Launch catalog / Playbook
Startup Ranking
Conditional free route directory
Researched from public pages — no submission was run · sources read 2026-09-26. Rules change — recheck the platform's own pages before submitting.
What the free route requires
- Free submission exists but joins an approval queue the site itself describes as 80+ days — $25 (Basic) or $49 (Premium) buys 24-hour approval plus New Startups placement and newsletter exposure
Requirements
- Social login only — Google, Facebook, LinkedIn, or X (site says it takes name, email, picture)
- Submission flow starts at /startup/create/url-validation — the URL is validated before the form appears; /startup/submit is a 404
- Fields: startup name, legal name, 60-char slogan, country AND state/region (both required and public), URL, founding date, business type, industry, tags, description, socials, contact email, phone
- Ownership verification required: HTML file upload, tweet from the official handle, or domain email
- Paid upgrades: faster approval ($25/$49), SR Booster, SR Pro, SR Advertising
- Site sits behind a security interstitial/bot check on first visit
Prepare before opening the form
- A social account to log in with
- Region info — both country and state/region are required and shown publicly
- Verification route ready (HTML file to your server is fastest)
- Patience for the ~80-day free queue, or budget for the $25 skip
Workflow
- Log in with a social account at startupranking.com
- Click Create Startup -> /startup/create/url-validation and validate the URL
- Fill the registration form
- Verify ownership (HTML file / tweet / domain email) and claim
- Wait for approval — ~80+ days free, or pay for 24-hour review
Watch for
- Free queue is exceptionally long (~80 days per the site's own page) — plan accordingly
- State/region is mandatory and public — a con for founders wanting location privacy
- Conflicting third-party claims on dofollow vs nofollow links — treat as unknown
- Ranking metrics are based on web/social presence — a profile exists on their own terms
What counts as live
The startup profile is approved and public at startupranking.com with a link back to the site
Not verified
- Whether outbound links are dofollow (sources conflict)
- Actual current queue length
Sources
- Third-party flow documentation — submit starts at /startup/create/url-validation (URL check precedes the form); social login (Google/Facebook/LinkedIn/X); fields incl. name, legal name, 60-char slogan, country+state, URL, founding date, business type, industry, tags, description, socials, email, phone; free queue >80 days; $25/$49 faster approval in 24h (content read via search result; homepage behind bot check) ↗
- Third-party guide — ownership verification via HTML file upload, tweet from official handle, or domain email; 'Claim Startup' to publish (content read via search result) ↗
- ToS — paid services: SR Booster, SR Pro, SR Advertising (content read via search result) ↗