Best Lawyers
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Use it free to find or vet a highly regarded attorney . the peer-review signal is real and has run since 1983.
New check
Comparison
Best Lawyers vs Avvo
Best Lawyers and Avvo both land on Depends.
Avvo
Depends
Confidence: Medium
Solo and small-firm lawyers should claim the free profile . it costs nothing and some attorneys report landing real client leads.
| Compare | Best Lawyers | Avvo |
|---|---|---|
| Verdict | Depends | Depends |
| Best for | Consumers vetting high-stakes attorneys | Solo attorneys building visibility |
| Who it's not for | Anyone buying software . it's a directory, not a tool | Lawyers burned by pay-to-play directories |
| Privacy | No known public vulnerabilities found in the sources reviewed.⁹ | 2019 account data breach is documented in breach-notification databases; no public security page found. |
| Support quality | No evidence found | No direct evidence in sources |
| Public sentiment | No independent user reviews of the guide itself were found; evidence is law-firm press releases touting their own inclusions.⁴ | Lawyers are split-to-negative: some land clients, but many complain about price hikes and questionable review trustworthiness.15 |
| Biggest gotcha | Listing is free, but fee-based firm profiles and logo licensing exist . ask prices up front⁴ | Lawyers report pricing rising every six months with little notice16 |
Pick Best Lawyers when
- Consumers vetting high-stakes attorneys
- In-house counsel shortlisting firms
- Big-firm marketing teams chasing credentials
When Best Lawyers is not a fit
- Anyone buying software . it's a directory, not a tool
- Solo lawyers expecting a paid listing to drum up clients
- Consumers wanting client reviews or fee data . peers vote, clients don't
- Small firms without an established peer network for nominations
Pick Avvo when
- Solo attorneys building visibility
- Consumers comparing local lawyers
- Firms with lead budget to test
When Avvo is not a fit
- Lawyers burned by pay-to-play directories
- Small firms with no ad budget
- Anyone expecting vetted, trustworthy reviews
- Firms wanting easy profile removal
Sources
- Best Lawyers . official homepagebestlawyers.comofficial
- Best Law Firms . official sitebestlawfirms.comofficial
news
review
news
- ABA Studies 'Super,' 'Best,' and Other Lawyer Rankingsnewyorklegalethics.comreview
- Burns White awards page (first published 1983)burnswhite.comnews
- Best Lawyers profile (founded 40+ years ago)rocketreach.coreview
- Best Lawyers security pagebestlawyers.comsecurity
- Troutman Pepper awards and recognitionstroutman.comnews
- Avvo.com - Legal. Easier.avvo.comofficial
- Avvo for Lawyers - Pricingavvo.comofficial
official
- Avvo is trash - r/LawFirmreddit.comreview
review