Website Evaluation Form
Use the rubric below to evaluate a website.
Download this form to your computer and open with your PDF reader.
Student Name: Website Address: www.
Criteria Evaluation Techniques 0 points 1 point 2 points 3 points Score
• Is there a copyright or "last updated" date
Currency on the top/bottom of page?
There is no
indication of when
The date given for
the site’s creation is
The site has been
created or updated
The site has been
created or updated
• Are there any broken links? the site was created over 3 years old. within the last 3 within the last two
When was the
• Do you think it has current information or last updated. Some broken links. years. No broken years or less. No
information written & last
for doing research? Numerous broken links. broken links.
updated?
links.
Relevance • Does the website provide links to other There are no links There is a general There are a few links There are multiple
reliable sources (experts in the field)? to sources. statement about the to sources or a links to sources or a
Does the website provide
• Would you be comfortable using this source of the info, works cited list. works cited list AND
source for a research paper? but no links to they are from other
enough information for
someone researching sources. No works reliable sources.
this topic? cited.
This is a private The site is hosted The home page is
Authority • What is the domain (.edu, .com, .org, .net,
.gov)? individual's webpage,
The home page is
a .com, .org, .net by a known a government
• Is the author/source qualified to write on a .com (commercial with no affiliation business, department or
Was the information website), or comes
this topic? to a trustworthy professional agency, or the
produced by a from an unknown
source with no organization. association, society, domain is a .edu.
trustworthy, • Is it sponsored by a trustworthy
organization? affiliation to a or museum.
knowledgeable source?
trustworthy organization.
The site provides The site provides The site has spelling
Accuracy • Are there spelling or grammar errors?
• Where does the information come from
There are multiple
spelling/ information but does information from or grammatical
Is it reliable, truthful, or (the organization, experts in the field)? grammatical errors; not provide source. some reliable errors. All info is from
correct? not backed by research or experts. experts in the field/
reliable research or trustworthy sources.
experts in the field.
The purpose is to The site offers
Purpose • Who is the intended audience? Look in the
“About” tab or locate the “Mission
The purpose is
personal and/or to persuade or give a some factual
The purpose is to
support scholarly
What is the reason the Statement”. sell something. biased view. Focus information. research with factual
information exists? • Why was it written? is to promote Some bias and/or information.
• Does the information seem fairly something. advertising. Balanced without
represented or is it biased/one-sided? any bias.
Tally your points and enter the score here:
12 to 15 points: Excellent source for research.
0
8 to 11 points: Good source for research or academic project. Before using, confirm with other sources.
4 to 7 points: Useful for ideas or casual projects. Do not cite as a reference for a research paper or project.
0 to 3 points: Highly questionable source.
