choose the one with the best customer reviews, energy rating, and warranty coverage.
About the This Old House Reviews Team
We are an independent editorial team of subject matter experts who champion the categories and home services we recommend. From the beginning stages of research to the published review articles, our team diligently centers your interests by identifying common pain points, connecting with people with firsthand knowledge and experience, and crafting content that meets the needs of our audience. We aim to help first-time homebuyers, potential sellers, budget-conscious homeowners, and others from all walks of life streamline their decision-making process for selecting their home services.
To share feedback or ask a question, send a note to our Reviews Team at reviews@thisoldhousereviews.com.