Frequently Asked Questions
How we rank adult sites, what Blacklight scans reveal, and how to protect your privacy. 17 questions answered.
Scoring Methodology
How do you calculate the overall score?
Each site is scored on five categories: Content (library quality and variety), Experience (UX, mobile, speed), Value (pricing vs what you get), Privacy (Blacklight scan results), and Features (VR, downloads, apps, payment options). The overall score is a weighted average of these five categories, with privacy weighted more heavily than on other review sites.
What does the Privacy Score measure?
The Privacy Score is based exclusively on data from The Markup's Blacklight tool. It measures: number of third-party trackers, cookies loaded, canvas fingerprinting, session recording, and keystroke capture. A site with 0 trackers, 0 cookies, and no invasive techniques scores highest. We do not use Mozilla Observatory or other tools — Blacklight only, for consistency.
Why do some sites with good content get low scores?
Because privacy and safety matter. A site can have excellent content but run 10 trackers and capture keystrokes. Our scoring reflects the full picture — not just what you see on screen, but what happens behind it. If a site tracks you aggressively, that lowers the overall score even if the content is top-tier.
Blacklight & Scanning
What is Blacklight?
Blacklight is a real-time privacy inspection tool built by The Markup, a nonprofit newsroom. It scans any website and reports exactly what tracking technologies are in use: third-party trackers, cookies, canvas fingerprinting, session recording, keystroke logging, and more. We use it as our primary privacy scanning tool because it's independent, transparent, and verifiable.
How often do you re-scan sites?
All current scans were performed in February 2026. We plan to re-scan sites on a quarterly basis and update scores if the privacy picture has changed. Sites can improve or worsen their tracking over time — our data reflects the most recent scan.
Can I verify your Blacklight results?
Yes. Go to themarkup.org/blacklight, enter any site URL, and run the scan yourself. Our results are 100% reproducible. Minor variations can occur between scans due to A/B testing or regional ad differences, but the core findings should match.
What is VirusTotal and why do you use it?
VirusTotal scans URLs against 90+ antivirus and security engines. We use it to check if any adult site has been flagged for malware, phishing, or other security threats. A score of 0/94 means zero engines flagged the site — clean. Any positive flags are noted in our reviews.
Privacy & Safety
What are third-party trackers?
Third-party trackers are scripts loaded from domains other than the site you're visiting. They collect data about your browsing behavior and share it with advertising networks, analytics companies, or data brokers. On adult sites, this means your viewing habits can be linked to your advertising profile across the web.
What is canvas fingerprinting?
Canvas fingerprinting is a technique that identifies your browser by drawing an invisible image and analyzing how your device renders it. Your combination of GPU, fonts, and settings creates a unique "fingerprint" that can track you across sites without cookies. It works even in incognito mode.
What is keystroke capture?
Keystroke capture (keylogging) means the site records what you type in text fields — chat messages, search queries, even form inputs. Of the 95+ sites we've scanned, only LiveJasmin has keystroke capture detected via Blacklight. This is an extreme form of tracking that most sites don't employ.
Does incognito mode protect me on adult sites?
Partially. Incognito mode prevents your browsing history and cookies from being saved locally. But it does NOT block trackers from collecting data during your session, prevent your ISP from seeing which sites you visit, or stop canvas fingerprinting. For real protection, use a VPN combined with a privacy browser like Firefox with uBlock Origin.
Should I use a VPN for adult sites?
Yes. A VPN encrypts your connection and hides your real IP address from the sites you visit. This prevents your ISP from logging your browsing and adds a layer of anonymity. We recommend using a reputable paid VPN — free VPNs often have worse privacy practices than the sites you're trying to protect yourself from.
Billing & Payments
What is a billing descriptor?
A billing descriptor is the name that appears on your bank or credit card statement when you make a purchase. Most adult sites use discreet descriptors that don't mention adult content — for example, Brazzers appears as "Aylo/Probiller" and Clips4Sale appears as "TropSunProd.com". We list the billing descriptor for every paid site in our reviews.
Will my bank statement show I visited a porn site?
If you only browse free content, nothing appears on your statement. If you purchase a subscription or tokens, the billing descriptor (not the site name) appears. Most adult sites use discreet descriptors. Check our review for the specific site to see what appears on your statement before purchasing.
Using NSFWRanker
What are comparison pages?
Every pair of reviewed sites has a dedicated comparison page with scores, Blacklight privacy data, pricing, and a written verdict. We compare trackers, cookies, features, and value side by side so you can make an informed choice.
What are "alternatives" pages?
Each site has an alternatives page listing all other reviewed sites in the same category, ranked by score with full Blacklight data. We also publish editorial guides targeting specific needs — like "Pornhub alternatives with no ads" or "LiveJasmin alternatives without keystroke capture" — with hand-written analysis.
How can I suggest a site for review?
We're actively expanding our review database. If there's a site you'd like us to scan and review, reach out via Twitter @NSFWRanker. We prioritize sites with significant traffic that haven't been independently reviewed for privacy.
Still have questions? Reach out on Twitter
@NSFWRanker →