A WeTheNorth vendor page shows several numbers. Not all of them are equally useful. This is the two-minute read.
Dispute ratio
Dispute count divided by total orders. A vendor with 400 orders and 3 disputes runs at 0.75 percent. A vendor with 400 orders and 40 disputes runs at 10 percent.
Below 5 percent is healthy. 5 to 10 percent is a yellow flag (read recent reviews before ordering). Above 10 percent is a red flag except for categories where higher baselines are normal.
Finalisation ratio
Orders that closed cleanly divided by all completed orders. Above 95 percent is healthy. Below 90 percent means one in ten orders required moderator arbitration, worth investigating.
The last twenty reviews
Scroll to the bottom of the reviews. Read the last twenty. If they are noticeably worse than the older reviews, the vendor is going through something. Read the review text, not just the star rating. Look for consistent complaint patterns (stealth quality, shipping delays, weight, potency).
PGP key
Every vendor should have a published PGP key. If they do not, skip them. If they do, import it before placing an order so you can encrypt your shipping address to it.
Average shipping time
Calculated from recent orders. If the vendor's baseline is 2-3 days and current orders are running at 5-7 days, something changed. Read the recent reviews to see why.
What to ignore
Lifetime star average. Individual glowing five-star reviews from unknown accounts. Vendor's own text about how careful their packaging is. None tell you anything.
Two minutes total
Dispute ratio, finalisation ratio, recent reviews, PGP key, shipping time. Two minutes on a vendor page saves a week of dispute mail.