How we review

The six criteria

Every NumbingTattooCream.com Rating is a weighted composite on a 0-10 scale. The weights reflect what actually decides whether a tattoo appointment goes well, which is why duration and tattoo suitability carry as much weight as raw effectiveness.

Our sourcing rules

1. Concentrations come from labelling. We publish an active ingredient percentage only when it appears on manufacturer labelling or a manufacturer specification sheet. Retailer listings and marketplace copy do not qualify.
2. Onset and duration come from the manufacturer or published pharmacology. Where a range is commonly documented, we publish the range and say it is commonly documented rather than presenting it as a measurement we took.
3. Gaps stay visible. A missing figure is printed as "not verified". We never fill a blank cell with a plausible number, which is the most common failure of content in this category.
4. Safety claims defer to regulators. Where a regulator has issued guidance on topical anaesthetics, that guidance takes precedence over any brand's marketing, including our pick's.
5. Instructions on your packaging win. Every guide on this site tells you to follow your own product's labelling over any timing we publish. Formulations differ.

When we withhold a score

If we cannot document concentration, onset and duration, the product ships without a numeric rating and with a visible note explaining why. Individual specification cells are treated the same way: where we hold no primary source for a concentration or timing figure, the cell reads "Not verified". We would rather look inconsistent than invent a specification.

An editorial recommendation and a numeric score are different claims. The first says a product is the best fit for a defined brief — in Painfree's case, tattoo-specific structure across long sessions and large pieces. The second is a measured composite. We only publish the second when we can support it.

Customer reviews

Reader reviews are stored in our own database and every one is checked by a moderator before it appears. We do not write reviews, commission them, buy them or generate them. We do not remove negative reviews, and we do not reorder them to favour any product. If a product page shows no reviews, none have been approved yet — we would rather show an empty section than a manufactured one.

Independence and conflicts of interest

We accept no payment for placement, ranking or wording. Where a page carries an affiliate or commercial relationship, that relationship is disclosed on the page itself and it does not change the ordering. Our editor's pick is stated as an editorial judgement, and the reasons are given so you can disagree with them on the evidence.

Corrections

If you can show that something here is wrong — particularly a specification, a safety statement or a claim about a manufacturer's documentation — we will correct it and note the change. Accuracy in this category matters more than consistency with what we published last month.

Not medical advice

Nothing on this site is medical advice. Topical anaesthetics are drugs. If you have a heart, liver or kidney condition, a history of anaesthetic allergy, are pregnant or breastfeeding, or are treating a child, speak to a clinician before use.