In late September 2026 we put Chirag Digital on five free business listing sites: Clutch, GoodFirms, Sulekha, Bing Places and DesignRush. One went live in two days. One went into a long admin review. One needed emails to support to fix. One is still waiting for verification, and one we could not start yet. Here is what each site asked for, what actually happened, and which ones we would suggest to a small business owner.

Why bother with listing sites at all?

These profiles are citations: other places on the web that repeat your business name, address and phone number. Google and Bing use them to confirm that you are a real business. Most links from these sites are nofollow, so this is not about backlinks. It is about trust, and sometimes about customers who search on these sites directly. We covered the basics in our guide to local SEO citations.

1. Clutch: live in two days

What it asked for: company name, logo, website, services, a short description, team size and a price range.

What happened: they said the review would take 7 to 10 days. Our profile was approved in two. It now shows "Not yet reviewed", which is normal for a new profile.

What to know:

  • Clutch offers a paid "Verified" badge. We skipped it. The free profile works fine.
  • The website link goes through a redirect marked nofollow. Treat it as a trust signal, not an SEO link.
  • Reviews on Clutch are verified interviews with real clients. They carry weight, but you have to ask a client to give their time.

Worth it? Yes, for agencies and B2B services. Not very useful for a shop.

2. GoodFirms: a slow admin review

What it asked for: much the same as Clutch, plus services, pricing and portfolio details. A completeness meter shows how much is filled.

What happened: we registered on 30 September. The profile reached 60% complete and went into an admin review before it could go public.

What to know: treat it as a one-time task. Fill what you can, submit, and check back after a couple of weeks instead of waiting on it.

Worth it? For agencies, yes, as a second B2B directory. For shops, skip it.

3. Sulekha: useful, but a messy setup

What it asked for: a mobile number with OTP login, business name, category, area, photos and a cover image.

What happened:

  • The area you pick at signup gets locked. The dashboard had no field to change it, so we had to email Sulekha support.
  • Some service labels are Sulekha's own groups and cannot be edited.
  • Our mobile number had been used by someone else before. The Sulekha user account on that number still belonged to the previous owner.

What to know: choose your locality carefully at signup. Before you start, check that your number is not already tied to an old account.

Worth it? Yes, for local service businesses such as tutors, repair services and event vendors, where customers search on Sulekha directly.

4. Bing Places: created, not yet published

What it asked for: business name, category, address, phone and website. There is also an option to import your listing from Google Business Profile.

What happened:

  • We created the listing by hand.
  • Bing has no "SEO agency" category, so we chose marketing agency, advertising agency and marketing consultant.
  • The listing shows "Needs verification". The option offered to us was a postcard to the address, and the listing stays unpublished until it is verified.

What to know: if your Google listing is already verified, use the import. It is usually the quickest route. Bing matters more than people think, because Bing's results feed Microsoft Copilot, and other AI assistants use Bing data too.

Worth it? Yes, but do it after your Google listing is verified.

5. DesignRush: not for brand-new agencies

What it asked for: details of real client projects. We needed at least three to show.

What happened: we parked it until we have three projects we can show with our clients' permission.

Worth it? Only once you have a portfolio.

What we would do differently

  • Use exactly the same name, address and phone everywhere. We changed our public address to just "Delhi" midway, and then had to go back and update the profiles one by one.
  • Don't upload registration certificates on public directories unless a site requires it. Some sites copy the registered address from the document onto your public profile.
  • Keep a simple sheet: site, login, date and status. Approval emails can arrive weeks later.
  • Do one or two sites a week, not all five in one day.

Which ones should a small shop do?

In this order:

  1. Google Business Profile. It brings the most calls, by far.
  2. Justdial. Here is our Justdial vs Google listing comparison (in Hinglish).
  3. Bing Places, once your Google listing is verified.
  4. Sulekha, if customers in your trade use it.

Clutch, GoodFirms and DesignRush are for agencies and B2B services, not shops.

Frequently asked questions

Do these listings help my Google ranking?

A little, as consistency signals. Your Google listing itself matters far more.

Are they really free?

The basic profiles are. All of them offer paid upgrades, but the free profile is enough to start.

How long does each one take?

About 20 to 40 minutes to fill. Approval can take anything from two days to a few weeks.

Want us to check your listing?

We check your Google listing for free and tell you what is holding it back. Fixing it is a one-time ₹1,000. Send your business name on WhatsApp.