Directories are half the picture. Reddit is the other half. We scanned 30 days of post + comment activity across promo-tolerant subreddits to figure out which ones actually let you drop a link and which ones mod it out. Volume = posts per day on page-one scroll. Link density = share of those posts that include an external product URL. For the deep playbook on how to actually post in each of these subs (titles, timing, warm-up, mod relations), read the Reddit SEO guide.
Every post is a product URL. Highest velocity on Reddit.
Mix of promo + discussion. Direct product links accepted.
Effectively required to link your build.
Explicit "looking for testers" format with product links.
Update posts + product launches both welcome.
OSS / devtools only. GitHub links required.
Lower volume but every post is there to be roasted.
MRR posts, stories, product links — all fair game.
Lower velocity than SideProject but link-friendly.
Discussion-leaning. Links allowed but not the focus.
Curated, low volume. Quality bar is higher.
Mostly discussion. Tool shares accepted, not the focus.
r/startupsMods enforce "I will not promote" on every post title. Promo posts removed.r/EntrepreneurDirect product links rare. Promo is gated to weekly megathreads.r/ShareYourBusinessReturned zero results in the scan. May be inactive, banned, or renamed.Even subs that mod out promo posts (r/Entrepreneur, r/startups) still tolerate product mentions inside comments — especially on “what tools do you use” threads. These subs reliably see comment-side link-drops in feedback or roundup threads:
TRADE-OFF:r/SideProject has the highest velocity but your post drops off page one in under an hour. r/InternetIsBeautiful curates ~3 posts per week but each one stays visible for days. Pick by goal — burst attention vs sustained reach.
Start with everything tagged HIGH. Those are the platforms that drive actual buyer traffic, not just backlinks. Capterra, GetApp, G2, Product Hunt, and Wellfound do more than the next 30 combined for most SaaS. Once those are done, the MEDIUM tier is fair game on a slow week.
Less than dofollow, but they're not worthless. Google has been clear since 2019 that nofollow is a hint, not a hard rule. Many high-DA nofollow listings (Crunchbase, G2, Trustpilot) still pass weight and they reliably send referral traffic. Submit anyway.
A paid listing or paid review. Worth it only on platforms where buyers actively search the directory (Tekpon, some niche AI tool sites). Skip for early-stage where attention is the bottleneck, not budget.
Some platforms will email you. Most won't. Use a dedicated submission alias (`hello+listings@yourdomain.com`) when signing up. Unsubscribe later if a particular directory's emails are noise.
No reason to. Real submissions take 5-20 minutes each (account creation, screenshots, copy variants). Doing 3-5 a day for a month is more sustainable and lets you A/B headlines as you go.
Submission days suck. We run distribution as a service for AI companies — listings, Reddit, GEO, all in one motion. 15-minute call, no pitch deck.