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Free Directories & Alternative Stores

List an indie app, SaaS, AI tool, extension or game on free launch platforms, software directories and alternative app stores, in three priority levels, with a reusable launch kit, a submission tracker and links to every site. Use when launching or just launched, when an indie product needs more places to be found for free, or when someone asks "where can I list my app for free", "free directories for indie makers", "Product Hunt alternatives", "alternative Android app stores", or "where to submit my SaaS".

Beginner → Intermediate (3 Levels)⏱ 2 h for the launch kit, then 10-15 min per site📂 listingv1.0.0

Prepare one launch kit, then submit it in three waves: the big free platforms first, launch directories second, alternative stores and niche sites third. Track every submission in one sheet.

Goal

Get found in more places for free: people browsing for new tools, "alternative to X" searches, other app stores, and backlinks for your website. Spend the time on sites that fit your product, not on 100 random directories.

When to use

Inputs

  • A live product with a URL people can try.
  • assets/launch-kit.md filled once, and assets/directory-tracker.csv.
  • Or use the Listing Desk (opens in your browser, no install): 75+ sites grouped by area and tier S/A/B/C, with filters, sorting, a status per site for each product and CSV export. Progress stays in your browser. Source: assets/listing-desk.html.

The list

Free options and rules change often. Each row was checked on 2026-09-30. Confirm pricing on the site before you submit. "Free (queue)" means free with a waiting line, and many sites sell a paid option to skip it.

Level 1: do these first (biggest free reach)

Where For Free? Link
Product Hunt Any tech product Free producthunt.com
Show HN (Hacker News) Things people can try; technical audience Free Show HN rules
AlternativeTo Any software; "alternative to X" searches Free alternativeto.net
Indie Hackers products Indie products with a story Free indiehackers.com/products
Your platform's store Where your users install things See Level 3 —

Level 2: launch directories (a week of extra traffic each)

Where For Free? Link
Uneed Tools, SaaS, apps Free (queue) uneed.best
TinyLaunch Indie products Free launch, paid extras tinylaunch.com
MicroLaunch Indie products Free option, check pricing microlaunch.net
Fazier Indie products Free option, check pricing fazier.com
Peerlist Launchpad Makers with a Peerlist profile Free (weekly launches) peerlist.io/launchpad
DevHunt Developer tools only Check the submit page devhunt.org
BetaList Pre-launch and beta startups Free (long queue) betalist.com
SaaSHub SaaS and software, "alternatives" pages Free listing saashub.com
OpenAlternative Open-source alternatives Free openalternative.co

Level 3: alternative stores and niche sites (reach users the big stores miss)

Where For Free? Link
Samsung Galaxy Store Android apps and games Free registration seller.samsungapps.com
Huawei AppGallery Android apps (Huawei devices) Free registration AppGallery Connect
Xiaomi GetApps Android apps (Xiaomi devices) Free registration global.developer.mi.com
Aptoide Android apps Free aptoide.com
F-Droid Free and open-source Android apps only Free f-droid.org
Microsoft Store Windows apps (incl. PWAs) Free for individual developers (ID verification) storedeveloper.microsoft.com
Firefox Add-ons Browser extensions Free addons.mozilla.org
Microsoft Edge Add-ons Browser extensions Free Partner Center
Softpedia Windows, Mac, Linux, mobile software Free submission softpedia.com
MacUpdate Mac apps Free developer listing macupdate.com
Setapp Mac apps (curated subscription marketplace, revenue share) Free to apply setapp.com/developers
itch.io Games and creative tools Free, you choose the revenue share itch.io
GitHub "awesome" lists Open-source or dev tools Free (pull request) search awesome <your category>

Not free / gone: the Chrome Web Store needs a one-time developer fee. The Amazon Appstore for Android devices closed on 20 Aug 2025 (only Fire devices remain). Many "AI tool directories" charge to submit.

Steps

  1. Build the launch kit once (2 h). Fill assets/launch-kit.md: name, a 60-character tagline, 160- and 500-character descriptions, logo (512 px and 240 px), 3–5 screenshots, a 15–30 s demo GIF or video, categories, pricing, a founder bio, and links with UTM tags per site (?utm_source=uneed).
  2. Pick 10–15 sites that fit (15 min). All of Level 1, the Level 2 sites that match your audience, and the Level 3 stores for your platform. Skip sites where your product obviously doesn't belong.
  3. Submit in waves. Level 1 in launch week. Level 2 spread over the next 2–4 weeks, so each gives you its own bump. Level 3 as soon as your builds are ready for those stores.
  4. Log everything in assets/directory-tracker.csv: site, date, status, live URL, UTM, visits, sign-ups.
  5. Show up. Reply to comments and reviews on each listing, just as you would on Product Hunt.
  6. Review after 30 days. Which 3 sites sent activated users? Update those listings with each release, and ignore the rest.

Prompt (copy-paste)

Replace everything in {{ }}.

You are an indie launch assistant. Help me list my product on free directories and alternative stores.

Product: {{what it does, who for, URL}}
Type + platforms: {{iOS / Android / Mac / Windows / web SaaS / browser extension / game / open source?}}
Pricing: {{free / freemium / paid}}   Audience: {{developers / consumers / businesses / ...}}

1. From these levels, choose the 10-15 best-fit places and explain each in one line:
   Level 1: Product Hunt, Show HN, AlternativeTo, Indie Hackers.
   Level 2: Uneed, TinyLaunch, MicroLaunch, Fazier, Peerlist Launchpad, DevHunt, BetaList, SaaSHub, OpenAlternative.
   Level 3: Samsung Galaxy Store, Huawei AppGallery, Xiaomi GetApps, Aptoide, F-Droid, Microsoft Store,
   Firefox Add-ons, Edge Add-ons, Softpedia, MacUpdate, Setapp, itch.io, awesome lists.
   Skip anything that doesn't fit my platform or audience (e.g. F-Droid only for open-source Android apps).
2. Fill my launch kit: 60-char tagline, 160-char and 500-char descriptions, 5 categories/tags,
   and a UTM link per chosen site.
3. A 4-week submission schedule (Level 1 in launch week, Level 2 spread out, Level 3 when builds are ready).
Remind me to check each site's current pricing. Don't claim a site is free if you're not sure.

Example output

Illustrative example. Fictional product, shown for format.

Tabsy, a free browser extension that groups tabs by project.

Week Site Why
1 Product Hunt, Show HN, AlternativeTo ("alternative to OneTab"), Indie Hackers Biggest free reach
1 Firefox Add-ons, Edge Add-ons Same extension, two more stores, both free
2 Uneed, Peerlist Launchpad Maker audiences
3 TinyLaunch, Fazier Extra launch-day bumps
4 SaaSHub, an awesome-browser-extensions list Long-term "alternatives" traffic

Common mistakes

  • Paying for "submit to 100+ directories" services. Most of those sites send no users, and the backlinks are low quality.
  • A different description on every site, written in a rush. Write the kit once, then adapt it.
  • No UTM tags, so after 30 days you can't tell which site worked.
  • Listing the wrong product type, such as a closed-source app on F-Droid or a consumer app on DevHunt. It gets rejected, or worse, ignored.

Credits

Written by @nvminhtu. Microsoft Store: free registration for individual developers. Amazon Appstore: changes for Android devices. Know a good free directory that's missing? Add a row with a pull request.