At a Glance
- •The full, maintained list of 111 startup directories is now on PostYourStartup.com, with Domain Rating, traffic, price, link type, filters and a free submission tracker.
- •If you only have time for a few, start with SourceForge, Product Hunt, Hacker News (Show HN), Indie Hackers and BetaList.
- •Most big directories give nofollow links, so submit for the users and feedback, not only the backlink.
- •Set up uptime monitoring before you launch so you know if your site goes down while launch traffic is arriving.
Startup directories are one of the cheapest ways to get your first users, early feedback and backlinks. The hard part is knowing which ones are worth your time, since many have little traffic or only give nofollow links.
This list has moved
The full list of 111 startup directories now lives on PostYourStartup.com
Every directory shows its Domain Rating, monthly traffic, price and whether it gives a dofollow link. You can filter the list and track where you've submitted with a free account.
See all 111 directories on PostYourStartup.com →Where to Post First
If you only have time for a few, start with these 13. They're the ones PostYourStartup rates "Post Here First", based on traffic, audience and how much they're worth for a new launch.
| Directory | DR | Traffic / mo | Price | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SourceForge | 93 | 4.2M | Free+ | Unknown |
| Product Hunt | 91 | 351K | Free | Nofollow |
| Hacker News (Show HN) | 91 | 63.5M | Free | Nofollow |
| Tech In Asia | 83 | 66K | Unknown | Unknown |
| Indie Hackers | 81 | 176K | Free | Nofollow |
| Peerlist | 77 | 209K | Free | Unknown |
| There's An AI For That | 77 | 1.6M | Paid | Unknown |
| BetaList | 76 | 26.3K | Free+ | Unknown |
| Toolify AI | 73 | 43.5K | Paid | Dofollow |
| Top AI Tools | 64 | <10K | Paid | Dofollow |
| AI Top Tools | 56 | 17.6K | Paid | Dofollow |
| AI Tools Directory | 50 | 15.4K | Free+ | Dofollow |
| Tool AI | 28 | 40.3K | Free+ | Nofollow |
DR is the Ahrefs Domain Rating. Free+ means a free listing with a paid upgrade. Data from PostYourStartup.com, November 2026.
After You Launch
A good directory launch sends a wave of visitors in a day or two. If your site is down or slow during that window, you lose them. Set up uptime monitoring before you submit so you hear about problems the minute they happen. Notifier checks your site every few minutes and alerts you by email, SMS, phone call, Slack or Discord, and the free plan covers 10 monitors.
