About Us
Our Story
Honestly? We just really, really love a great find—and couldn't stop talking about it.
That's the most truthful version of how this started. A handful of people—writers, researchers, the kind of friends who text you "wait, did you see this deal?" at 11pm—who kept having the same conversations over and over. About the blender that was genuinely worth every cent. The credit card perk nobody knew about. The mattress that cost half the price of the fancy one and slept better.
At some point, someone said: we should just write this stuff down. So we did.
Truest Deal is what happened when a group of sharp, enthusiastic, slightly obsessive value-hunters decided to get organized. Every guide, every pick, every spending strategy we publish is something we'd stake our own wallets on—because in most cases, we already have.
We believe every dollar you spend should feel like a decision you'd make again. That's what drives every piece of content we put out.
Always One Step Ahead of the Deal
A destination for people who enjoy shopping well, spending wisely, and finding products that make everyday life smoother, nicer, easier, and more fun.
What We Cover
Product Picks
We look for items that offer a strong mix of usefulness, quality, price, design, and everyday relevance. That might mean a budget-friendly find that performs beautifully. It might mean a higher-priced item that earns its place because it lasts, works better, or solves a problem more elegantly. It might also mean a simple everyday essential that quietly makes life easier.
Buying Guides
Need help choosing? We make complicated shopping decisions feel refreshingly easy. Category deep-dives, feature-by-feature breakdowns, and side-by-side comparisons that hand you a clear answer—not a longer list of options to wade through.
Smart Spending
This is where we explore better ways to stretch a budget, plan purchases, recognize worthwhile upgrades, shop seasonally, avoid waste, and make everyday money decisions feel more intentional. We believe smart spending can be optimistic, stylish, and realistic at the same time.
The Process Behind Every Recommendation
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Define the Real Question
We start with what the buyer actually needs to know—not what's easiest to write about. The question shapes everything that follows.d value, helping you make purchases you'll love and trust.
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Research Across the Field
We compare across price points, categories, and use cases—looking for patterns in performance that specs alone don't reveal.
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Apply the Value Filter
Every candidate gets measured by the same standard: does the value it delivers match—or exceed—what it costs to own?
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Write for the Decision
The final guide is written to help one person make one clear decision—confidently, without needing to read three more articles.
Our Team
Ivan Route
Ivan has a slightly unhealthy relationship with price history graphs. A former retail buyer who spent eight years watching margin decisions get made from the inside, he now uses everything he learned to help consumers flip the equation. He moved to Austin three years ago, where he still hasn't bought a single piece of furniture at full price—and keeps a spreadsheet to prove it.
Andrew Kim
Andrew came to product reviewing after years of writing for consumer publications and realizing that most reviews told readers everything except the thing they actually needed to know. Today he oversees Truest Deal's review process, which means he spends a lot of time with products in the unglamorous middle distance between unboxing and the six-week mark.
Bianca DeGraaf
Bianca grew up in a household where every major purchase came with a family meeting and a printed comparison sheet. She thought that was normal until she got to college. Now she writes about personal spending with the warmth of someone who genuinely believes a well-researched purchase is a small form of self-respect. She splits her time between Miami and her overflowing "things I'm waiting to buy at the right price" wishlist.
Kyle Thomas
Kyle once hiked four days into a backcountry trail with gear he'd spent six months researching—and one piece of it failed on day one. That experience made him a better writer. He tests outdoor and lifestyle products with the specific, sometimes inconvenient conditions in mind that manufacturers tend to photograph around rather than account for.
Kelly Ferrao
Kelly's apartment looks like a very organized returns department—which is, technically, part of the job. A self-described "spec sheet skeptic," she's been testing consumer electronics and writing about what they actually do for nearly a decade. Her reviews read like a conversation with the smartest person in the room who also happens to be very funny about a Bluetooth speaker that costs $180 and sounds like a tin can.
Cassandra Castellano
Cassandra has a background in retail buying and ten years of consumer goods journalism, giving her an unusually precise understanding of how products are priced, margined, and positioned within a category—and where the genuine value sits versus the premium that exists primarily to signal quality. Her buying guides are known for surfacing the options in the middle of the price range that consistently outperform both ends—the picks that are genuinely good rather than just cheap or conveniently well-known.
Why Truest Deal Is for Everyone
Smart spending is universal.
Everyone makes buying decisions. Everyone has a budget, whether it is tight, flexible, carefully planned, or still taking shape. Everyone knows the satisfaction of finding something that works well and feels worth it.
Truest Deal is designed to meet readers wherever they are. You do not need to be a deal expert, a minimalist, a luxury shopper, or a budgeting pro. You simply need to care about making choices that serve your life well.
That is the beauty of smart spending: it adapts to you.
Let’s Talk Smart Buys
Your next great purchase might start with one message. Share your question, idea, or wishlist—we’d love to help point you in the right direction.