About DollarVisor

1. Why does DollarVisor exist?

Quick Answer: DollarVisor exists because most “best of” money lists are ordered by commission, and most rate figures are national averages that match nobody’s actual bill. We built a comparison site that does the opposite: state numbers first, rankings no one can buy, and the math in plain sight.

Our founder, Rachel Hartman, spent six years as a senior rates analyst at a national comparison platform, building the state-level pricing datasets behind hundreds of consumer guides. Two things kept bothering her.

• Carefully researched numbers got reshuffled. A company that paid a higher commission could end up above a company with better prices. The list looked like research; it worked like a price sheet the reader never saw.
• National averages got quoted to everyone. A driver in Texas and a driver in Ohio would see the same “average cost”, even though the real numbers in their states sit far apart. The average paid nobody’s bill.

DollarVisor launched in 2026 to do the honest version of that job. We compare insurance, credit cards, loans, and savings products for US consumers, and we hold every page to the same three promises: the sections below walk through each one, with the data that shows why it matters.

A quick example of why “your number” beats “the average number”: the short video below walks through the factors that move a single driver’s car insurance premium, the kind of personal, local variation a national average flattens out.

2. Promise 1: Why do we lead with state-level numbers?

Quick Answer: Because the state gap is bigger than most people think. NAIC data shows the average homeowners insurance premium in Florida is more than three times the average in Wisconsin. A national figure hides that, so every DollarVisor money page, starting with our insurance guides, localizes before it generalizes.

Look at two of our launch states: Texas averages $2,146 a year while Ohio averages $920, per the same NAIC data. If a site tells both readers “the average American pays $1,411,” it has misled them both: one by understating, one by overstating. That’s why our guides break out state figures wherever the data allows, and why the state pages under hubs like car insurance exist at all.

3. Promise 2: What does “no pay-to-rank” actually mean?

Quick Answer: It means companies cannot pay for placement in our rankings: there is no mechanism for it. DollarVisor earns money from display advertising, not commissions from the brands we compare, and our methodology decides every list order.

This matters because pay-for-placement isn’t a fringe practice: it’s common enough that the federal consumer watchdog formally warned the industry about it. In 2024, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued Circular 2024-01, stating that comparison-shopping sites can violate federal law when they steer readers toward products “based on remuneration to the operator” rather than the reader’s interest.

Here’s how the two business models compare:

Because our ads are served by Google AdSense and sit visually apart from our content, advertisers don’t know or choose where they appear, and our writers don’t know which ads will run beside their work. The full policy (including what we never accept) is on our advertising disclosure page.

4. Promise 3: How do we show the math?

Quick Answer: Every recommendation ships with the comparison table or calculator behind it: verdict first, then the numbers that prove it. If we can’t show the math, we don’t publish the verdict.

Here’s the promise in action, using federal deposit data. The FDIC publishes what the average US bank account pays. Read the table and notice what the labels do:

Two things jump out once the math is visible. The same $10,000 earns $7 in the average checking account and $168 in the average 1-year CD: a 24-to-1 gap decided mostly by the label on the account. And the ladder is upside down: the average 1-year CD pays more than the average 5-year CD, so locking money up longer doesn’t automatically pay more. Neither insight requires trusting us: the numbers are right there, with the federal source linked. That’s the standard every page on this site is held to, from savings guides to loan comparisons.

5. Who runs DollarVisor?

Quick Answer: A three-person editorial team: a lead editor and two credentialed specialists. Every money page carries a writer and a separate specialist reviewer, never the same person for both. Full bios and credentials live on the authors page.

• Rachel Hartman: Lead Editor & Co-Founder. Nine years in consumer finance reporting and rate analysis, including six building state-level pricing datasets at a national comparison platform. She signs off on the methodology and every ranking before it publishes.
• Marcus Delgado: Insurance & Loans Specialist. A licensed property & casualty insurance producer with seven years of agency experience and more than 4,000 policies quoted. He reviews every insurance and lending page.
• Priya Raman: Investing & Banking Specialist. Six years setting deposit rates as a product manager at a top-20 US bank; she has passed the FINRA SIE and Series 65 exams. She reviews every savings, CD, brokerage, and retirement page.

The writer-versus-reviewer split is deliberate. The person who writes a page never approves it alone; a second set of credentialed eyes checks the numbers against the sources. The rules the team works under (independence, fact-checking standards, AI-assistance disclosure, and how corrections get handled) are published in our editorial policy.

6. What do we do, and what don’t we do?

Quick Answer: We compare rates and products using public data and keep the tables current. We don’t take payment for placement, don’t publish sponsored content, don’t sell your data, and don’t give personal financial advice: our disclaimer spells that out.

We do:

• Compare insurance, credit cards, loans, and savings products using public filings and government data.
• Refresh our tables on the schedule the sources publish, and show a “last updated” date on every page.
• Cite primary sources inline, so every number can be traced and checked.
• Correct mistakes quickly and visibly when readers or regulator data prove us wrong.

We don’t:

• Accept payment, gifts, or free products in exchange for placement in any ranking.
• Publish sponsored content or affiliate-ordered lists: there are none on this site.
• Sell or share your personal information; see the privacy policy for exactly what we collect.
• Give individualized financial advice. Our pages are research; rates change and vary by state and personal profile, so always confirm the final number with the provider.

7. Where do our numbers come from?

Quick Answer: From primary sources (state insurance departments, the NAIC, the CFPB, the FDIC, the Federal Reserve, and Freddie Mac) each on its own refresh schedule. The full process is documented on our methodology page.

8. Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is DollarVisor legit?

Yes. DollarVisor is an independent editorial site run by a named three-person team, funded by display advertising rather than commissions from the companies it ranks. Every number links to a government or regulatory source you can check, and the methodology page documents exactly how each ranking is built.

2. When did DollarVisor start, and why?

DollarVisor launched in 2026, founded by Rachel Hartman after six years building state-level pricing datasets at a national comparison platform. She started the site to publish the state-by-state numbers most sites blend away, and to run rankings that no company can pay into. The full story is at the top of this page, and the homepage shows the promises in action.

3. Is DollarVisor free to use?

Yes: every guide, rate table, and calculator is free, with no sign-up, no email wall, and no paywall. The site is funded by display advertising, which is why we can keep rankings independent of the companies being ranked.

4. Does DollarVisor sell my personal information?

No. We don’t sell or share your personal information, and our calculators don’t store what you type into them. The privacy policy lists exactly what data the site and its advertising partners collect and how to opt out of ad personalization.

5. Does DollarVisor give personalized financial advice?

No. We publish research (comparisons, state-level rate data, and worked examples) not recommendations for your specific situation. Rates change often and vary by state and personal profile, so treat our pages as a starting point and confirm final numbers with the provider. See the full disclaimer.

6. How do I report an error or request my state?

Use the contact page or email contact@dollarvisor.com. Corrections get priority: we check every reader report against the primary source and fix confirmed errors fast, with the change noted on the page. You can also ask us to cover your state next: reader requests decide which states we build first.

DollarVisor provides information, not financial advice. Rates change often and vary by state and personal profile, always verify current figures with the provider before you buy. See our full disclaimer.