Ratings Explained When we award a product a rating, it must be taken in the context of what price it is sold at. Let’s consider the following example.

A $750 treadmill that is awarded a meta score of 5 out of 5 is inferior in quality to a $3000 treadmill that only scored 2.5 out of 5. The $750 treadmill only received a perfect score within its price class meaning it’s only an exceptional piece of machine within its own price class. At a different price class, it’s a whole different story. This is why each of the following scores should only be taken in the context of which price level the machine is sold at. To understand what you can expect from a treadmill at each of the different price points, please read our ultimate treadmill buyer’s guide.

5.0/5.0 – Best Buy

At this price, we believe nothing on the market offers more. A treadmill that is awarded a best buy often has more going for it than another treadmill that is selling for a few hundred dollars more. This is our way of saying “this is best deal we can find at this price.” By default, we hardly give any products we review a perfect score. Best buys are often a result of dramatic price cuts which propels a great or excellent buy into a best buy.

4.5/5.0- Excellent Buy

This is an excellent product in its own right and buying it would likely serve the buyer very, very well. Compared to the other treadmills at this price, it feels like it’s in a class of its own. If you think you have to get something that we scored a 5.0, you’re mistaken. In fact, we often don’t have anything rated above a 4.5 because it’s just so rare and difficult to find something that exceeds our high standards of what qualifies as a 4.5.

4.0/5.0 - Great Buy

Even though there are better choices in this price range, a treadmill that is scored a 4 is not going to disappoint especially if you haven’t been exposed to our “excellent” and “best buys”. Compared to the other treadmills that are just average, a treadmill that is considered a “great buy” easily outshines them. As far as treadmills that we would recommend, a meta score of at least 4.0 is necessary.

3.5/5.0 - Good Buy

These treadmills aren't a bad choice but we could not recommend this treadmill for a number of possible reasons. The main reason is we believe there are better deals out there that will give you more bang for the buck. A “Good Buy” gets the job done and is slightly better than average but only worth buying if you have no other choice.

3.0/5.0 –Borderline Buy

This is our way of saying that you’re overpaying. There are just so many better choices in terms of quality and price out there that spending money on this is foolish. Although there might not be anything inherently wrong with the treadmill, there’s no reason to buy it either. A “Borderline Buy” is an average treadmill.

2.5/5.0 – Don’t Buy

Put away the wallet and spend your money elsewhere. You worked hard for your money and we feel like you’re just getting robbed here if you buy.

2.0/5.0 – Absolutely Don’t Buy

Besides getting robbed, we also feel the machine is full of problems. Don’t consider this machine no matter how much the price has gone down.

1.5/5.0 - Stay FAR FAR Away

Unless you want a headache, you should stay FAR away.

1.0 Buys – Lemon

Reserved for machines that are recalled.

Insufficient Information - Either there are insufficient reviews or the reviews do not offer sufficient information to generate a proper opinion as to whether the treadmill is worth buying. This often happens to new models that have just been released or models that don't generate enough sales volume for experts and users to review.

How Our Scores Change - As our goal is to get you the best treadmill you can buy for the money you’re willing to spend, our ratings are thus extremely price sensitive. A few hundred dollars more can turn a “best buy” treadmill into a “don’t buy” treadmill. Conversely, a few hundred dollars less is often enough to something from a “Good Buy” to an “Excellent Buy”. Just because everyone else says it’s a best buy, we won’t unless we think it has a price that makes it a best buy.

At the end of each meta review, we list the prices we think the treadmill would need to be at in order for us to consider changing its rating. This means if you bump into the model offline at a price lower than what we have listed for the stores line, you can extrapolate using our suggested prices to determine if it’s a good, great, excellent or best buy.