Our agency review methodology
How SaaS Hackers scores every B2B SaaS agency in the directory, what each score means, and what our reviews do not measure.
Every agency in the SaaS Hackers directory is scored from 1 to 5 on the same four criteria: B2B SaaS focus, proof of results, transparency and credibility, and reputation and trust signals. The four scores are averaged to give an overall score out of 5. Scoring is based on publicly available evidence, applied consistently, and nobody pays to be listed or to be ranked higher.
Why we score agencies at all
Picking a B2B SaaS agency is hard, and not for the reasons most comparison sites suggest. The buying cycles are long, the products are technical, and the growth levers look nothing like generic marketing or creative work. Most agency websites are also very good at looking identical to each other.
So the question a founder or marketing team actually needs answered is narrower than "is this agency any good". It is: does this agency genuinely specialise in B2B SaaS, can it show evidence that its work moved a commercial number, and is it open enough about how it operates that you know what you are buying.
Those three questions, plus market reputation, are what the four criteria measure.
The four evaluation criteria
1. B2B SaaS focus
What it measures: how central B2B SaaS and technology clients are to the agency's positioning and client base.
Specialisation is the strongest single predictor of whether an agency will understand your product. Agencies with real B2B SaaS depth already know how long enterprise cycles run, how to position a technical product, and why pipeline matters more than traffic. Generalists learn it on your budget.
How we assess it: we review the agency's homepage positioning, service and solution pages, and the client mix across their published case studies.
2. Proof of results
What it measures: whether the agency publishes evidence that its work changed a commercial outcome.
In B2B SaaS the numbers that matter are pipeline, ARR, CAC, activation, retention and ROAS. Plenty of agencies publish case studies about traffic and rankings. Far fewer publish what happened to revenue, and that gap is usually informative.
How we assess it: we read every published case study, testimonial and results page, looking for quantified outcomes rather than described activity.
3. Transparency and credibility
What it measures: how openly the agency shows who does the work, how they work, and what it costs.
Credible agencies tend not to hide behind vague language. In a market where hundreds of agencies read the same at first glance, being specific about your team, your process and your pricing is both a signal of confidence and a genuine kindness to buyers.
How we assess it: we look for named team members and leadership, a described delivery model, and any published pricing or engagement structure.
Most agencies score 4 here. Published pricing remains rare enough that a 5 is genuinely differentiating.
4. Reputation and trust signals
What it measures: how the agency shows up publicly, beyond its own website.
How we assess it: search presence, awards, platform partnerships, industry recognition, published thought leadership, conference speaking, and founder or company activity on LinkedIn.
How is the overall score calculated?
Each criterion is scored from 1 to 5. The overall score is the mean of the four, rounded to one decimal place.
An agency scoring 5 on B2B SaaS focus, 4.5 on proof of results, 4 on transparency and 4.5 on reputation has an overall score of 4.5.
The four criteria carry equal weight. We considered weighting them differently by category, and decided against it, because a weighting that shifts from list to list makes scores impossible to compare and easy to quietly tune. One model, applied the same way everywhere, is worth more than a cleverer one you cannot audit.
Two consequences worth understanding. A high overall score always reflects a balanced profile rather than one standout strength, so an agency with exceptional results and an anonymous website will not reach the top. And no single criterion determines position, which means a 4.8 and a 4.6 are genuinely close rather than meaningfully ranked.
What this methodology does not measure
This is the part most directories leave out, so we will be direct about it.
Our scores assess the public evidence an agency presents about itself. They are not an assessment of delivery quality, and they cannot be. We have not run the campaigns, we have not seen the reporting, and we have not spoken to every client.
Specifically, our reviews do not measure:
- Whether the work actually performed. We assess whether results are published and quantified, not whether they are independently verified.
- Client experience. Responsiveness, account management quality and cultural fit are not scored.
- Value for money. We score pricing transparency, not whether the price is fair.
- Current capacity or team stability. An agency's senior team can change the month after we review it.
What the score is good for is building a shortlist quickly and knowing which questions to ask on the first call. It is a researched starting point, not a substitute for your own due diligence, and any directory telling you otherwise is overselling. Our guide to choosing a B2B SaaS marketing agency covers what to check once you have a shortlist.
How we handle our own listing
SaaS Hackers is built and maintained by Team 4, a B2B SaaS marketing agency. Team 4 appears in the directory and on several ranked lists.
We think disclosing that is more useful than pretending otherwise, so:
- Team 4 is scored against the same four criteria and the same guardrails as every other agency.
- Team 4 is excluded from any category averages or comparative statistics we publish.
- Team 4's entry is labelled on every list it appears on.
If you would rather discount our lists entirely on that basis, that is a reasonable position and the criteria above are published so you can apply them yourself.
Nobody pays for placement
No agency has paid, or can pay, to be listed in the directory, to raise its score, or to move up a ranked list. We do not accept payment for placement, sponsored positions, or affiliate commission on agency introductions.
Agencies can submit information for review, and doing so often improves a transparency score, because publishing your pricing and naming your team is exactly what that criterion rewards. Submitting information does not guarantee a listing.
How we list freelancers and consultants
SaaS Hackers scores agencies and profiles individuals. Freelancers and consultants in the directory are not given a score, and that is deliberate rather than a gap we intend to fill.
Why we do not score individuals
The four criteria we score agencies on are agency-shaped. Transparency rewards a published pricing page, a visible team and named leadership profiles. Reputation rewards awards, platform partnerships and conference speaking. A one-person consultancy has no leadership page and no team, so it is capped near the middle of that scale by structure rather than by quality.
