Since the Good Housekeeping Institute (aka the GHI) first opened its doors in 1924 (yes, we're over 100!), we’ve been testing and reviewing products and services to find the very best. Our mission is — and has always been — to help you spend your money wisely on products we know you'll love, whatever your budget.
WHAT WE TEST
Food & Drink | Homes | Beauty | Wellness | Parenting
Today, at the Good Housekeeping Institute's state-of-the-art testing facilities in Feltham, West London, our specialist team tests thousands of products a year across five key categories: homes, beauty, wellness, food and drink and parenting.
What does GHI Approved mean?
The famous Good Housekeeping Institute Approved logo appears on everything from the best slow cookers and the best hairdryers to the best air fryers and best mattress toppers. It's a rare thing; a truly independent sign of a product's ability to do what it promises. No ifs or buts. And that's because our team at the GHI tests products exactly like you would use them at home, offering reassurance that they'll also work for you.
Our experts use a mix of their own scientific knowledge, industry experience and specialised equipment in the lab to put brands’ claims to the test — whether that's assessing the water resistance of a pair of the best waterproof trousers (because you can't rely on the British weather!) or finding out if the best eye cream actually soothes and minimises fine lines.
Every product is assessed against a strict set of protocols devised by the GHI team and, in many cases, built on decades of product knowledge and lab testing. Following a thorough assessment by one of our experts, they are awarded a final score out of 100. That score takes into account factors such as design, ease of use, clarity of instructions and of, course, performance across a range of tests, with this element always having the greatest weighting.
Where relevant – for example to find the best cooling bedding or the best family tents – we'll also send products to our panel of consumers to try at home (or in the great outdoors), taking care to ensure that it reflects our diverse readership. The panel tries the product for a set amount of time (depending on claims) before completing a detailed feedback survey, which also counts towards the product’s final score.
Not everything passes the rigorous testing (we're a picky bunch), which is why when you do see a product that features the GHI Approved logo, you know it's something you can trust.
How does GHI Approved differ from other product recommendations?
We focus on products that make measurable (rather than subjective) claims. Our tests combine in-house expertise (our testers come from the worlds of science, technology, the food industry, product development roles and journalism backgrounds), state-of-the-art test equipment, and carefully devised protocols based on how you would use the product at home.
We work with hundreds of at-home testers and experts to gain the most in-depth feedback out there, which sets us apart from the overwhelming number of product reviews available today, and is what makes the GHI Approved logo so valuable.
How we test
Food and drink
Every year, our tasting panel, consisting of consumers and our experts, blind tastes a variety of foods to find the best for your table, from the best Easter eggs to the best BBQ foods and, of course, the best Christmas food and drink. They assess each dish on aroma, taste and texture, considering flavour notes, ease of cooking and quality of the product, before an overall score is awarded.
Looking for a delicious new gin to try for summer, or the best champagne for Christmas? The GHI's wine and spirits experts – all WSET trained – also test hundreds of bottles a year to find the best on the market. They try the latest wines and spirits – all blinded to avoid brand bias – and give feedback on appearance, aroma, flavour and mouthfeel.
Any food or drink product that scores above our pre-set pass rate will be featured with the GH Taste Approved logo.
Homes
Whether you're searching for the best mattress for the perfect night's sleep or the best air fryer on the market for rustling up quick and tasty family meals, our experts extensively test the latest home products in the lab to find the very best.
They create a robust set of protocols to push each product to its limits. For example, they’ll use multiple recipes and ingredients when testing the best smoothie makers and the best slow cookers, to ensure the most consistent results, whatever your dish of choice. Some products, such as the best cleaning solutions and best mattress toppers, are also sent to our panel of consumers to try at home, so we can get real-world data.
Every product is given a final score, with those that achieve over a certain number (pre-set by our testing team) earning the GHI Approved logo.
Beauty
Our experts, who are all experienced cosmetic scientists, use a combination of lab tests and consumer feedback to assess the latest skincare and haircare products, keeping you ahead of the trends and in the know. They also assess every product according to its claims. So, if a cream says it takes 12 weeks to see results, we test it with our panel for 12 weeks. We also analyse them in our lab with the help of our suite of specialist machines.
The Diastron – this machine analyses hair swatches to test how effective haircare products are, from how hydrating that best shampoo for dry hair is to how smooth a hair repair treatment leaves strands.
