What gets ranked
Eight headline benchmarks, each with a 95% range.
NBA 2026–27Starts Oct 20
Leaderboard
Season standings for every graded tool, with 95% ranges. Grading starts on NBA opening night.
Grading starts on NBA opening night
The first graded slate is Tuesday, October 20. Results post to the results log after every slate. Tools are ranked once 20 slates are graded, expected in mid-November. Until then, every number is marked provisional.
First graded slateTue, Oct 20, 2026
Ranked after20 NBA slates
Leaderboard updatesWeekly
Results logAfter each slate
| # | Benchmark | What it measures | How it's scored | Better |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Beat-the-Baseline | Projection skill over a naive forecast | 1 − source error ÷ baseline error, same player pool | Higher |
| 2 | Points Accuracy | Average points missed per player | Mean absolute error in DK points, by position group | Lower |
| 3 | Rank Accuracy | Whether players were ordered correctly | Rank correlation of projected vs actual, within each position | Higher |
| 4 | Value Finder | Whether it found the slate's best values | Of the 10 best actual values (DK points per $1K), how many were in its top 20 projected values | Higher |
| 5 | Ownership Accuracy | Whether it knew the crowd | Mean absolute error in ownership %, reference GPP | Lower |
| 6 | Chalk Finder | Whether it spotted the most-owned players | Overlap of its top 5 projected ownership with the actual top 5 | Higher |
| 7 | % of Perfect | Same-engine lineup quality | Same-engine lineup points ÷ best possible lineup's points | Higher |
| 8 | Cash-Line Rate | Whether the lineup would have cashed | Share of slates the same-engine lineup beat the cash line | Higher |
Who's tested
The leading DFS tools, a house entry, Claude, and two simple baselines every tool should beat.
Tools Division
- SaberSimPending
- StokasticPending
- RotoGrindersPending
- FantasyLabsPending
Pending means awaiting the company’s consent. A tool is graded only after its company agrees. Any other DFS tool can apply under the same rules.
House entry
- The DFS KitchenHouse
Owned by DFS Benchmark's founders. Same rules, captured first, labeled House everywhere.
AI Division
- ClaudeAI
The same fixed prompt every slate, web search on, salary file attached.
Baselines
- Recent-form
- Salary
Recent form: last 10 games (NBA). Salary: salary × the slate's points per $1K.
How results are reported
- Ranges on everything. Each number carries a 95% range from resampling slates. A tool leads only when its range clears the next tool's; otherwise the row reads "Tied."
- Minimum sample. No row is ranked before 20 NBA slates.
- Labels. "—" means the tool doesn't offer it. "Declined" means the company declined. "Pending" means awaiting consent.
- Price context. Each tool's cheapest plan that covers what was graded, plus its cost per slate.
- Cadence. A results log posts after each slate is graded. The leaderboard updates weekly.
- Corrections. Grading errors are fixed publicly. Any company can request a review of a published result.
The DFS Benchmark Weekly
Standings changes, slate winners, the week's perfect lineups and the biggest form movers. Every Monday, starting after the first week of NBA grading.