Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about our calculators, data privacy guarantees, unit pricing math, and productivity utilities.
1. Are all tools and calculators on Compare Value completely free?
Yes! Every calculator, unit pricing meter, regex data extractor, text sanitizer, and email generator on Compare Value is 100% free to use. There are no paywalls, hidden tier limits, or account registration requirements.
2. How is my financial and text privacy protected?
All calculation algorithms, regex extractions, and text formatters execute strictly within your web browser client (JavaScript engine). None of your entered financial figures, wage details, copied text, or extracted log data are ever transmitted to or stored on our servers.
3. What is shrinkflation and how do unit price calculators fight it?
Shrinkflation occurs when manufacturers reduce product package volume (e.g., from 16 oz to 14 oz) while keeping the retail price unchanged. By evaluating unit price per ounce, gram, or count, our calculators reveal the true cost per volume, preventing hidden price increases from hurting your budget.
4. How does the Cost Per Wear formula work?
The Cost Per Wear formula is: Purchase Price ÷ (Wears per Year × Years Owned). It determines the true utility value of clothing, shoes, and luxury goods. A high-quality $200 item worn 200 times ($1.00/wear) is far cheaper than a $40 cheap item worn only 10 times ($4.00/wear).
5. What is a True Hourly Wage and why is nominal salary misleading?
Nominal salary divides gross pay by 40 hours. However, your True Hourly Wage subtracts uncompensated commute time, gas, parking, work clothes, gear, and mandatory work prep. For many workers, hidden work expenses reduce their real hourly take-home pay by 15% to 30%.
6. How do small monthly subscriptions compound into wealth drain?
A $50/month collection of unused streaming, app, or gym subscriptions equals $600/year. If that same $50/month was invested in an index fund earning a standard 7% annual return, it would compound into over $8,600 in 10 years and over $26,000 in 20 years.
7. Do the text utilities (Data Extractor, Text Cleaner, Table Transformer) store my data?
No. Like our financial calculators, all text processing happens entirely offline in your local browser runtime memory. Your raw text, log dumps, server IPs, or CSV data never leave your browser window.
8. What formulas are used for retirement portfolio projections?
We use the standard compound interest future value formula: FV = P(1 + r/n)^(nt) + PMT × [((1 + r/n)^(nt) - 1) / (r/n)], compounding monthly based on your specified rate of return and timeline.
9. How does the Impulse Buy Wait rule work?
The Impulse Buy calculator applies a scaled cooling-off period (1 hour of waiting per $3 of item price). Pausing before non-essential purchases allows emotional buying urges to cool down, drastically reducing buyer's remorse.
10. How can I contact the Compare Value team?
For tool feature requests, feedback, or inquiries, reach out to us anytime at [email protected].