How to get featured on BetaList: it is paid, here is when it pays

BetaList features early-stage technology startups, before launch or around it, to an audience that signs up to try new products. As of 28 October 2026 every submission is paid, and there is no free route. If BetaList does not select your startup, the payment is refunded in full automatically. Whether the fee pays off depends on what you need: early sign-ups, and an independent page that confirms your product exists while it is still young.

What BetaList is

BetaList is a directory of new startups, each with a page at betalist.com/startups/your-startup. A featured startup is shown on its feature day and then stays listed. The Visit Site button is a do-follow link that passes through a 301 redirect with ref=betalist added, so the visits show up in your analytics. Each startup can be featured twice: once before launch and once at launch.

Who actually reads it

BetaList's readers are early adopters, makers and people who like trying products before everyone else. They join waitlists and betas, and some write back with feedback. That suits a product looking for its first users. A mature product chasing paying customers in a category gets less from it, and BetaList refuses widely known products in any case.

How to submit your startup properly

Create the submission

• Start at betalist.com/submit. BetaList creates an account on the spot from your website URL and email.
• Enter the website on your own domain, the startup's name, a one-sentence pitch of up to 75 characters and a description of up to 700 characters.
• Write the pitch without the product name or buzzwords. It should say plainly what the product does for someone.
• Add the optional parts: up to five topics, a square icon (ideally 512 pixels or larger), up to five screenshots, a YouTube video and about 500 characters of promotion details. Each image can be up to 3 MB.
• To start from a draft, BetaList's agent route at betalist.com/agent writes the listing from a prompt. Read every field it fills before you submit.
• Pick a plan at the end of the form, where the prices are shown. They are not repeated here because they could not be verified for this guide.

Match your own site exactly

• Use the name and capitals your homepage uses.
• Make the description agree with your homepage one-liner, expanded rather than rewritten.
• Test the sign-up or waitlist on your page before you pay. BetaList requires a clear path, and its readers will try it on feature day.
• Use screenshots of the real product, matching what a visitor finds after signing up.

The consistency rules

A BetaList page outlives its feature day, so it joins the pages that describe your product in public. Keep the name and one-liner identical to your homepage and your other listings. If you come back for a second feature at launch, update the description and screenshots first so the page shows the launched product rather than the beta.

Common mistakes

• Submitting a site on a free subdomain such as vercel.app or netlify.app. BetaList requires your own domain.
• Submitting a template or Carrd page, a page that is only an explainer video, or a direct app-store link. None are accepted.
• Submitting something that is not a technology startup. Blogs, courses, newsletters, stores and agencies are all refused.
• Resubmitting a site that was featured in the last 12 months, which BetaList refuses.
• Putting the product name or buzzwords into the 75-character pitch.

When BetaList is worth paying for

The fee is easiest to justify for a new product with a working sign-up or waitlist, when you want early users who will try it and say what is wrong more than customers ready to pay, and when no other independent page yet confirms the product exists. If you already have reviews on G2 or Capterra and a steady flow of sign-ups, the money usually does more elsewhere. The automatic refund when you are not selected takes some of the risk out of trying.

How to keep the listing alive

On feature day, answer every comment and email from BetaList readers quickly, because engagement is what the Trending section favours. Afterwards, keep the page accurate. When you launch, use your second feature to show the launched product, with the description, screenshots and pitch updated first. Watch visits tagged ref=betalist in your analytics to judge whether that second feature is worth paying for.