Freemium mobile app directories, in short
Freemium is the most common model here: get listed for nothing, then pay to skip the queue, remove a badge requirement, or turn a nofollow link into a dofollow one. The free tier is usually worth taking first to see what the traffic looks like.
Freemium directories, defined
A freemium directory lets you list for nothing and charges for something extra: skipping the review queue, a position near the top of a category, removing a badge requirement from your own site, or converting a nofollow link to dofollow. It is the most common model on this list by a wide margin.
The upgrade is usually framed as speed, but what you are really buying is placement. On a directory where browsing stops after the first two rows, that distinction decides whether the listing does anything at all.
By the numbers
These 4 directories have a median rating of DR 37. The strongest is Dofollow Tools at DR 73, the weakest at DR 32. 3 pass a dofollow link.
That is 21 points below the median for the full list of 175 directories, which sits at DR 58. By band that is 1 rated 60 to 79, 1 rated 40 to 59 and 2 rated below 40. 3 of them have no traffic estimate at all, which usually means too little to measure rather than none.
What a listing actually gets you
App directories will not move your store ranking, which is driven by installs, retention and reviews. What they do is create indexable web pages about an app that is otherwise invisible to search engines, which is the single biggest discovery problem mobile products have.
They also reach the people who research on a laptop and install later, a larger group than most app teams expect, and one that store optimisation cannot touch at all.
Submitting without wasting the evening
Submit the store link, not a landing page, and check which stores the directory covers before you start: several accept iOS only. Screenshots from the store listing usually transfer over, so get those right in the store first and the directory work becomes copy and paste. Include the size, the minimum OS version and whether there is a free tier, because those are the three filters app directories most often expose.
Common mistakes
Upgrading before the free listing has had time to produce a number. Paying for a dofollow link on a directory nobody visits, which is buying the least valuable half of the offer. And missing that the free tier requires a badge, then getting delisted for not adding it.
Where to start
2 approve quickly, Dofollow Tools and Startup.sx among them.
Questions people ask
How many are there, and what do they cost?
4 directories match on this page. 0 take a submission for nothing, 4 run a free tier with paid upgrades, and 0 charge for every listing.
Which should I submit to first?
By rating, Dofollow Tools (DR 73), Next Launch (DR 40) and A1 Gallery (DR 34). By audience, A1 Gallery is the largest at 45K visits a month. Relevance beats both: a directory that actually covers what you built will do more than a stronger one that does not.
What does the paid tier normally add?
Most commonly: skipping the review queue, removing a badge requirement, a position near the top of a category, and turning a nofollow link dofollow. Which of those you get varies per site, so check before paying.
Should I pay straight away?
Rarely. The free tier tells you what the audience is worth to you, and that number is the only sensible basis for deciding what the upgrade is worth.
Is freemium better than free?
It gives you more options, which is not the same as being better. A free-only directory with real traffic beats a freemium one without it, every time.
What is an app directory?
A curated index of mobile applications, usually linking to the App Store or Play Store and organised by platform and category. Most carry store screenshots and a short description rather than a full review.
Why are there so few app directories here?
Because most of the larger directories assume a web product with a visitable URL. Anything that only exists behind a store link is out of scope for them, which leaves a much shorter list than the main table suggests.
Do app directories help with App Store ranking?
Not directly. Store ranking responds to installs and retention. What a directory gives you is a web page about your app that search engines can index, which is where most of an app's discoverable surface area otherwise does not exist.
Every figure quoted above is read off the table on this page, so it moves as the list does. Domain rating and traffic are third-party estimates captured in September 2026: useful for ordering a shortlist, not precise figures.