Affiliate
Disclosure

Revenue Sources

HVACSchoolGuide.com earns revenue through two primary channels:

• Affiliate commissions — We earn a commission when visitors click affiliate links to partner schools or product pages and take a qualifying action (such as requesting information, enrolling, or making a purchase)
• Lead generation — When students submit lead forms requesting information from schools, we may earn a fee from the school or an education marketing network for connecting the student with the program

Our service is completely free for students. You will never be charged by HVACSchoolGuide.com for using our matching service, browsing schools, or reading our educational content.

Our Affiliate Partners

We work with the following affiliate networks and partners:

We also maintain direct partnerships with individual HVAC training schools and programs. These partnerships may involve cost-per-click (CPC), cost-per-action (CPA), cost-per-lead (CPL), or revenue share compensation models.

How Affiliate Links Work

When you click a link on HVACSchoolGuide.com that leads to a partner school or product, the link typically contains a tracking parameter that identifies us as the referring source. This allows the affiliate network or school to credit us if you take a qualifying action. The process works as follows:

• You click a link on our site to a partner school or product
• We validate the destination URL against our approved domain whitelist for security
• A click event is recorded with anonymized data (no personally identifiable information is stored in click records)
• You are redirected to the partner's website with tracking parameters
• If you take a qualifying action, we may earn a commission

Clicking affiliate links does not increase the cost to you. Prices and enrollment terms are the same whether or not you use our links.

Lead Form Disclosures

Editorial Independence

Our editorial content is not influenced by our affiliate relationships. Specifically:

• Schools cannot pay for higher rankings in our matching algorithm
• Our matching algorithm scores programs based on objective factors: certification fit, geographic proximity, budget alignment, format match, quality metrics, and experience alignment
• We include schools in our directory regardless of whether they have an affiliate relationship with us
• Our educational content (certification guides, career paths, salary data, licensing requirements) is researched independently
• Negative information about schools (low graduation rates, lack of accreditation) is not suppressed due to affiliate relationships

How Our Matching Algorithm Works

For transparency, our program matching algorithm evaluates schools using six weighted factors:

• Certification fit (30 points) — How well the program's certifications match what you're looking for
• Geographic proximity (20 points) — Whether the school is in your state or offers online options
• Budget fit (15 points) — How well tuition aligns with your budget expectations
• Format match (15 points) — Whether the program offers your preferred format (in-person, online, or hybrid)
• Quality score (10 points) — Based on graduation rate, job placement rate, and accreditation
• Experience alignment (10 points) — Whether the program suits your current experience level

Bonus points are awarded for programs that include EPA 608 exam prep, NATE certification prep, tool kits, or financial aid availability. Affiliate status is not a factor in the matching algorithm.

Amazon Associates Disclosure

HVACSchoolGuide.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. When we recommend HVAC tools, textbooks, study guides, or equipment, we may include Amazon affiliate links.

Questions About Our Disclosures

If you have questions about our affiliate relationships, revenue model, or editorial practices, please contact us at disclosure@hvacschoolguide.com.