Our methodology
A ranking is a promise: a promise to tell readers what we looked at, how we looked at it, and why one name comes before another. Online, plenty of “top” lists are for sale. Ours are not. These are the eight rules that govern every RIAD MAG RANKING.
1. No position can be bought
No payment, partnership, affiliate commission or advertising purchase has any bearing on whether a name is included in a ranking or on where it is placed. The sales team has no access to rankings before they are published. An advertiser may appear in a ranking; it gains nothing from being an advertiser.
2. Invitations are disclosed
If a stay or a visit is offered to us, we say so in the ranking. Any establishment that makes an invitation conditional on favourable coverage is excluded.
3. No conflicts of interest
Any property or establishment linked to the publisher or to a member of the editorial team is automatically excluded from the rankings.
4. A score only when the numbers allow it
We publish a score out of 100 only if at least 80 points rest on comparable, verifiable data for all the candidates: the same source, the same period, the same definition.
Those 80 points must relate to criteria that can be objectively assessed and are sufficiently documented. And if a single essential criterion remains unverifiable, we publish no numerical score, even when the 80-point threshold has been reached.
Otherwise, we publish an avowedly editorial selection: ranked, reasoned and unscored. We would rather make an honest choice than offer false precision.
5. Everything is dated and sourced
Every ranking states:
- its selection criteria;
- its sources, with their dates;
- the period covered;
- its methodological limitations;
- the date it was last checked.
6. We do not rank a place we do not know
A hotel, riad, restaurant or workshop enters a ranking only after a visit by the editorial team, or on the basis of verifiable documentation. Photographs are taken by the editorial team or supplied with written permission.
7. Right of reply and corrections
To report an error or request a correction, write to redaction@riadmag.com with the subject line “Correction”. Every correction is dated and visible.
8. A review every year
Every ranking is reassessed once a year. When a position changes, we explain why.
Sources
- RIAD MAG editorial charter (accessed 24/10/2026)
- Law No. 88-13 on the press and publishing, art. 65 (ban on undisclosed advertising) and art. 69 (the label “publicité”, i.e. “advertisement”, on every advertising article) (accessed 24/10/2026)