They Advertise Three Dofollow Links. We Counted 3.98.
Written by Submitator. FeaturedTool is one of the directories we file customers to, so we have a reason to like it. The link count below is measured from every listing on the site rather than repeated from their pricing card, and the method is in the footnote.
Most directories are vague about what a listing gives you. FeaturedTool puts a number on the pricing card: "Get 3 dofollow links to boost your SEO", on the free tier as well as the paid ones. A number like that is either true or it is not, so we fetched all 299 listings in their sitemap and counted.
Every single one passes equity. The average is 3.98 followed anchors to the listed tool: 193 listings carry exactly three, and 97 carry six. Across 2,123 outbound anchors on the whole site only 42 carry nofollow, and nothing is noindexed. They said three and the median listing gets three, with a third of them getting double.
Free gets you the same three links. What it asks for is a "permanent link with backlink maintenance", and what it costs in time is on the same card: "high volume of submissions, 180+ days wait at current pace" and "may be rejected due to limited free slots". Their $9.9 tier is the one that removes both.
What each FeaturedTool tier costs you
| Tier | Price | What it asks | Wait |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | A maintained backlink to them | 180+ days, their figure |
| Listing | $9.9, from $14.9 | Nothing | None, publishes now |
| Featured | $19.9, from $39.9 | Nothing | None, plus 7 days on top |
| The link, all three tiers | 3 to 6 followed anchors | Same on free as on paid | Permanent |
| Through Submitator | Free tier, badge kept live, plus 29 more directories from $29 | Nothing you do yourself | Theirs; a rejection is credited back |
Per featuredtool.com, its /pricing and /submit pages and its sitemap, all read on 10 September 2026. Domain Rating is Ahrefs' figure via submitator.com/domain-rating-checker, which returned 38. Tier names, prices, struck-through prices and every quoted bullet are taken from their pricing page: the free tier lists "Get 3 dofollow links to boost your SEO", "Permanent link with backlink maintenance" and "Publish your product the day you want" against "High volume of submissions, 180+ days wait at current pace", "May be rejected due to limited free slots" and "No customer support"; the $9.9 listing tier lists immediate publication, "Get >= 3 dofollow links", "Permanent link, no backlink required" and premium support; the $19.9 featured tier adds seven days at the top of the directory. The link finding is a full census, not a sample: their sitemap holds 299 /item/ listing URLs, all 299 were fetched with zero errors at 86-149 KB, parsed rather than pattern-matched, and every outbound anchor classified by hostname. Four hosts appearing on most or all pages were identified by frequency and excluded before attribution. Of the remainder, all 299 listings carry at least one anchor to the listed tool with no nofollow or sponsored value, 193 carry exactly three such anchors, 97 carry six, and the mean is 3.98; the whole corpus contains 2,123 outbound anchors of which 42 carry nofollow, and none of the 299 pages carries a robots noindex. Publishing cadence is from sitemap lastmod values, which show roughly 20 to 25 listings a month through 2026, a rate consistent with the 180+ day figure they publish but not a verification of it. The badge itself is behind a login and was not seen; what the free tier requires is described only from their pricing wording. Nothing behind the payment step was observed: no submission was made and no payment taken, so review, turnaround and refund practice are outside what we can report. Submitator files customers to FeaturedTool and installs and keeps badges live where a directory wants one; that covers the backlink condition and not the queue, and a rejection is credited back as +1 directory under our terms. Our plans are $29 for 30 directories, $49 for 60 and $79 for 100, one-time, chosen by you in the dashboard with each Domain Rating shown and nofollow marked where it applies, and a 30-day refund policy on the conditions in our terms.
How to submit to FeaturedTool, step by step
- 1
Paste the link and let the autofill do the first draft
The form opens with a single Link field and an AI Autofill button that populates the name, description and the rest from your site. Treat what comes back as a draft. It is reading your homepage, so if your homepage does not explain the product in one screen, neither will the listing it writes.
- 2
Write the introduction, because it takes markdown and nobody uses it
There are two text fields, not one: a short description and a longer introduction with a full markdown toolbar, headings, lists, quotes and code. Most submissions leave the second one thin. A few hundred words with a feature list is what separates a listing that reads like a product from one that reads like a row.
- 3
Prepare both images before you start
An icon at 1:1 and an image at 16:9, PNG or JPEG, each under 1MB. That last limit is smaller than most brand assets, so compress before you upload rather than discovering it mid-form. Your Open Graph image is usually the right 16:9 source.
- 4
Pick categories and tags from their own lists
Both are multi-select from fixed lists, with categories running from AI and Development through Finance, Marketing, Games and Travel. Precise beats broad here: the directory is 299 listings deep, so a narrow category is a page a reader can finish.
- 5
Then choose the queue or the $9.9
This is the whole decision. Free gives the same three dofollow links, asks you to keep a link back to them, and puts you in a queue they describe as 180+ days at current pace, with a warning that free slots are limited. The $9.9 tier publishes immediately and drops the backlink requirement.
