---
title: "How ReviewsByCity Compares to Other Local Review Directories"
url: https://reviewsbycity.com/how-we-compare/
updated: 2026-10-17
---

# How ReviewsByCity Compares to Other Local Review Directories

ReviewsByCity lists licensed trade contractors in the Las Vegas Valley. Licensed businesses are ordered by the published Standing Score, and that position cannot be bought. A row is labeled Licensed only when it matches an active Nevada State Contractors Board license, and each of those rows has a Verify link to the board's license search. For each published trade, the Las Vegas valley page lists the active licensees collected for that trade, not about 20 names from one search. We never store Google ratings; where shown, they load live from Google. Ratings are not shown on this site today. Quote requests are not currently being accepted.

The ranking method is on the methodology page: https://reviewsbycity.com/methodology/.

## Comparison

Common industry practice describes what many directory sites do.

| Common industry practice | What we do |
|---|---|
| Stores copies of Google star ratings and counts in its pages | We never store Google ratings; where shown, they load live from Google. Ratings are not shown on this site today. |
| Sells #1 or priority placement to paying businesses | Ranking can't be bought. Licensed rows are ordered by the published Standing Score v1, a 0 to 100 score from public license records and OpenStreetMap contact details. Reviews, ratings, and payments are not inputs. Years licensed, board discipline, and the monetary limit score 0 for every row until that trade's license detail is fully collected, and the trade page says so. The weights are published on the methodology page. |
| Sends one quote request to several businesses | How our quote requests work: you pick up to 3 named licensed businesses and must give consent. A request is shared only with the businesses you pick. The form is on trade pages and is not currently accepting requests: it is disabled, and the page says online quote requests are not open yet. There is no option to send one request to any licensed pro. |
| Lists about 20 businesses from one search | For each published trade, the Las Vegas valley page lists the active Nevada State Contractors Board licensees collected for that trade in the valley cities we cover, not about 20 businesses from one search. The full list is published, split into pages of 25. Coverage is the Las Vegas Valley, not every licensed business in Nevada. A place gets its own trade page only when at least 10 businesses there hold an active matched license. |
| No license verification | A business is labeled Licensed only when it is matched to an active Nevada State Contractors Board license. Each licensed row shows the license number, classification, any limitation, and the expiry date, plus a Verify link to the board's license search. OpenStreetMap businesses that are not matched are listed separately and are not labeled Licensed. |
| Ratings frozen at an old "last updated" date | We never store Google ratings; where shown, they load live from Google. This site does not show a saved star rating with a last-updated date. |

## Why it matters

You can see what the list is and why a business is where it is. The order comes from the published Standing Score, not from a payment. The license number is on the row, with a link to the Nevada State Contractors Board license search. Star ratings from Google are not copied onto the page.

## FAQ

### Can a business pay to rank higher?

No. Payments are not an input to the Standing Score, and nothing on the site sells #1 or priority placement. Licensed rows are ordered by Standing Score v1. Ties go to the longer-licensed business, then by name.

### What is the Standing Score?

It is a published 0 to 100 score, version v1. The weights are on the methodology page: years licensed, a full classification with no limitation, license not expiring within 90 days, no board discipline in 5 years, the license monetary limit, and website, phone, and opening hours from a matched OpenStreetMap entry. It is calculated from public records. It does not use reviews or ratings. Years licensed, discipline, and the monetary limit score 0 for every row until that trade's license detail is fully collected, and the trade page says so.

### Do you show Google star ratings?

Not today. We never store Google ratings; where shown, they load live from Google. They are not shown on this site today, and they are not marked up as this site's own ratings. They do not change the Standing Score.

### How do quote requests work?

How our quote requests work: a trade page has a form where you tick up to 3 named licensed businesses and must tick a consent box. Consent says ReviewsByCity may share those details with the businesses you selected and that they may contact you about the request. The request is not sent to businesses you did not name. There is no "any licensed pro" choice. If none are selected, the designed behavior is to keep the request and not share it. The form is not currently accepting requests: with no lead endpoint configured it is disabled, and the page says online quote requests are not open yet.

### Do you list every licensed business in the state?

No. Coverage today is the Las Vegas Valley. For each published trade, the Las Vegas valley page lists the active Nevada State Contractors Board licensees collected for that trade in the valley cities we cover. Henderson, North Las Vegas, and Boulder City pages list businesses with a mailing address in that city, and only when at least 10 businesses there hold an active matched license. Mesquite, Summerlin, and the solar trade are not published yet.

### How is a license checked?

Listings labeled Licensed are matched, on business name and street address, to the Nevada State Contractors Board public listing of active licensees. The row shows the license number, classification, any limitation, and the expiry date, and links to the board's license search so you can look the number up. The board does not offer a stable web address per license, so the link opens that search. Always verify a license with the board before hiring.