Directory submission statistics
What the 74 SaaS, startup, and AI directories in our public catalog actually offer: link type, cost, approval difficulty, and authority. Every number on this page is calculated from the live catalog, so it updates whenever we add or re-check a directory.
- Give a followed link
- 53%
- Free to join
- 91%
- Median Domain Rating
- 74
- Easy to get approved
- 46%
- Dofollow39 (53%)
- Nofollow30 (41%)
- Mixed5 (7%)
- Free32 (43%)
- Free with paid extras35 (47%)
- Paid only7 (9%)
- Easy34 (46%)
- Moderate27 (36%)
- Hard13 (18%)
- DR 90+7 (9%)
- DR 80–8912 (16%)
- DR 70–7936 (49%)
- DR 60–6914 (19%)
- Under DR 605 (7%)
- Category discovery30 (41%)
- Buyer research (review sites)23 (31%)
- Launch platforms16 (22%)
- Communities5 (7%)
- directory20 (27%)
- ai17 (23%)
- launch16 (22%)
- saas14 (19%)
- reviews14 (19%)
- startup11 (15%)
- software10 (14%)
- b2b8 (11%)
What the numbers mean for founders
Most directories are cheap to try: 91% cost nothing to join, and 16 are both free and give a followed link. The free dofollow directory list shows them all. The trade-off is effort. Review sites such as G2 and Capterra are among the hardest approvals and often use nofollow links, but they reach buyers who are comparing vendors.
Authority is high across the board: the median directory has a Domain Rating of 74. That measures the directory, not your listing page, so weigh audience fit and link type before chasing DR. The high-DR directory list ranks the strongest ones.
11directories ask for a badge or backlink in return for a listing or faster review. Check each directory's submission guide for its current terms.
Method
The catalog covers 74directories that accept SaaS, startup, or AI tool listings. Domain Rating is the Ahrefs figure from August 2026. Link type, pricing, requirements, and difficulty come from each directory's own submission pages; 49directories have been re-checked recently and show a "last checked" date on their guide. Link attributes can change without notice.
Cite this page
You're welcome to use these figures. Please link to this page: SubmitToDirectories, "Directory submission statistics", https://www.submittodirectories.org/research/directory-submission-statistics
Get the full list as a spreadsheet
All 74 directories with submission URL, Domain Rating, link type, pricing, approval difficulty, and requirements. Opens in Excel, Numbers, or Google Sheets.
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