Our 7-point verification process

Every promo code on Fare Anchor passes through the same research checklist before it goes live, and the catalog listing is refreshed on an ongoing basis.

1. Source check

We look for a legitimate primary source: a brand press release, a partner email, an official loyalty-program announcement, or a reader submission with documented proof of redemption. Codes that surface only on third-party coupon sites without a primary source are not eligible for publication, full stop.

2. Published rate cross-check

We compare the code's claimed discount against the brand's own published Special Rates or Promo Code terms. This is a documentation check, not a live logged-out checkout replay, so it can't rule out every account-linked or session-specific quirk an individual reader might see.

3. Promotional rate documentation check

We confirm the brand's own promotional materials describe a rate distinct from its standard Best Available Rate. Codes whose only support is a second-hand coupon-site listing, with no matching brand-side documentation, do not pass.

4. Discount math validation

We compare the discount the brand's own materials describe against what the code claims to offer on this site — a "20% off" code whose source material only supports an 8% reduction does not pass. We round down rather than up in how we headline it.

5. Geographic and date sampling

For chain-wide codes, we check whether the brand's terms restrict the offer to specific regions or travel windows. Codes with documented regional or seasonal restrictions are flagged with explicit fine print or rejected.

6. Loyalty stacking check

We check the loyalty program's published terms for whether points and night credits accrue on discounted rates. If the program's terms disqualify loyalty earning on promotional rates, the coupon page calls it out explicitly so you can decide whether the cash discount is worth the foregone points.

7. Terms read-through

Finally, we read the promotion's full terms and conditions on the brand's site and surface any meaningful restrictions on the coupon page — blackout windows, minimum stay requirements, cancellation rules, and combinability with other offers. We aim to put the fine print where readers will actually see it, not buried in a tooltip.

Ongoing catalog refresh

The catalog listing is refreshed on an ongoing basis. Codes we can no longer confirm against a brand's published terms, or that readers report as broken, are removed. Codes that have been re-checked in the last seven days carry a "Recently checked" badge on the coupon page so you can prioritize them.

Reader-reported failures

If a reader reports a failed checkout via the contact page, that code is moved into a review queue and rechecked within one business day. We respond directly to the reader with our findings — either the code is genuinely broken (in which case we remove it), the code requires a small adjustment (such as a date shift), or the code is working as intended (in which case we expand the fine print to make the restriction clearer).

What we don't promise

We don't promise that every code will work for every traveler in every situation — hotel pricing engines are too volatile for any coupon site to make that claim honestly. What we do promise is that the code was backed by a documented brand source at the time we published it, that we'll remove it quickly if it stops working, and that we'll never publish a code with no primary source behind it.