Free business directories in the UK: the ones a trade should join in 2026

The free business directories that matter for a UK trade are the three map listings, Google Business Profile, Apple Business and Bing Places, and a short list of big directories such as Yell, Yelp and Thomson Local. Every listing below was checked on its own site on 27 October 2026, and the list stops where the value does.

Search for free business directories in the UK and page one is mostly lists of 17, 30 or 100 sites, one dated 2020, and a few directories' own homepages. This guide adds two things: what Google, Apple and Bing say on their own pages about where their listings come from, and which directories are free on their own sites today. One that Google's AI summary still recommends for this kind of search, Scoot, is closing this month. The guide is written for a plumber, electrician, roofer or builder with an evening to spare, not for an SEO agency building links.

One thing first. We do SEO for trades, so we have an interest in you getting found. Free listings are a small part of that work, and you can do every one on this page yourself for nothing.

Which free business directories should a UK trade join first?

Start with the three free map listings, because they put you on the maps on people's phones: Google Maps, Apple Maps and Bing. All three are free on the companies' own pages. Do Google first, then import it into Bing, then Apple.

Listing	Free?	What it puts you on	What it asks for	Worth knowing
Google Business Profile	Yes. "You can add or claim your business at no charge"	Google Search and Google Maps	Your business details and a verification step	If you work from home, Google's rules say hide the address and set a service area
Apple Business (was Apple Business Connect)	Yes. Free since 14 April 2026, in the UK too	Your place card in Apple Maps, Siri and Spotlight	Address and map pin, category, phone, hours, then verifying your business with Apple	Apple's guide describes place cards for physical locations; we found no option to hide the address
Bing Places for Business	Yes. Bing calls it "a free Bing service"	Bing search and Bing Maps	A valid address for verification; you can hide it if you list the areas you serve	Import your Google profile and Bing verifies it automatically if Google already has

If the Google profile is already set up but not appearing, that is a different problem: our guide to Google Business Profile not showing runs through the causes.

Bing's import is the quickest win on this page. Bing's help says that once your listing is verified it usually takes 7 to 12 days to go live in North America and up to two weeks elsewhere, and that later edits made on Google sync across on the schedule you pick. While the link is on, you edit the listing in Google, not in Bing.

Apple Business is the new name for Apple Business Connect. Apple merged it into one free service on 14 April 2026 and moved existing place cards across. Its feature list for the United Kingdom includes the brand and location tools that control your place card. Ads on Apple Maps exist, but only in the US and Canada.

Which free listings feed Google, Apple and Bing maps?

Only the map companies can answer this, so here is what each one says on its own pages. Apple names Yell as a source of business listings and Yelp as a source of reviews. Bing tells businesses to list on Yelp and TripAdvisor. Google's pages that we read name no directory at all.

• Apple. Apple's Maps acknowledgements page lists the companies that supply its data. It includes "Business listings data @ 2026 Yell" and "Reviews from Yelp", along with Foursquare, Tripadvisor, Yext, Uberall and dozens of others. It does not say how much weight each one carries.
• Bing. Its help pages say "List your business on trusted websites like Yelp and TripAdvisor", and that listings with more positive reviews on those sites count as more popular. TripAdvisor is for places people visit, so for a trade the useful one is Yelp.
• Google. Its help page on where business information comes from lists crawled web content, "Licensed data from third parties", what users and owners contribute, and Google's own dealings with the business. It does not name any directory or data supplier.

Yell makes its own claim on its free profile page: "we’ll also share your details across Apple, Amazon Alexa & Microsoft", with a footnote saying it cannot guarantee your details will appear on every network. Apple's page backs up the Apple part. Microsoft's pages we read do not mention Yell.

So when a list says a directory "feeds Google Maps", ask where it got that. Google does not say so anywhere we could find.

What does each free directory include, and what does it try to sell you?

Every listing here has a real free version, checked on its own site on 27 October 2026. Most of them make their money selling upgrades, so the table says what the upsell is. Where a site would not let us read its sign-up page, the table says so.

