Our inspectors book like anyone else, pay like anyone else, and never say who they are.
A studio in contention for the guide is visited three times. Any studio in contention for a Pearl is seen by two inspectors, not one. No inspector reviews a studio they belong to, accepts a free class, or posts about a visit.
Five things, the same five in every studio.
- 01RoomClean and kept up: the springs, the straps, the floor, the changing area, the light.
- 02TeachingCueing, adjustments, safety, attention to whoever is new, and progression across the hour.
- 03ClassProgramming, pacing, honesty about difficulty, and whether the hour goes somewhere.
- 04DeskHow you are signed in, how a first-timer is welcomed, and the ten minutes after class.
- 05ConsistencyFrom one visit to the next, and from one instructor to the next.
The scores stay with us. We publish the result, never the marks.
Every Pearl is a recommendation. How many tells you how far to go.
One PearlWorth going out of your way for.
Two PearlsWorth crossing the river.
Three PearlsWorth building your week around.
We never:
- Print a score, or a bad review. A studio we would not recommend is simply not in the guide.
- Take money, or anything else, for a listing or a Pearl. The magazine’s integrity is not for sale.
- Let a studio approve what we write. Studios read their feature when you do.
- Keep a connection quiet. Any feature of a studio that does business with our publisher says so.
- Award a Pearl for life. Pearls are reviewed with each edition, and can be lost.
No Pearls have been awarded, yet.
The first are decided after the first round of inspections, and published with the first edition of the guide. The studios we name on Instagram and TikTok in the meantime are named, not inspected, and none of them holds a Pearl.