I wanted to make a list for myself containing the best web directories currently available on the Internet. The list is updated on a regular basis. Then I decided to publish it, as maybe some other webmasters could make use of it as well. The table is ordered by Seomoz' Domain Authority however each column is sortable, by clicking those small arrows. I am going to update the list every 2-3 months. In addition to this table, which is purely based on metrics, meanwhile I compiled a list of best web directories based purely on editorial discretion (these directories are way more useful to the end-user and Google than numbers).
There are some extraordinary, best directories, however website owners can not suggest a resource by any mean. These are:
| Directory | TF | MR | DA | Alexa | Age | Price | ED |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| business.com | 75 | 6.40 | 75 | 24,733 | 19 | $299,00 | 10 |
| botw.org | 65 | 5.60 | 65 | 206,252 | 20 | $299,00 | 10 |
| ezilon.com | 43 | 5.60 | 66 | 22,680 | 8 | $199,00 | 9 |
| avivadirectory.com | 60 | 5.30 | 54 | 945,607 | 11 | $149,95 | 9 |
| elib.org (1) | 38 | 5.10 | 49 | 2,211,801 | 17 | $99,00 | 4 |
| dirjournal.com | 59 | 5.20 | 57 | 802,274 | 10 | $159,95 | 8 |
| joeant.com | 44 | 5.50 | 56 | 757,133 | 15 | $39,99 | 7 |
| abilogic.com | 51 | 5.60 | 61 | 225,957 | 12 | $39,99 | 7 |
| alivedirectory.com | 51 | 4.90 | 49 | 107,120 | 10 | $149,95 | 9 |
| mygreencorner.com | 31 | 4.65 | 44 | 85,351 | 9 | $19,00 | 4 |
| jasminedirectory.com | 61 | 5.10 | 59 | 16,273 | 9 | $115,00 | 9 |
| goguides.org | 45 | 5.1 | 49 | 958,577 | 13 | $69,95 | 4 |
| gimpsy.com | 49 | 5.00 | 47 | 1,201,926 | 10 | $49,00 | 9 |
| incrawler.com | 39 | 4.57 | 41 | 295,005 | 12 | $24,95 | 5 |
| skaffe.com | 42 | 4.90 | 44 | 486,301 | 12 | $44,99 | 8 |
| 01webdirectory.com | 34 | 5.00 | 47 | 783,743 | 14 | $49,00 | 6 |
| stpt.com | 51 | 4.50 | 57 | 197,512 | 18 | $99,00 | 9 |
Notes:
(1). Chiff.com accepts only informational sites... but it's filled with Google Ads so it's very confusing for a visitor.
I couldn't find any way to suggest a website to this directory so it has been removed from the list.(1). Elib.org accepts only shopping related websites.
For a better user experience, I've highlighted with DARK RED prices that are recurring/year (and if that's the only option they offer).
Important: I decided to highlight with ORANGE all the Alexa values beyoung the 1 million mark. It's not a bad thing, but I doubd those directories can deliver visitors. Homefully, they'll improve over time because I really care about this best web directories list a lot.
Updates (Last update took place on June 9, 2019)
MOZ updated their old Open Site Explorer and replaced it with Link Explorer whichm according to them, is more accurate. Currently it is available for MOZ subscribers ($99/month). The old Open Site Explorer won't be updated anymore. So quite a few surprizes here. I've done some research and I saw blogs jumping from DA 50 (old OSE) to DA 71 (the new Link Explorer), so, MOZ has changed their algo.
directory.v7n.com is offline for some time now, so it has been removed from the list. Eventually, it will be re-added when and if it will come back online.
Unfortunately, some of the directories I've been monitoring since the creation of this comparison table, lost in key areas like Alexa (meaning they get little to no traffic... so, regardless of all the other metrics in the future It is fair to remove from the list those directories... since a directory is not just another website where from someone can get a link).
Update 02/25/2017
Well, during these three years many (important) things striked and made the Internet less interesting without two of the best web directories: Yahoo's Directory and DMOZ. I really feel sorry for DMOZ, maybe because I spent some of my spare time editing. AOL took the domain name, however the content belongs to the editors and metas. The internal forums were transferred to Curlie.org, a static (official) mirror of the Open Directory Project is located at DmozTools, there a few more mirrors. So I'm kind of optimistic. :)
Yes, "Humans still do it better". It's true even in the web directory industry. To be honest, there are very few quality web directories managed to keep their reputation, power and usefulness. And, as I always stated, the secret is simple: best web directories apply a strong editorial discretion.
So, today I updated DA, MR, BL, Alexa, removed from the list DMOZ and Yahoo's Directory. I also removed Starting Point Directory because it seems that they abandoned the idea of what a web directory means (for example, in the Internet category they have only... two listings.) Since PageRank doesn't exist anymore (fortunately for some, unfortunately for others) I decided to replace it with Trust Flow (Majestic's most important website quality metric tool). I also decided to remove from my list spam directories (aka. directories where anyone can get in paying a fee).