Directory	What the free listing gives you	What it asks for	The upsell
Yell	A free profile on Yell.com, customer reviews and photos of your work. Yell says it also shares your details with Apple, Amazon Alexa and Microsoft, without a guarantee	Not checked: the sign-up page blocked our read	Managed marketing from £299 a month (Amplify) and £699 a month (Accelerate)
Yelp	A free business page you claim, with reviews. Apple Maps shows Yelp reviews	Claiming the page on Yelp for Business	Paid Page Upgrades and Yelp ads
Facebook Page	Meta's words: "Setting up a Page is simple and free"	Not checked beyond that page	Not checked
Nextdoor	A free business page and free posts to your neighbourhood	Not checked beyond the business page	Paid Nextdoor Ads
Thomson Local	A free listing that shows your phone number to people searching in your area	Not checked beyond the homepage	An Enhanced Listing. Its sales site says paid listings rank above free ones in Thomson Local's own search
FreeIndex	A free profile page with photos, hours and reviews, plus free lead alerts. No charge to reply to a lead and no success fee	Your official business name (extra words get removed), a landline or mobile, a full UK address (you can hide the first line). Duplicates and branches are rejected	Premium at £9.95 a month or £99.50 a year, with no refunds
Brownbook	A free listing and a free claim that locks it so only you can edit it	An account	Its own Profile+ is free too
UK Small Business Directory	A free listing, running since 2004	Not checked beyond the homepage	Bronze, Silver and Gold listings (prices not checked)
MisterWhat	A free company profile with your address, postcode, phone, category and a map	A sign-up	None shown on the homepage
Fyple	A free business listing	A sign-up	None shown on the homepage

Three more names come up often: Cylex and 192.com, both in Google's AI summary for free business listing sites, and Hotfrog. All three blocked our checks on 27 October 2026, so we have nothing to say about what they offer today. If you use them, read their own sign-up pages first.

Which directories did we leave out, and why?

We left out directories that are closing, directories that are not really free, and trade body listings that come with membership.

• Scoot. On 27 October 2026 its homepage said: "Scoot will be winding down in October 2026, after which this site and its listings will no longer be available." The top-ranked list still names it in its Google snippet, and so did Google's own AI summary for free listing sites that day.
• Paid directories. Checkatrade, TrustATrader, MyBuilder and Yell's paid packages are not free directories: you pay a membership, a monthly fee or a fee per lead. They are compared in our guide to Checkatrade alternatives.
• Bark. Free to join and Bark sends you leads, but you buy credits to contact each customer, and credits last three months. That is paying per lead, so it sits with the alternatives too.
• Your trade body's own find-a-member search. A Gas Safe, NICEIC, NAPIT, TrustMark or FMB listing comes with being registered or a member. It is worth having, but it is not a free directory, so it is not in the count.
• The rest of the long lists. We have not checked them, and nothing on Google's, Apple's or Bing's pages suggests a trade needs them. Each one is another place your details can go out of date.

Why should your name, address and phone match on every listing?

Because Google and Bing both build their picture of your business from more than one place, and details that disagree can end up on show. Google says profile information comes from your website, licensed third-party data and what people contribute. Bing warns that a listing linked to other sources "can create conflicting signals" if its name or address changes.

What each company's own rules say about the three details:

• Name. Google says your business name should "reflect your business’ real-world name, as used consistently on your shopfront, website, stationery and as known to customers", and that adding unnecessary words to it isn't permitted and could get the profile suspended. Bing says it doesn't accept keyword insertion in a business name. FreeIndex strips words like "Cheap London Builder" out of names. Use the name on your van and invoices, every time.
• Address. Google says it decides how to display your address "based on your business information and information from other sources". If you work from home, hide it wherever the directory lets you, and give the same address underneath on every one. When you move, change every listing in the same week.
• Phone. Google wants a number that is "under the direct control of the business", a local number where possible, and no premium numbers or numbers that forward to someone else's landing page or line. Pick one main number and use it everywhere, including on your website.

Your website is part of this. Google says it reads business information from your own site and takes category information from it, so the name, number and area on your site should match the listings. The Google Business Profile not showing guide covers the Google side of the same rules.

How do you set up a free listing without making a mess?

Claim the listing that already exists rather than making a new one, and write the same details into each site from one note. Bing and FreeIndex both warn against duplicate listings, and Bing against details that conflict.

1. Write your details once. Business name as on the van, one phone number, your address, your website, your hours and two or three sentences on what you do and where. Copy from that note into every site.
2. Search before you add. You may already be listed. Google and Bing both tell you to search for your business and claim it, Apple has a route for adding an existing location, and FreeIndex rejects duplicates outright.
3. Do Google, then Bing, then Apple. Bing's import copies Google across and verifies it, so it saves typing.
4. Hide a home address on Google and Bing, and on FreeIndex hide the first line.
5. Add photos of real jobs where the listing allows them, and answer reviews where they appear.
6. Keep a list of every site you joined, with the login. When the number or address changes, work down the list.

If you only do the three map listings and keep them right, you have covered the listings Google, Apple and Bing run themselves.

Do free directory listings help you rank on Google?

Google does not say they do. Its page on local ranking says results depend mainly on relevance, distance and prominence, and that prominence draws on links to your business and reviews. Directories are not mentioned. Listings help people find you where they already look, and keep your details consistent.

What Google says does count is in your hands: a complete, verified profile, reviews and replies, and websites linking to you. Google also says "There's no way to request or pay for a better local ranking on Google", so treat anyone selling directory packages as a ranking fix with care. If your listings are in place and you want more reviews, our guide on how to get Google reviews has the wording to send.