The Best Tech Brands for 2022

Spend enough time online and eventually, someone will ask you to rate something. In particular, a company may want you to rate it, or the products and/or services it provides. It's entirely likely you'll be asked to grade it from zero to 10, for how low or high you'd recommend it. Such grades are used to create a Net Promoter Score, or NPS*.

NPS, created by business strategist and author Fred Reichheld, tells a company or brand how the general public perceives it. The bigger the number, the more positive feedback the brand has. (Skip to the bottom for the full formula on creating an NPS.)

All year long, in our monthly Readers' Choice Awards and Business Choice Awards surveys, we always ask our readers if they'd recommend the brand of product or service they own and use, which we use to generate an NPS. That's how we built this list of the best tech brands going into 2022.

This year, we're truly concentrating on the brands rather than the giant list of categories. If you want to see the complete list of companies that got an NPS over 50—anything less isn't worth discussing—look below. But first check out which tech companies you should consider, no matter what the category.

*Net Promoter, Net Promoter Score, and NPS metrics are registered trademarks of NICE Satmetrix, Bain & Company, Inc., and Fred Reichheld.

1. Tesla

Say what you want about Elon Musk (some of us have opinions) and Tesla, but his car brand earns a Net Promoter Score of 92 with readers in our Connected Cars survey. That is the highest NPS of any brand received in our surveys this year. Plus, it's a point up from last year, which was the first time we asked readers to rate the connectivity in their automobiles. This makes it the highest NPS we've ever seen in any survey. The second highest result for a car is a comparatively paltry 65 NPS for Hyundai. In fact, of 13 car brands rated in our survey, only three (these two and Chevrolet) could manage an NPS over 50. Obviously, the people willing to pay a premium for a Tesla feel they're getting their money's worth enough to recommend the car—or in this case, its interior connectivity options, at least—extremely highly.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Connected Cars.

2. Synology

Synology appears twice in our Best Brand results, for Network Attached Storage Devices for home and for work. The company is a perennial winner in both. It has won the consumer recommendation for Best Brand every year we've done this, and this time with an 84 NPS, it almost finds its way back to its all-time high earned in 2017. Even on the work side, where it sees a big drop in score year-to-year (11 points, down to 64 NPS), it doesn't matter, because Synology is the only product in the category that people like enough to give a decent score (though this time around Western Digital wasn't far behind with a 59 NPS for work NAS). Either way we would say Synology is back on top, but even with lower scores, it's still the pinnacle.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Wireless Routers and Network Attached Storage and Business Choice 2021: Routers, Servers, and Network Attached Storage.

3. Bitdefender

If you use a comprehensive suite for security on your home computers—and you probably should—the brand on everyone's lips is Bitdefender. That 79 score for home use is fantastic. (Last year's winner was Webroot with an 87—that drops to 72 this year, putting Webroot as runner-up.) Bitdefender's security suite is also doing gangbusters on the business side, earning a 76 NPS for use at work. It's the only brand in that space to hobble over the 50 mark, in fact. There may be better-known security suites, but there is no suite with a higher recommendation from the masses.

For more, read Readers' Choice Awards 2021: Antivirus Software and Security Suites and Business Choice Awards 2021: Security Software.

4. Consumer Cellular

Last time, Google Fi stormed ahead of long-time winner Consumer Cellular with an NPS of 76 that was enough to win handily. But Consumer Cellular's 77 NPS this time not only puts it back on top, but Google stumbled to a 58, which puts Fi also behind Mint Mobile (74), Xfinity Mobile (67), and Spectrum Mobile (66). Simply put, readers love Consumer Cellular. They actually recommend any MVNO over the big three carriers in the US.

It's not limited to personal use. It turns out that consumer-focused Consumer Cellular—yes, it's right there in the name—gets plenty of business approval. Readers recommend it highly over the next two contenders (Xfinity Mobile at 65 and Spectrum Mobile at 67). Maybe this will change if last year's winner, Google Fi, makes the cut again next time for business use—but this time around, it doesn't. The big three used for work, much like at home, can't get an NPS high enough to bother looking at.

For more, read  Readers' Choice 2021: Mobile Phones, Operating Systems, and Wireless Carriers and Business Choice 2021: Mobile Phones, Operating Systems, and Wireless Carriers.

