Chandler Weekly is free to read and partly supported by affiliate commissions. This disclosure explains what that means for you, in line with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) guidelines on endorsements and testimonials. Our short version: some links earn us a commission, this never costs you anything extra, and it never determines what we recommend. The longer version is below.
What affiliate links are
Some of our articles — particularly our Consumer Guides, and some personal-finance and home-services content — contain affiliate links. If you click one of these links and then make a purchase or sign up for a service, Chandler Weekly may earn a commission from the retailer or provider. The price you pay is exactly the same whether you use our link or not; the commission comes out of the seller’s margin, not your pocket.
Where and how we disclose
Transparency is the whole point of this page. On any article that contains affiliate links, we place a clear disclosure above the article body, so you know about the relationship before you read our recommendations rather than discovering it in the fine print afterward. We consider prominent, up-front disclosure a basic matter of respect for the reader, not merely a legal box to tick.
Our editorial independence
This is the most important part. Affiliate commissions never determine our editorial conclusions. We recommend products and services on their merits, we compare options honestly, and we will tell you plainly when something is not worth it — even when we have an affiliate relationship with the seller. We do not accept payment to include a product in a guide, inclusion in our coverage is not for sale, and a higher commission does not buy a higher ranking. If those things were negotiable, our recommendations would be worthless, and so would we.
How we decide what to recommend
Our guides are built as decision frameworks first. We start from what actually matters for a given purchase — the features, trade-offs, and pitfalls a reader should weigh — and let that drive the coverage. Where we point to specific products or services, it is because they fit that framework, not because of a commercial arrangement. We do not fabricate product tests or reviews; where we have not independently tested something, we say so and describe our reasoning transparently.
Networks and partners
Our affiliate relationships may be managed through established networks and direct programs. Depending on the topic, these can include Amazon Associates, ShareASale, Impact, CJ Affiliate, FlexOffers, and direct partner programs with providers such as personal-finance tools, mortgage partners, and home-services platforms. Our editorial independence from all of these is set out in our Editorial Policy and Ethics Policy.
Affiliate content versus sponsored content
Affiliate links and sponsored content are different things, and we keep them distinct. Affiliate links are our own editorial recommendations that happen to earn a commission; the editorial judgement is entirely ours. Sponsored content is paid for by a third party and is always clearly labelled “SPONSORED,” as described in our Sponsored Content Policy. We never blur the line between the two.
What we do not do
To be completely clear: we do not sell paid guest posts, we do not sell links, we do not participate in paid link marketplaces, and we do not publish paid coverage disguised as independent editorial. Any of those practices would undermine the trust this disclosure exists to protect.
Your choices
Using our affiliate links is always optional. If you would prefer not to, you can navigate to any retailer or provider directly — our guidance is the same either way, because the guidance is the product, not the link. If affiliate support helps keep Chandler Weekly free and independent, we are grateful; if you would rather not, we understand.
Questions
If anything here is unclear, or you have a question about a specific article’s disclosures, email [email protected].
How affiliate income supports independent journalism
Free, independent publishing has to be paid for somehow. The three honest options are a paywall, advertising, and affiliate commissions — and of those, affiliate income aligns unusually well with reader interest, because we only earn when we point you toward something you actually chose to buy or use. That is very different from being paid to publish something regardless of whether it helps you. It lets us keep Chandler Weekly free and open while keeping our incentives pointed, as much as possible, in the same direction as yours.
A concrete example
Suppose we publish a guide on choosing a budgeting tool. We build it around what actually matters — how the tool fits different money styles, how reliably it connects to your accounts, what it costs, and how it handles your data. If we link to a few options and you sign up for one, we may earn a commission. What we will not do is rank a worse tool higher because it pays more, hide a better free option because it pays nothing, or invent a “test” we never ran. The framework decides the coverage; the commission is a by-product, never the driver.
Your trust is the asset
The entire value of a recommendation is that you can believe it. The moment readers suspect our guidance is for sale, the guidance — and the affiliate income it supports — is worth nothing. That is not just an ethical stance; it is the economic logic of the business. Protecting your trust is protecting the publication, which is why the independence described above is non-negotiable rather than aspirational.
Regulatory note
This disclosure is intended to comply with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission’s guidance on the use of endorsements and affiliate relationships in advertising, which calls for disclosures that are clear, conspicuous, and placed where readers will actually see them. We publish it, and repeat affiliate disclosures on individual articles, in that spirit. If you believe any specific article’s disclosure is unclear or missing, please tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it promptly, because getting this right is part of the trust that the entire model depends on.