Removing webworldindex.com from the list because returns a 404 error and there is no page indexed by Google.
Removing wowdirectory.com - parked domain.
Out of curiosity, I created a chart to compare DA vs. price. I added only the top 10 DA descending directories.
Update 05/22/2013
Updated DA, MR, BL, Alexa.
Still in the process of reviewing quality directories, however, I won't include in this list directories with very low editorial discretion despite their high metrics.
Update 12/07/2013
Updated PR and DA.Update 11/17/2013
Amray.com added to the list.Second Update 10/03/2013
A few directories with very low editorial discretion were removed, some others were added in place.
Update 10/03/2013
After changing a couple impression with a few fellow web directory owner, especially the ones that maintain a best web directory list or more, the EDITORIAL DISCRETION was the main topic.
Editorial discretion refers to the web directory owners that apply a certain level of control, over what can be listed and what is not. This is what makes a web directory useful for users. We see every day web directories, even "reputable" old web directories, listing any type of submission they receive after paying a review fee which in most cases is a guaranteed paid link fee, which violates Google's Webmaster Guidelines.
So, I marked each value of the already added column of ED, with different colours. No one can say that this or that is a list of best directories. Every single one has a limit of subjectivity. I reviewed every directory listed in this table and noted the editorial discretion from 1-10. You may sort the table by any value you want, but keep in mind, that a listing in a bad web directory, that applies no editorial discretion, may harm you because basically you'll be surrounded by pure junk.
More directories will be analysed and added instead of those with very low level editorial discretion value. I do not want to promote junk. Simple as that.
I hope I haven't offended anyone, I know that webmasters want they pure keywords as titles, I know that they submit "the best" and "the leading" businesses, I know that many of you won't refunt that $20 even if the submitted website is crap, but a web directory is a resource of odjective useful information resource, not a "hey, give me $10, look, my domain is from 2000, submit now!!!!"
The table is sortable. Some may put more weight on Domain authority, others on domain age, others on PR, others on Editorial discretion and so on. I can't be a captain saying that "this" or "that" weights more when we talk about a few web directories that worth submitting our websites to.
Update 09/12/2013
worldsiteindex.com, unfortunately, had a PR drop from 5 to 2.
Update 04/07/2013
- Table sort functionality has been added to the best web directories list. The default onload sorting is by Domain Authority.
- Since Google highlighted many times that web directories with no editorial discretion (directories without any editor, where any kind of website is accepted if the review fee is paid) are treated in the same manner as link selling websites we considered beneficial to add a new column to address this matter. This metric, to some extent, is a subjective one. We noted the ED of each directory with a value between 1 (very low editorial discretion) and 10 (very high quality editorial discretion). We visited few crowded categories from each and every directory to figure out if they are using any sort of editorial discretion or if they publish any listing with those well-known "buy now", "the best", "leading SEO company", "guaranteed results" aggressive sales pitches.
Update 01/14/2013
Ask-dir.com has been removed from the list since they don’t seem to care their website is not functioning. Findelio.com has been added instead.
Update 01/09/2013
(*) pegasusdirectory.com: although it has a nice profile (links, MozRank, PageAuthority) it has only a PR of 2, which is a bit fishy in my opinion. I thing Google penalised them for some reason.
(**) site-sift.com: their PR dropped from 5 to 0. This, alone, is a solid warning that something happened with their website.
(***) ask-dir.com: Currently, their website is bugged, and visitors can see only a bug in their functions.php file. Their PR dropped from 4 to 0 all of a sudden.
Mozrank vs. Pagerank
The MOZ guys say that mozrank represents "a link popularity score. It reflects the importance of any given web page on the Internet". Many have speculated that mozRank can be compared with Google's well known Page Rank.
As you can see, for the first few top directories the two values are almost the same, but as we go to the list end there is a difference between the two values. There are many things we could, perhaps, discuss about attempting to answer why this difference is noticeable for web directories positioned in the second half of the list. I think that the number of backlinks is the answer: the higher the numbers of links, the two metrics that measure the same (using different methods) are less likely to be different.
Submission (review) price vs. Page Rank
In regard to price, I looked for the lowest possible submission fee for each directory listed. Of course, for featured listings, extra 3-5 backlinks, etc. the price goes higher. Only two directories from this list accept free submissions: DMOZ and Pegasus Directory.
It is hard to say if Yahoo's directory and Business.com are worth their fees of $299 per year each even if we all know that they're some of the best web directories. That's 600 bucks in just a single year. The main question is, will your website really benefit enough from these two links to have a ROI? I certainly would not recommend them for starter websites. Anyway, the decision is yours.
Are people paying for quality?
In my opinion, the Domain Authority value, as it's determined by Seomoz, is actually quite accurate. The more quality links you have for authority websites, the more your website's authority will then grow. It's logical, right?
Now, when it comes to the price that all of us need to pay when we submit our websites to various directories, we really should use some quality metrics and basic common sense. I mean, someone who has a bad directory cannot charge a very high price and call it a "review fee". So, it is best to actually know how you spend your money, even when it comes to the strongest directories.