152 Dofollow Directories

Dofollow Startup Directories (2026)

Dofollow backlinks from high-DR directories are among the most impactful things a startup can do for long-term organic search performance. Unlike nofollow links, dofollow links pass PageRank — meaning each listing directly contributes to your domain's authority in Google's eyes. Of the 168+ directories tracked by backlinks.fyi, 152 offer dofollow links. Prioritizing these during your launch campaign gives you the strongest SEO foundation for compounding organic growth.

152

Dofollow Dirs

136

Free to Submit

DR 93

Top Score

Why Dofollow Links Matter for Startup SEO

Every backlink is either dofollow or nofollow. Dofollow links pass PageRank — Google's measure of a page's authority — to your domain. Nofollow links do not. For an early-stage startup building its domain authority from scratch, the distinction is significant.

A startup with 30 high-DR dofollow backlinks will typically outrank a competitor with 100 nofollow links in head-to-head searches, assuming comparable content quality. Directory submissions are one of the fastest ways to build a dofollow backlink profile because the submission process is standardized and repeatable — you're not waiting months for an editorial mention.

Of the 152 dofollow directories in the backlinks.fyi database, 136 are completely free to submit to. Start there.

All 152 Dofollow Startup Directories

Tired of managing submissions in a spreadsheet?

Join founders tracking their startup directory submissions, DR growth, and organic traffic automatically.

Get Started Free

Stop submitting in the dark.

Create a free account to track your submissions, get targeted recommendations, and measure your SEO growth accurately.

Start Tracking for Free →

Frequently Asked Questions

A dofollow backlink is a standard hyperlink that passes "link equity" (PageRank) from the linking site to your site. When a high-DR directory links to your startup with a dofollow link, Google treats that as a vote of authority for your domain. Nofollow links do not pass PageRank. For startups building their SEO foundation, prioritizing dofollow links in directory submissions gives you the strongest return on submission effort.

There's no magic number, but a targeted campaign of 20–30 high-DR dofollow submissions is typically enough to move your domain rating meaningfully — especially for early-stage startups starting from a low DR baseline. The impact compounds: each additional high-DR dofollow link adds incremental authority, which improves rankings across your entire site.

No — DR matters significantly. A dofollow link from a DR 90 directory is worth far more than one from a DR 20 directory. Prioritize high-DR dofollow directories first, then work down the list. Also consider topical relevance: a dofollow link from a directory that covers your product's category carries more topical authority signal than a generic link.

Dofollow links pass PageRank and are the most valuable for SEO. Nofollow links (rel="nofollow") tell Google not to pass PageRank — they have indirect SEO value through referral traffic and brand visibility but don't directly boost domain authority. Sponsored links (rel="sponsored") are a newer attribute indicating a paid relationship, and Google treats them similarly to nofollow. For directory submissions, dofollow is always preferred.

Related Filters