How to Get Your AI Tool Included in the Best-Of Lists and Directories AI Engines Cite
Amit Malvi
Founder, SearchAxe. Former Senior SEO Manager, Invideo AI
Published Updated 10 min read
Quick answer
To get your AI tool included in the best-of lists AI engines cite, run your category prompts on each engine and log every list and directory they cite. Qualify the lists that are maintained and name your competitors, pitch each editor with a short inclusion kit and a test account, claim your directory profiles, and recheck quarterly that every listing describes your product and pricing correctly.
On this page
- Why do best-of lists matter so much for AI recommendations?
- How to get your AI tool included in the best-of lists engines cite
- What about lists that charge for placement?
- Which directories are worth an AI startup's time?
- Should you publish your own best-of list?
- How do you keep list and directory entries accurate?
- When is list outreach not worth it?
Key takeaways
- Best-of blog lists made up 43.8% of page types cited in ChatGPT answers to "best" prompts in Ahrefs' December 2025 study.
- 35% of those cited lists sat on low-authority sites, so a startup does not need famous publications to get in.
- Build the target list from pages engines actually cite and pitch each editor with a ready inclusion kit.
- Paid placements must carry rel="sponsored" under Google's policies, and your own roundup must disclose that it is yours.
- Sweep every list and directory against one fact sheet each quarter so engines are not repeating stale facts.
If you run marketing at an AI startup whose competitors keep appearing in "best AI tools for X" answers while you do not, the gap is usually a handful of specific lists and directories, not your own site. This is the workflow for finding them, earning a place and keeping each listing accurate, with the rules on paid placements and your own roundups that keep it from backfiring.
Why do best-of lists matter so much for AI recommendations?
Because engines answering "best tool for X" prompts lean on articles that already compare tools for X. An engine that fans a prompt out into several related searches often gets back these pages, and each one hands it a ready-made shortlist with reasons attached.
The low-authority figure is the encouraging part for a startup. You do not need to get into one famous publication; plenty of the lists engines cite sit on modest sites whose editors answer email. The same study found the cited lists were fresh: 79.1% had been updated in 2025 and 26% in the two months before the study. Engines appear to prefer maintained lists, and maintained lists have editors who add products.
Directories matter too. Profound's study of 680 million citations found G2 at 1.1% of ChatGPT citations, in its top five domains, alongside TechRadar at 0.9%, a publication known for product roundups.
How to get your AI tool included in the best-of lists engines cite
Work from evidence, not from a generic list of "top AI directories". The steps below take a list of cited pages to a placement, and the first cycle is the slowest, because the target list has to be built from scratch.
The best-of list inclusion workflow
- Collect the lists engines cite for your promptsRun your category prompts several times on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude, Gemini, Google AI Overviews, Google AI Mode and Copilot, and log every cited URL that is a list or directory.
- Add the lists that rank for your category termsSearch "best [category]" and "[competitor] alternatives" on Google and Bing. Engines search the web, so top-ranking lists are likely to be retrieved even if your sample missed them.
- Qualify each listKeep lists that were updated in the last year, name at least one of your competitors, and fit your use case. Drop abandoned pages and lists for a different buyer.
- Find the person who maintains itUse the byline, the site's contact or submissions page, or the editor's public profile. A named person beats a generic inbox.
- Send a short, specific pitch with an inclusion kitSay which list, why your product fits its readers, and what is different, then attach the kit described below. Offer a working account so they can test it.
- Follow up once, then move onOne follow-up a week later is enough. Log the outcome and revisit at the list's next update.
- Check citations again after inclusionRerun the prompts that cited the list. Inclusion helps only once engines retrieve the updated version.
What goes in the inclusion kit
- One sentence naming your category, the job and the buyer, in plain words an editor can paste.
- Pricing model and starting plan, with a link to the pricing page.
- Two or three differentiators an editor can check, such as an integration or a limit.
- Who it is not for, which editors appreciate and readers trust.
- Screenshots or a short demo video, and a trial or test account.
- Where you already appear: review profiles, integrations, notable customers you are allowed to name.
The first item matters most. Editors reuse your description, and engines then read it in every list that includes you. A vague line multiplies across the web; a clear one does the same. Our guide to describing an AI product so Google and AI engines understand it covers how to write it.
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Schedule a Free ConsultationWhat about lists that charge for placement?
Some lists and directories sell spots. Paying is legal, but it comes with rules and an unknown payoff. Google's spam policies treat paid links as link spam unless they carry rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow", and the site reputation policy targets third-party content published on a host site mainly to exploit its ranking signals, with a third-party "best casinos" page on a medical site as one of Google's examples.
