• FDA-approved via PMA
  • Independent of manufacturers
  • Editorial · Updated July 2026
  • No manufacturer sponsorships
Get CPR + AED trained →
Sudden cardiac arrest takes ~350,000 American lives each year. Survival can exceed 70% when a shock is delivered within 3 minutes. Get CPR + AED trained →
Shop AEDs
Home
›
Methodology
  • Trust center · Review methodology

How we verify every AED review: sources, not stories.

Most AED review sites borrow authority: invented labs, phantom test panels, white coats in stock photos. We publish the opposite: exactly which four primary sources feed every verdict, the weights behind every score, the dated-check discipline behind every price, and a plain list of the things we deliberately do not claim. Verify any statement on this site at its source; that is the point of this page.
  • Direct answer
AED Best Brands reviews are rigorous syntheses of four public primary sources: the FDA premarket approval database, manufacturer instructions for use, AHA/CDC/OSHA guidance, and dated pricing from authorized US distributors, with every price and status shown with the date it was checked. We run no hands-on lab, claim no clinician sign-off, and score with published editorial weights anyone can audit.
  • Editorial methodology · four sources

How we verify every claim: 4 primary sources, every claim dated at capture.

We are an editorial research site, independent of every AED manufacturer. We do not sell devices and we do not accept placement money. We synthesize the four public sources below, and every claim on this site traces to one of them.

01 · REGULATORY

FDA premarket approval records

Every reviewed model’s approval status is verified in the FDA’s public PMA database, required for AED systems since 2016[1]. Recall status is checked against FDA notices, dated at capture. Verify at accessdata.fda.gov

02 · MANUFACTURER

Instructions for use + datasheets

Specifications, pad and battery cycles, IP ratings, warranty terms, and pediatric options come from each manufacturer’s own current documentation, cited by model and year.

03 · CLINICAL + SAFETY

AHA, CDC, and OSHA guidance

Placement, response-time, and survival statements cite the American Heart Association[3], CDC[5], OSHA publications[6], and peer-reviewed studies in NEJM, JAMA, and Circulation, linked inline where used.

04 · MARKET

Dated distributor pricing

Prices come from authorized US distributors, recorded with the date checked. Estimates are labeled as estimates; calculations show their inputs. No price is treated as timeless, and stale finds route through the corrections channel.
  • What we do NOT claim

We do not run a hands-on laboratory testing program. We do not have clinicians approving verdicts. We do not publish consumer-review averages, and our editorial scores are labeled as exactly what they are.

Our value is rigorous, dated synthesis of the four public sources above, done consistently across every model, with every check dated. If you need device servicing, contact the manufacturer; if you need medical guidance, consult a licensed clinician.

Read our editorial standards
About AED Best Brands
  • The scoring system

What decides a verdict, and by how much?

Five weighted criteria, published so any reader can audit any verdict. The label matters: this is an editorial score, not a consumer-review average.
CriterionWeightWhat it measuresPublic data behind it
Rescuer simplicity25%Can an untrained bystander complete a rescue: prompts, pad design, steps to shockManufacturer IFUs, AHA public-access guidance[3]
5-year total cost25%Device + pads + battery + cabinet over 5 years, not sticker priceDated distributor pricing, manufacturer consumable cycles, our Cost Calculator math
Consumable architecture20%How maintenance survives real organizations: expiry-date count, combined cartridges, part availabilityManufacturer cycles, the by-model matrix
Durability + environment15%IP rating, temperature range, crush and drop specs for the deployment it servesManufacturer datasheets, IEC 60529 definitions[7]
Readiness signaling15%Self-test cadence and how clearly a failing unit announces itselfManufacturer IFUs
Weights are editorial definitions and change only with a published note. Use-case verdicts reweight openly: a construction site reads durability differently than a home buyer, and each industry page states its emphasis. Award winners on the 2026 awards trace to these same criteria.
  • Scope + cadence

Which models, and how often is it re-checked?

