Launch catalog / Playbook
ToolDirs
Conditional free route directory
Researched from public pages — no submission was run · sources read 2026-09-25. Rules change — recheck the platform's own pages before submitting.
What the free route requires
- Free listing requires adding a dofollow backlink to tooldirs.com in your website footer and displaying one of their badge embeds (dark/light/transparent variants provided on the pricing page)
- Free submissions are reviewed within 2 days
Requirements
- Tool, SaaS service, or software application (26 categories, AI/Directory/Productivity heavy)
- Description must be at least 500 characters (max 5000), markdown supported
- Tagline limited to 160 characters
- Logo required: PNG, JPG, WEBP or SVG, max 500kb
- Maximum 3 categories per listing
Prepare before opening the form
- Product URL (form has an AI auto-fill button that scrapes the page)
- Tagline <=160 chars and a 500+ character markdown description
- Logo file under 500kb; up to 4 screenshots under 5MB each
- Pricing model, platforms, up to 3 categories
- Optional: discount code, founded year, YouTube demo URL, GitHub repo, founder Twitter, affiliate program info
- For the free route: ability to edit your site's footer HTML to add the dofollow backlink/badge
Workflow
- Open https://tooldirs.com/submit
- Enter the tool URL and click the AI button to auto-fill the form
- Fill Tool Information step: name, tagline, description, logo, screenshots, categories, pricing model, platforms, optional fields
- Choose submission type on step 2: Free (badge/backlink) or paid ($9.99 one-time lifetime, or Featured $14.99/first month)
- If free: embed the badge code copied from the pricing page into your site footer, then submit
- Wait for review (free tier states review within 2 days) and confirm the listing appears at tooldirs.com/product/<slug>
Watch for
- The 'EARLY1' code on the pricing page offers 40% off the $9.99 one-time plan — the paid route is intentionally cheap to nudge you off the free/badge path
- FAQ questions about review time and edit-after-submission exist on the submit page but answers were not expanded in the fetched HTML
- Free tier requires the backlink to stay in your footer; removal likely delists you (standard for badge-gated directories, though ToolDirs' enforcement cadence is not documented)
What counts as live
A public product page at tooldirs.com/product/<slug> reachable without login, appearing in category listings and/or the homepage Latest section
Not verified
- Whether the badge/backlink is re-verified periodically and how removals are handled
- Exact review rejection criteria for the free tier
- Whether an account is required — the submit page showed a 'Sign In' link but the form itself appeared accessible