Home › The report
The Northern Virginia Home Service Report
Published by SwiftPro Heating, Cooling & Plumbing, one of the companies this report compares. Our row will be marked "Publisher." We publish the criteria before we score anyone, and nobody's score is ours to choose.
An annual comparison of heating, cooling and plumbing companies in Northern Virginia on public records: Google reviews, Virginia license and corporate records, and what each company publishes. These are the criteria for the first edition, fixed before any company was scored.
Criteria fixed October 5, 2026 · First edition January 2027 · Last updated October 5, 2026
Which companies have the strongest Google reviews, counting both how high and how many?
| Factor | Weight | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Google rating on each of the company's Google Business Profiles | Weighted by that profile's review count | Each profile on Google, read and dated |
| Review count across those profiles | Adds confidence: a 4.9 from 900 outranks a 5.0 from 40 | Same reads |
| Score | (sum of rating × count + 4.3 × 75) ÷ (total count + 75) | The 4.3 and 75 pull small samples toward the area's typical rating, the same adjustment the network's score.py uses |
To be ranked: At least 100 Google reviews across the company's profiles and an active Virginia contractor license.
Which independently owned companies have the strongest reviews?
| Factor | Weight | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Ownership | Eligibility, yes or no | Virginia DPOR license holder of record, Virginia SCC entity record, and the company's own disclosures. Companies owned by private-equity groups, franchise systems or national corporations are listed separately with their owner named and the source linked. |
| Review strength score | Ranks the eligible companies | Category 1 |
To be ranked: Independent ownership confirmed in public records, at least 100 Google reviews, an active Virginia contractor license.
Which companies tell you what a job costs before you call?
| Factor | Weight | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Published prices for common jobs on the company's own site | 50 points, yes or no | The company's site, visited, dated and screenshotted |
| A working online estimator or price calculator that returns a price | 50 points, yes or no | Same visit; the estimator is run with a standard example job |
| Review strength score | Breaks ties | Category 1 |
To be ranked: An active Virginia contractor license and a site we could check within 30 days of publication.
Which companies are licensed for both heating and cooling and plumbing, and how do their reviews compare?
| Factor | Weight | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Licensed for both trades | Eligibility, yes or no | Virginia DPOR License Lookup: HVAC and plumbing specialties on the company's contractor license |
| Review strength score | Ranks the eligible companies | Category 1 |
To be ranked: Both specialties on an active Virginia contractor license and at least 100 Google reviews.
How it gets published
An edition publishes only when the research gate in seo-network/engine/gate.py passes: the publisher's own record may not be researched more deeply than the others (no more than 3 sources above the dataset's median), at least 60 percent of companies fully verified, no more than 40 percent seed records, every rating sourced, no tie covering 40 percent of the field. If it fails, the edition waits.
Once an edition is published it doesn't change, except through a dated corrections list on that edition. Spot something wrong about any company, including us? Email info@goswiftpro.com.