The review set is nine FDA-approved models across the six brands sold through authorized US channels. Named, so the count is checkable:

The nine reviewed models

All verifiable in FDA PMA records

Philips FRx · Philips OnSite · ZOLL AED 3 · ZOLL AED Plus · LIFEPAK CR2 · Powerheart G5 · HeartSine 350P · HeartSine 450P · Defibtech Lifeline VIEW
The six brands, compared
Dated checks, visible dates

How freshness actually works

Every price and regulatory status is captured with a date and shown with it; pages carry their update date top and bottom. When a reader or a check finds something stale, it is corrected in place and the date advances. Recertified listings additionally require the seller’s documented process before we reference them.
How we treat refurbished units
  • When we are wrong

Corrections and updates: the boring promise that matters

Errors get corrected in place with the update date advanced; material corrections are noted on the page. Found one? Use the corrections channel. The full policy, sourcing rules, and conflict statement live on the editorial standards page; the channel itself is on contact.
  • Every quantitative claim is a cited fact, a labeled estimate, or a calculation with visible inputs; anything that cannot meet one of those three standards does not ship.
  • Revenue comes from clearly marked referral links to authorized distributors; no manufacturer pays for placement or sees a verdict early, and rankings never consider referral economics. Clinical framing follows AHA statistics[4].
  • Where the right answer is "see your state's statute" or "ask a clinician," the page says so instead of pretending: the law tracker and primary sources exist for exactly that.
Affiliate disclosure

How this site is funded

AED Best Brands earns referral fees when readers buy through clearly marked links to authorized retailers, including retailers we work with commercially. Referral economics never enter scoring, and no manufacturer pays for placement or previews a verdict.
Full conflicts statement
Limitations

Read before relying on us

We do not physically test devices, provide medical advice, or certify compliance. Specifications can change between our dated checks; the manufacturer’s current documentation and your own counsel control. Where sources conflict, we say so rather than pick silently.
Your state's actual rules
  • The methodology, applied · Free tools

See the criteria working in the tools.

The five weights above are not decoration; they run the site’s tools. Same criteria, your building, reasoning shown.

01 · READ

The Complete Buyer's Guide

The five criteria translated into the decisions a first-time buyer actually faces, one read before any purchase.
Read the Buyer's Guide

02 · MATCH

Find Your Perfect AED

The quiz applies these weights to your building, staff, and budget, and names one model with the reasoning shown. 60 seconds, no email.
Take the quiz

03 · BUDGET

AED Cost Calculator

Criterion two as math: device, pads, battery, and cabinet over 5 years, on your own numbers instead of ours.
Run the Cost Calculator

04 · COUNT

AED Quantity Calculator

Coverage planned around the timed 3-minute drill from AHA implementation guidance[3], not a square-footage myth.
Plan your coverage
Take the 60-second quiz
Start with the Buyer's Guide
  • Methodology questions

Asked often, answered plainly

No, and we say so in the open. The reviews are rigorous syntheses of the four public sources above. Sites that claim testing panels and month-long lab programs rarely show a single photograph of either; we would rather be checkable than impressive.

No clinician signs off on verdicts and we claim no medical approval. Clinical statements cite AHA, CDC, OSHA, and peer-reviewed sources inline so you can verify them where they were published. Our process rules live on the editorial standards page.

Clearly marked referral links to authorized distributors, and no. No manufacturer pays for placement or previews a verdict, rankings never weigh referral economics, and the same criteria table above governs every pick including the 2026 awards.

Because the review set is defined by verifiability: FDA-approved models sold through authorized US channels with current manufacturer documentation. Gray-market imports fail that test and stay out, whatever their price. The set is listed above so the count is checkable, and it grows when a model clears the same bar.

Each page carries its update date top and bottom, and every price is shown with the date it was checked. If you catch something stale, the corrections channel gets it corrected in place with the date advanced.

References · primary sources
  1. RegulatoryUS FDA. Automated External Defibrillators overview and premarket approval requirement (effective 2016). fda.gov AEDs
  2. RegulatoryUS FDA. Premarket Approval (PMA) database. accessdata.fda.gov PMA
  3. ProgramAmerican Heart Association. Implementing an AED Program, 2023 guide. cpr.heart.org AED guide (PDF)
  4. ClinicalAmerican Heart Association. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics, annual update. Circulation. heart.org statistics
  5. LegalCDC. Public Access Defibrillation State Law Fact Sheet. cdc.gov PAD fact sheet
  6. RegulatoryUS OSHA. Saving Sudden Cardiac Arrest Victims in the Workplace, Publication 3185. osha.gov 3185 (PDF)
  7. Standard IEC. IEC 60529: Degrees of protection provided by enclosures (IP Code). webstore.iec.ch
Updated · July 2026 Editorial Standards About AED Laws by State All 22 Industries AED Resource Library
Scroll to Top