- 6
Remember you can edit afterwards
The form says so directly: you can change this information later. So a good-enough description should not hold up the submission, and an approved listing is not frozen the way it is on some directories.
A claim that survives counting
We check the link claim on every directory we write up, and the usual result is a gap between the pricing card and the markup. This one goes the other way. The card promises three followed links. The site delivers a mean of 3.98, with 97 of the 299 listings carrying six.
The other thing worth saying is that the free tier is not a downgraded version of the product. All three tiers list the same link entitlement, and our count found no pattern of free listings being nofollowed or shortchanged. What you pay for here is time and position, not equity.
The queue is the real price
Directories usually bury the wait. FeaturedTool prints it in the free column as a cross: "High volume of submissions, 180+ days wait at current pace", followed by "May be rejected due to limited free slots".
Their sitemap is consistent with that. Listings appear at roughly twenty to twenty-five a month across the 299 on the site, which is a real editorial pace rather than an automated feed, and it is exactly the sort of rate that produces a six-month backlog when submissions outrun it.
So read the free tier honestly: same links, no money, and a wait measured in seasons. The $9.9 is not buying a better listing. It is buying the calendar.
The badge, handled for you
What the free tier asks for is a permanent link with backlink maintenance: not a one-off paste, a link you keep alive. That is the same commitment every badge directory asks for and the same one that quietly dies at the next redesign, except here the consequence is losing three to six followed anchors at once.
We install it and keep it live, here and on every other directory in your plan that asks for one, so that side of the free tier is not your problem. What we cannot shorten is their queue, and if they decline for limited free slots your plan credits it back as another directory you pick instead.
Badges Submitator places + keeps live
Their $9.9 skips one queue. Our $29 covers thirty directories.
One payment, every directory named in your dashboard with its Domain Rating on the card and nofollow marked where it applies, one component that keeps every badge live, and a rejection credited back as another directory.
FeaturedTool review: the short answer
Submit. Three to six followed anchors from a DR 38 domain, on a listing you can edit afterwards, is a good return on one form, and the count is the rare case of a directory beating its own advertised number.
Then pick your queue with your eyes open. Free costs a maintained link and a wait they put at six months. Ten dollars costs ten dollars and publishes today. Both give the same links, so the only question is whether you are in a hurry.
Three links promised, 3.98 delivered.
We fetched all 299 FeaturedTool listings: every one passes equity, 193 with three followed anchors and 97 with six. The free tier gives the same links for a maintained backlink and a wait they themselves put at 180+ days; $9.9 publishes immediately and drops the backlink. We keep the badge live, not the calendar. The whole catalog.
FAQ
Does FeaturedTool really give three dofollow links?
Yes, and slightly more than that. We fetched all 299 listings in their sitemap. Every one carries at least one followed anchor to the listed tool and the average is 3.98: 193 listings carry exactly three, 97 carry six. Across 2,123 outbound anchors in the whole corpus only 42 carry nofollow, and none of the pages is noindexed.
Is FeaturedTool free to submit to?
There is a free tier and it gives the same three dofollow links the paid ones do. What it costs instead is written on their own pricing card: a “permanent link with backlink maintenance”, meaning a link back to them you keep up, plus “high volume of submissions, 180+ days wait at current pace” and “may be rejected due to limited free slots”.
How long does the FeaturedTool free queue actually take?
They publish the number themselves: 180+ days at current pace. Their sitemap is consistent with it, showing roughly 20 to 25 listings appearing per month across 299 total. Their $9.9 tier exists precisely to skip that queue and lists you immediately.
How much does FeaturedTool cost?
Two paid tiers, both one-time. Listing is $9.9, reduced from $14.9, and buys instant publication with no backlink required. Featured is $19.9, reduced from $39.9, and adds seven days at the top of the directory. The link you get is the same on all three tiers.
Do Submitator customers need to install the FeaturedTool badge?
No, we install it and keep it live, which is what the free tier asks for. Be clear about what that buys here though: it covers the backlink condition, not the queue. Their published wait for free submissions is 180+ days, and if they decline for limited free slots your plan credits that back as another directory of your choice.
What does the FeaturedTool submission form ask for?
One screen, then payment, then publish. The first step takes a link with an AI autofill button that fills the rest, a name, categories, tags, a short description, a longer introduction with markdown support, a 1:1 icon and a 16:9 image, both PNG or JPEG under 1MB. It also tells you plainly that you can change all of it later.
What is FeaturedTool's Domain Rating?
38 on Ahrefs. Mid-table for the catalog, and worth more than that number suggests here because a listing carries three to six followed anchors rather than one.
Is FeaturedTool worth submitting to?
Yes. It is one of the few directories that advertises a specific link count and then exceeds it on every listing we checked. The only real decision is the queue: take the free route with the badge handled and wait, or pay $9.9 to publish now.
More submit-to guides.
FeaturedTool is free with a badge. Thirty directories are $29.
One payment, each directory named with its Domain Rating on the card before you choose it, nofollow marked where it applies, badges installed and kept live where one is wanted, and a rejection swapped for another directory.