5. Malwarebytes

It's not unusual to see a vendor thrash the competition in our surveys in both home and work categories. What is unusual is when the higher score comes in for the business side. But Malwarebytes does exactly that this year with its standalone antivirus/security software. It manages a 77 NPS for work, up from the 68 NPS it had for the previous two years consecutively. (Previous winner Webroot fell from 81 to 59, a bad tumble to third place.) And Malwarebytes has a more than respectable 70 NPS for home use, the third year its score has gone up and the second year in a row it has won Best Brand. The next closest contender is Webroot at a 65 NPS.

For more, read Readers' Choice Awards 2021: Antivirus Software and Security Suites and Business Choice Awards 2021: Security Software.

6. TP-Link/Kasa Smart

It's smart to branch out and get some diversity in your product portfolio, especially if you're good at what you do. TP-Link is just that. This year, the company has the top NPS score in three categories. The highest is a 75 NPS for whole home mesh routers that blanket your house in Wi-Fi. Asus and Eero have great NPS scores of 64 and 70, but they couldn't beat the most bandied-about brand. The previous winner Google drops down to a low of 59.

But that's not all. TP-Link is also behind the Kasa Smart brand of devices for smart homes, and Kasa is the top brand recommended for smart lighting/bulbs (65 NPS) and smart plugs (59 NPS). Wyze won for lighting last time (and could again in the future if it returns to the rankings). But Kasa's been on top of plugs and power strips for three years running—it's the only smart plug maker with an NPS over 50 this go-round.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Wireless Routers and Network Attached Storage and Readers' Choice 2021: Smart Home Devices.

7. Ooma

This is the eighth year in a row that Ooma has been top ranked for business VoIP, even if the NPS scores it earns fluctuate like a voice on a bad internet connection. Thankfully, that doesn’t happen with Ooma's service. It once had an NPS of 89 back in 2018, and this year's score of 75 more than smashes the recommendation for any other brand. Only one other, RingCentral, could get above our required score of 50. Half of the VoIPs rated received a negative NPS score, making Ooma's rating all the sweeter.

For more, read Business Choice 2021: Voice Over IP (VoIP) Systems.

8. Sony

Want a new TV in 2022? Last year, the most highly recommended TVs (across all types) were from varied vendors, with TCL and LG taking the prizes. LG's 4K sets only beat Sony by a hair last year. But headed into 2022, the only name being bandied about as the set to buy, no matter the resolution, is Sony. It has a NPS of 74 for 4K-specific TVs, and a 69 across all TVs—the top Net Promoter score in both categories. The clear picture is to get a Sony set.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: TVs and Computer Monitors.

9. Apple

Apple never lacks for a high recommendation score in most of the categories in which it appears—the brand elicits loyalty unlike almost any other. This year, it is the top brand based on Net Promoter score in no less than six categories. Despite some lower numbers year-to-year, it's still on top for laptops (with a 72) and tablets (at 69); it's even higher for desktop systems, where it earns a 73 NPS. It wins the same categories on the business side, as well, all with lower numbers that are still more than enough to be the best in the categories.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Desktop PCs for Home and Gaming, and Readers' Choice 2021: Laptops and Tablets, plus  Business Choice 2021: Desktop PCs and  Business Choice Awards 2021: Laptops and Tablets.

10. Asus

Another vendor that hits in multiple categories, the Asus high NPS of this go-round belongs to its wireless routers, earning a 72. Asus has won Best Brand for wireless routers almost every year except for one. Its NPS score may fluctuate (a high of 73 to a low of 63), but it does little to change that people are recommending it for home Wi-Fi the most. It also happens to nab the high rating for work-based routers, with a lower 62. 

The lowest score it gets that's still enough to be worth recognition is a 53 NPS for gaming laptops. This is our first Best Brand rating for laptop gaming, but being so far below 80 even for a high score tells you people aren't busting down doors to laud their gaming laptops to others.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Laptops and Tablets, Readers' Choice 2021: Wireless Routers and Network Attached Storage, and Business Choice 2021: Routers, Servers, and Network Attached Storage.

11. Dell

For some reason, the really big tech companies that are household names don't always do well when it comes to recommendations with our readers. Dell's appearance is an exception. This year, it snags the highest NPS score for monitors at 71. Asus won this last year with a 69 NPS, and it still takes this year's Readers' Choice. But more people are recommending that you get a Dell. The company's screens win big with readers for setup, reliability, and ease of use—all things people will vouch for.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: TVs and Computer Monitors.

