WhatHi-Fi

What WhatHi-Fi does

What Hi-Fi? is a consumer electronics review and buying-guide brand founded in 1976 and operated by Future Publishing Limited, a subsidiary of the publicly listed UK media group Future plc. It produces expert reviews, curated Best Buys lists, and deal alerts across categories including hi-fi (stereo amplifiers, turntables, speakers, DACs, music streamers), headphones (wireless earbuds and over-ears), TVs and home cinema (OLED/Mini LED TVs, soundbars, projectors, AV receivers), and streaming hardware and services. The editorial product is distributed through four localized regional editions (UK, US, Canada, Australia) and across multiple channels including a website, weekly email newsletter, RSS feed, forums, an official Reddit community, social platforms (Facebook, X, WhatsApp, Pinterest, Flipboard), and embedded video and podcast content.

The underlying technology is a review and content platform with a product recommendation engine built around proprietary editorial features: a five-star rating system, 'Best Buys' curated categories, and a multi-regional publishing architecture. A dedicated team conducts testing in custom-built rooms across London, Reading, and Bath. The price-tracking capability checks more than 250 million products daily to support deal content. The product surface spans the core website, an annual Awards program, monthly print and digital magazine subscriptions sold through Magazines Direct (£59.49/year in the UK and $27.99 in the US), and community engagement via forums and a subreddit.

What Hi-Fi? monetizes through three interlocking streams: affiliate referral commissions when readers purchase via retailer links (Amazon, Best Buy, Richer Sounds and others), display advertising on the website and in the magazine, and recurring magazine subscriptions. The brand serves consumers making considered purchase decisions across the audio and home-entertainment categories, with hi-fi enthusiasts and home-cinema buyers identified as the primary use-case segments and headphone buyers and deal-seekers as adjacent segments. Headcount is disclosed at 51–100 employees, including an editor-in-chief, deputy editor, category editors (Hi-Fi, TV/AV), managing editor, technical editor, senior staff writers, staff writers and a contributor.

Name

WhatHi-Fi

Legal name

Future Publishing Limited

Website

https://whathifi.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1976

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

What Hi-Fi? is a 1976-founded consumer-electronics review and buying-guide brand operated by Future plc, publishing expert reviews, Best Buys, and deal alerts across hi-fi, headphones, TV, and home cinema for consumers in the UK, US, Canada, and Australia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Affiliate Marketing: What Hi-Fi? earns commissions when readers purchase products through affiliate links to retailers like Amazon, Best Buy, and other merchants. The site transparently discloses: 'When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.'
2. Magazine Subscriptions: Print and digital magazine subscriptions sold through Magazines Direct, priced at £59.49/year in UK and $27.99 in US
3. Advertising: Display advertising on the website and in the magazine edition, with dedicated sales team for advertising inquiries

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

What Hi-Fi? provides independent, expert reviews and buying advice for consumer electronics products spanning hi-fi equipment, headphones, TVs, home cinema, and streaming hardware. The core offering combines editorial reviews, curated Best Buys guides, and deal alerts across regional editions of a website, complemented by a monthly print and digital magazine subscription.

Product overview

What Hi-Fi? is a consumer electronics review and buying guide platform operated by Future plc. It offers a unified content platform providing expert product reviews, curated best-buy recommendations, and deal alerts across multiple categories including hi-fi (stereo amplifiers, turntables, speakers, DACs, music streamers), headphones (wireless/wired earbuds and headphones), TVs and home cinema (OLED/Mini LED TVs, soundbars, projectors, AV receivers), and streaming services. The company also publishes a monthly magazine and operates an annual Awards program. The platform serves consumers through regional editions (UK, US, Canada, Australia) and maintains forums for community engagement.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• What Hi-Fi? Website Consumer electronics review and buying guide website providing expert reviews, curated Best Buys, and deal alerts across hi-fi, headphones, TVs, home cinema, and streaming categories, with dedicated regional editions for UK, US, Canada, and Australia audiences.
• What Hi-Fi? Magazine Subscription Print and digital monthly magazine subscription delivering in-depth hi-fi and home entertainment buying advice to subscribers, priced at £59.49/year in the UK and $27.99/year in the US.

Quantifiable outcome

• Reviews over 250 million products daily for price comparison

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• CNET: CNET is a leading global consumer technology review and buying guide site with affiliate commerce, very directly comparable in audience, monetization model, and category coverage (TVs, audio, home entertainment) to What Hi-Fi?.
• The Verge: The Verge is a major consumer tech publication covering reviews, buying guides, and product news with commerce integrations, directly comparable to What Hi-Fi? in editorial-to-affiliate content model and global reach.
• Tom's Guide: Tom's Guide is a consumer technology review and buying advice site operated by Future plc itself; it is a sister brand covering overlapping categories (TVs, audio, home entertainment) and a near-perfect functional and operational peer to What Hi-Fi?.
• Wirecutter: Wirecutter (NYT) is an affiliate-driven product review and recommendation site, very comparable in business model (editorial + affiliate commerce), curation style, and audience intent to What Hi-Fi?.
• RTINGS.com: RTINGS.com is a data-driven, scientifically tested consumer electronics review site with deep coverage of TVs, headphones, and speakers — a direct peer in the same product review-and-buying-guide category as What Hi-Fi?.
• Trusted Reviews: Trusted Reviews is a UK-based consumer technology review and buying guide site with affiliate monetization, directly comparable in market, audience, and editorial-to-commerce model to What Hi-Fi?.
• TechRadar: TechRadar is a global consumer technology review and buying guide site operated by Future plc; it is a direct sister-brand peer covering overlapping categories (hi-fi, TVs, streaming) with the same affiliate-led monetization.

Broad incumbents

• Crutchfield: Crutchfield is a large US consumer electronics retailer with deep editorial content, buying guides, and expert advice across audio, TV, and home theater — a broader incumbent with overlapping content-plus-retail model to What Hi-Fi?.

Emerging players

• AVS Forum: AVS Forum is a long-running community-driven audio/video enthusiast forum with extensive product discussion and reviews — a peer in audience overlap and audio/TV buying decision influence, though it is community- rather than editorially led.
• SoundGuys: SoundGuys is a specialized audio-focused review site with affiliate-driven content; comparable to What Hi-Fi?'s audio (headphones, earbuds, hi-fi) vertical, but narrower in category scope and a smaller, more niche audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/whathifi
• Xx.com/whathifi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WhatHi-Fi