Run the numbers anyway and every freelancer lands somewhere around 2 out of 5. That tells you nothing about the person and quite a lot about the rubric. It would also be actively misleading, because plenty of the consultants in this directory are a better choice for an early-stage company than an agency scoring 4.8. You get a senior specialist doing the work rather than selling it, at a fraction of a retainer.
So instead of a score we publish facts you can check, and leave the judgement to you.
What we verify before listing someone
Every individual listed in the directory has:
- Demonstrable B2B SaaS or technology client experience
- A single clear discipline rather than a general marketing offer
- A verifiable professional presence we can point to
We do not list anyone we cannot identify, and we do not list generalists who have added SaaS to a service menu.
What each profile shows
- Discipline. The one thing they do. We list specialists, not generalists, so this is deliberately narrow.
- A short description of their background and the kind of work they take on.
- Last verified. The date we last checked the profile was accurate.
How the lists are ordered
Expert lists are not ranked like agencies but we have given them an order. Everyone listed for a discipline has met the same bar, and the order carries not as much meaning.
What our expert listings do not tell you
The same limits apply here as to our agency scores, and one more besides.
We have not worked with these individuals. We assess published evidence of experience and specialism, not delivery quality, responsiveness or how they will get on with your team. With a solo consultant that last point matters more than it does with an agency, because there is no account team to absorb a personality mismatch. Take the call.
We also cannot tell you whether someone has capacity this month. [CONFIRM: delete this sentence once the Availability field is live, and replace with: "Availability is shown on each profile and reviewed alongside the last verified date."]
Nobody pays to be listed
No individual has paid, or can pay, to appear in the directory or to be placed higher in a list. The same policy applies to agencies. You can apply to be listed, and applying does not guarantee inclusion.
If your profile is wrong
Tell us and we will fix it. Profiles for individuals go out of date faster than agency listings, because people change focus, take permanent roles and stop freelancing. [CONFIRM: use the same email and response window as the agency disputes section above.]
Two FAQs to add to the existing FAQ block
Why do freelancers not have a score?
Our four scoring criteria measure agency-shaped things: published pricing, a visible team, named leadership, awards and platform partnerships. A solo consultant is capped near the middle of that scale for structural reasons rather than quality ones, so a score would describe our rubric rather than the person. We publish verified facts about individuals instead and leave the judgement to you.
Should I hire a freelancer or an agency?
It depends mostly on stage and on what you need done. A freelance specialist usually gives you more senior attention per pound and works well when you have one clear problem and someone in-house to coordinate. An agency makes more sense when you need several disciplines working together, more capacity than one person can supply, or continuity if someone is unavailable. Our guide to choosing a B2B SaaS marketing agency covers the trade-off in more detail.
Notes for you, not for the page
Four things need your input, all marked CONFIRM or DECIDE above:
- The inclusion bar. What actually gets someone into the directory, and what keeps them out. I have written a plausible version but it is guesswork. This is the most important one, because without it the section explains why you do not score people without saying what you do instead.
- The list ordering. Option A or B. Option B is more defensible and less work. Option A keeps the numbered lists you already have.
- The three fields. Years in SaaS, engagement band, availability. Until those exist the freelancer card shows two facts and the section above promises more than it delivers.
- The disputes route. Reuse whatever you settle on for agencies.
One thing worth doing before this publishes. Delete the four criterion scores from the five freelancer records that currently have them, including your own. This section states plainly that individuals are not scored, so any freelancer card still rendering a score directly contradicts it. That is the sort of inconsistency that costs you more than either version alone would.
On tone. I have written this to argue for freelancers rather than apologise for not scoring them. Framing the absence as a deliberate editorial position rather than missing data is both more accurate and more useful to a reader, and it turns what looks like a hole in the directory into a reason to trust it.
How often are scores reviewed?
Every score carries a last verified date, shown on the agency's card and profile. [CONFIRM: state your actual cadence here, for example "we review every listing at least once every six months, and re-review sooner when an agency publishes new case studies, changes positioning, or announces a funding round or acquisition."]
This methodology is versioned. Material changes to the criteria or the guardrails produce a new version number, and we note what changed. Scores from an earlier version are re-scored before the new version is applied to a list, so every agency on a given list has been assessed under the same rules.
If you think a score is wrong
Tell us. Most disagreements come down to evidence we could not find rather than evidence that does not exist, and a case study we missed usually changes a score. You get in touch via our contact form in the top navigation.
FAQs
Are SaaS Hackers reviews paid or sponsored?
No. No agency can pay to be listed, to increase its score, or to rank higher. There are no sponsored positions and no affiliate commission on introductions. Agencies can submit information for review, but submission does not guarantee a listing or affect scoring beyond the published criteria.
How is the SaaS Hackers score calculated?
Each agency is scored 1 to 5 on four equally weighted criteria: B2B SaaS focus, proof of results, transparency and credibility, and reputation and trust signals. The overall score is the mean of the four, rounded to one decimal place. Full guardrails for each score are published above.
Does a higher score mean an agency is better for my company?
Not necessarily. The score measures specialisation, published evidence, openness and market standing. It does not measure fit for your specific stage, budget or product. An agency scoring 4.2 may be a far better match for a seed-stage company than one scoring 4.8 that works mainly with Series C clients.
Have you worked with these agencies yourself?
No. Our scores are based on publicly available evidence rather than direct engagement. We do not run pilot projects or trial engagements with the agencies we review, and we do not claim to assess delivery quality.
Why do so many agencies score between 4 and 5?
Because the directory is curated rather than exhaustive. Agencies that would score 1 or 2 generally do not make the shortlist in the first place. The scores differentiate between good and excellent, not between good and bad.
Review methodology v1.0. Last updated 30 July 2026.
Browse the full agency directory or the ranked agency lists.