Google tightened its explanation of that policy in an August 2026 update: manual actions under it now apply differently inside and outside the European Economic Area. Paid listicles on large publishers can lose rankings when that policy is enforced, and a page that drops out of search is less likely to be retrieved by engines that search the web. We have not seen reliable data on whether AI engines discount sponsored placements directly. Our position: pay for a directory listing if buyers use the directory, but do not buy spots in articles presented as independent rankings.
Which directories are worth an AI startup's time?
The ones engines cite for your prompts and buyers browse, which usually means the main software review platforms, the marketplaces of tools you integrate with, and launch platforms for early visibility. Check your citation log before listing everywhere.
| Directory type | Examples | What it takes | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Software review platforms | G2, Capterra, GetApp, Software Advice | A claimed profile, the right category and real customer reviews | Category pages need a review threshold before you show up |
| Launch platforms | Product Hunt | A prepared launch and makers who answer comments | Product Hunt bans asking people to upvote and prohibits company accounts |
| Integration marketplaces | The app directories of tools you connect to | A working integration and a clear listing description | Listings go stale when your features change |
| AI tool directories | Sites that catalogue AI tools by use case | A submission form, sometimes a fee | Many are low-traffic; list only where engines cite them |
Product Hunt's launch guide bans asking people directly for upvotes and does not allow company accounts. On review platforms, G2 publishes a 10-review minimum for a product to show in a category's Grid Report. We cover building that review base in how review sites like G2 influence AI recommendations.
Should you publish your own best-of list?
Yes, if you can make it useful and honest, because engines do cite self-published lists. Ahrefs found that when a software company was recommended, its own self-promotional list appeared among the sources in more than a third of ChatGPT responses. The risk is credibility, and in the US, regulation.
A final FTC rule from August 2024 on fake reviews and testimonials bars businesses from misrepresenting that a website or entity they control provides independent reviews of a category that includes their own products. Say plainly that the list is yours. Google's guidance on writing high quality reviews asks for first-hand evidence, quantitative measurements and enough content in ranked lists for them to stand on their own.
For pages that compare you with one named rival, see should an AI startup build alternatives and comparison pages. The rules are similar; the format is different.
How do you keep list and directory entries accurate?
Keep one fact sheet and sweep every listing against it each quarter. Lists that describe your old pricing or a feature you removed feed engines the wrong facts, and engines repeat them with confidence.
- Keep a sheet of every list and directory that mentions you, with the URL, editor contact and the description it uses.
- After any pricing, packaging or positioning change, update your own profiles the same week and email list editors with the new facts.
- Each quarter, rerun your prompts and check whether any cited list misdescribes you.
- When a list drops you at an update, ask the editor what would earn the spot back rather than arguing.
If engines already describe you wrongly, the source is often an outdated list. Tracing and fixing that is covered in how to fix what ChatGPT says about your company.
When is list outreach not worth it?
When your citation log shows engines answering your prompts from other source types, such as review platforms, analyst reports or community threads. In those categories a list placement may never be retrieved. It is also premature if your product cannot hold its own in a side-by-side test, because an editor who tries it and finds gaps either leaves you out or writes it up. Outreach works best as part of a planned brand mentions program for AI search, prioritized with the method in how to analyze which sources AI engines use to recommend your competitors.
Frequently asked questions
How do I find which best-of lists AI engines cite for my category?
Run the prompts your buyers ask, such as "best AI tool for X" and "alternatives to Y", several times on each engine and log every cited URL that is a list or directory. Add the lists ranking on Google and Bing for the same terms, since engines search the web. Keep the ones cited across several prompts or engines. Tools that sample AI answers can widen the list, but start from your own prompts.
Should I pay to be included in a best-of list?
Pay for directory listings if your buyers use the directory, but avoid buying spots in articles presented as independent rankings. Google's spam policies require paid links to carry rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow", and its site reputation policy targets third-party content placed on a host site to exploit its rankings. We have not seen reliable data showing AI engines reward paid placements over earned ones.
Do AI engines cite best-of lists that a brand publishes about itself?
Yes. Ahrefs' December 2025 study of ChatGPT sources found self-published lists among the cited pages, appearing in more than a third of ChatGPT software answers in which the publisher was recommended. Disclose that the list is yours, since the FTC's 2024 rule bars presenting a site you control as an independent reviewer. Test every product the same way and recommend competitors where they win.
Which directories should a new AI tool list on first?
Start with the directories that appear in your category's AI answers. For B2B software that usually means G2 and the Capterra family of sites, plus the marketplaces of tools you integrate with. Product Hunt suits a launch moment. Many AI tool directories get little traffic, so list there only if engines cite them for your prompts. A complete profile in the right category beats thin profiles everywhere.
