Project Analysis

How we grade projects

We help you understand code and programming from a non-technical perspective. There’s a lot of variation in the quality of coding. We benchmark your software against thousands of projects, and tell you what you can do to improve quality, or whether your improvements are having an impact.

We analyse code for structural quality with focus on maintainability. We compare your project with other projects written in the same programming language and similar size - lines of code (LOC). Our ranking is based on proportion of highly unmaintainable code to the total size of your project.

For example, let's assume 30% of 100K lines of your code is highly unmaintainable (cyclometic complexity over 30 or function size over 100 LOC) and it is written in Java. We compare your project to other Java project of similar size, then we sort the projects. Let's say there are 500 other Java projects which has less than 30% of their code unmaintainable and there is another 500 other Java projects which has more than 30% of their code unmaintainable. You are in the middle, which makes your project graded as Level 3.

We use 5 levels grading system. Level 1 projects are the lowest structural quality, Level 5 projects are the highest quality.

Level 1

A lot of patch work and bandages, project is most likely in initial stage of development. Most of source code is highly unmaintainable and feels a bit chaotic. It is good starting point, but plenty of work ahead. Don't give up yet!

Level 2

Source code is still low quality, however there are places of fine gems to be found. Project feels more managed, however refactoring should be at the top of the agenda to keep the project maintainable. Keep up the good work!

Level 3

Congratulations! Project's source code is of medium structural quality. Depending on your needs it might be good enough to get you to your destination. It is most likely a bit bumpy ride, however it gets you there. Some refactoring would help you to fly and lower the risk of potentially higher maintenance costs.

Level 4

Great work! You have built a quality flying machine. There are still pockets of lower quality code, however it won't prevent you from getting fast to where you need to be. Project's maintenance costs are under control.

Level 5