The Multi Skin Test Centre – this machine assesses hydration, skin barrier function and oil/sebum control when testing skin and haircare products. This means we can find out how nourishing that best hyaluronic acid serum really is.
The VISIA Complexion Analyser – this machine tests anti-ageing skincare by measuring skin characteristics such as number of wrinkles, texture and pore size. It can even work out your skin age versus your real age!
Noise Meter – this machine measures the sound levels of electricals such as the top electric toothbrushes and best hair dryers, helping you choose the products that won’t disturb the peace.
To see how products fare in real life, we also ask our panel of consumers to try them out at home over a set period of time. All products are blinded before being sent to the panel (to avoid brand bias), and they give us very detailed feedback on everything from design to performance.
Finally, we analyse the results of both our lab and consumer testing before scoring them on every claim so you can find the best performer for your particular needs and budget.
Wellness
There are a lot of claims coming out of the wellness industry right now – so we're here to sort the fads from the products that will genuinely help you feel your best, led by our head of wellness testing, who also happens to be a qualified personal trainer and nutritionist.
In our on-site gym, our team tests everything from the best massage guns to the best walking pads. For certain products, we also ask our consumer panel to tell us what they think, putting the best gym leggings, best vibrators, best sports bras and more through their paces in real-world conditions.
After doing a full analysis of the feedback, products are awarded a final score, with only the highest-scoring earning the GHI Approved logo.
Parenting
Baby products don't come cheap and you need them to work hard in those early years, so we really put them to the test in our lab and with new parents at home.
To find the best pushchairs, we run them over a mini assault course when fully loaded with the equivalent weight of a baby and shopping bags, to ensure they'll maneouvre easily and smoothly over a range of surfaces. We know they're expensive purchases, so we also test a range of price points (and what our reviews have shown is that it's not always the most expensive pick that performs best).
When it comes to the best cots, we see how clear the instructions are and how easy they are to assemble as well as assessing quality, usefulness of the features and durability.
With everything we test, we also send them out to our panel of (time-poor_ parents at home because nothing stress tests a baby wet wipe quite as much as having to clean up a poonami at 3am!
After analysing our lab results and reading through all the feedback, we combine the scores for every metric into a final mark out of 100. Only those that achieve our pre-agreed pass mark and above earn the GHI Approved logo.
How to join the GHI testing panel
Have your say on the latest kitchen gadgets, skincare must-haves, wellness innovations and more by signing up for our GH VIP membership.
The long list of benefits include your copy of the magazine every month, access to all our digital content on our app, GH Book Club membership (including a free ebook each month), members-only newsletters and plenty of VIP treats. And most importantly (we think anyway), you get to be a GHI tester.
Simply click below to join our exclusive club.
Does Good Housekeeping receive a commission if you buy through a link on a GHI Approved product?
In our online articles, we provide links to buy from GHI Approved products so you can easily find where to purchase them, or get more information. We try to keep these links as up to date as possible so that products are always in stock when you need them.
We may earn a commission if you buy through one of these links, but this doesn't influence our experts’ opinions.
Our team of experts tests products separately from any of our commercial or editorial teams, and will only recommend products that pass our strict testing protocols. Any products that fail are not eligible for our endorsement, won't appear in our content and won't be recommended to you by the GHI team.
Can brands purchase the GHI Approved endorsement?
We do allow brands to purchase the GHI Approved logo but only after their product has passed our rigorous tests. Brands have no say in how we assess products, as all testing is completed independently from commercial and editorial teams. Brands whose products fail are not allowed to purchase our endorsement.
Discover the power of the GHI endorsements.
Who do I contact if I have a question about GHI Approved?
If you’d like to know more about our endorsement, or would like to recommend a product to test, please email accreditations@hearst.co.uk for more detail.
Alison is head of content for the Good Housekeeping Institute, responsible for product reviews across homes, beauty, wellness, family and food & drink. She lives by the William Morris quote that you should “have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful.”
Alison has over 15 years' experience as a lifestyle editor and has written features on everything from misophonia to how to dress like Claudia on The Traitors. She has also interviewed everyone from Dame Joanna Lumley to the Kardashians.
In her spare time, you'll find her hanging out with Monty the cocker spaniel and refreshing the Sezane website every five seconds.