12. SimpliSafe

Despite a slip in its Net Promoter Score, from 79 to 70, SimpliSafe is still the darling of our readers with home security systems. The audience is willing to talk it up far more than the rest of the security systems that made the cut this year (Ring managed a 62 NPS, but the other—ADT—had a score below zero.) This year marks SimpliSafe's fourth as the Best Brand winner. It remains a top Editors' Choice pick for home security as well.

Recommended by Our Editors

The Best Tech Products of 2021

The Best Tech We Bought in 2021

The Best Electric Cars for 2024

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Home Security Systems, Cameras, Smart Locks, Video Doorbells.

13. NordVPN

It's interesting to see that while Private Internet Access (PIA) tends to win or tie for the win in our Readers' Choice, it has been a couple of years since it had an NPS high enough to get Best Brand. For example, this year, it ties with NordVPN to get the Readers' Choice —but Nord's 68 NPS is ahead of PIA's 64 and clinches the top spot. Going into 2022, NordVPN is the name bantered most by our readers. The same goes for the workplace, where the NordVPN service earns a 65 NPS, just ahead of ExpressVPN's 62. (Last year's winner, Private Internet Access, didn't have enough responses to be included.)

For more, read Business Choice 2021: VPN Services for Work and Readers' Choice Awards 2021: VPN Services.

14. Google Fiber

We get more brands rated in our Readers' Choice ISPs than any other, simply due to the diversity of our readership—not the diversity of choice they have, that's for sure. Yet Google Fiber, which is only available in 16 cities in the country, earns a huge recommendation from users. Maybe not as good as last year's 86 NPS, which was astronomical, but a 68 NPS is still far ahead of the next best (49 for Texas-based Grande Communications). Plus, it's the only ISP with a score over 50. Even Verizon Fios, which shared the Readers' Choice award with Google Fiber this past year, only manages a 40 NPS. Half the ISP brands rated have a negative NPS, which should tell you, and the ISPs out there, exactly how people feel about their broadband providers.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Internet Service Providers.

15. Brother

Brother Brother Brother...I could type the word over and over for paragraph after paragraph and it wouldn't come close to conveying how PCMag readers feel about the brand, and how highly they recommend it. Brother always dominates when it comes to reader opinions on printers for home or work, and this year is no different. Brother not only takes the highest score (a 67 NPS for home printers), but it also has the only NPS over 50 amid all the printer brands rated by readers. The same thing happened on the business side, where Brother has a 64 NPS. It seemed the competition was thick before, but going into 2022, Brother stands alone.

For more, read Readers' Choice 2021: Printers and Business Choice 2021: Printers.

The Full Recommendation List

Below, check out our complete list of all the brands. This isn't a list of every brand with a Net Promoter Score over 50, just those that had the highest NPS in each product/service sub-category. You can search at the top for categories, brands, or scores. Re-order the columns from high to low, or low to high, by clicking the header on each column. Click the category to link to the full Readers' Choice or Business Choice story.

How to Calculate a Net Promoter Score

When asked, "How likely is it that you would recommend this company to a friend or colleague?" respondents click on a scale of 0 ("Not at All Likely") to 10 ("Extremely Likely"). They are then categorized as a Promoter, Passive, or a Detractor:

• Promoters (score 9 or 10): Loyal enthusiasts who will keep buying and refer others. They are extremely likely to recommend getting more products or services from the vendor.

• Passives (score 7 or 8): Satisfied but unenthusiastic customers who are vulnerable to competitive offerings. They probably don't care about the company one way or the other.

• Detractors (score 0 to 6): Unhappy customers who can damage the brand and impede growth through negative word of mouth. These people are unlikely to recommend the company.

Passives get ignored. The final Net Promoter Score comes from subtracting the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters. So:

% Promoters - % Detractors = NPS

If there are numerous detractors, the number can even go negative—an NPS of less than zero. Note that an NPS itself is not a percentage (as we've accidentally depicted it in the past). It's a score between -100 (possible if every rating is a detractor) up to +100, derived from subtracting a percentage from a percentage.

NPS isn't perfect. It has plenty of critics. Some say the info gleaned from an NPS is not actionable. It's not like a company can actually "use" its NPS number to make things better for itself. However, a company that sees an increase in its NPS over time can infer it's doing something right. Those with high numbers—the kind represented in this story—are already doing plenty right.

The Best Tech Brands for 2021