26 Dutch Business Directories in 2026

For local search results, start with your Google Business Profile. This article starts there too, and directories come after it. They make you easier to find in a few more places. The evidence that they improve your position in Google or in AI answers is thin, and where it exists, it's cited below. We checked the addresses and prices on October 6, 2026. Where a directory didn't show what a listing costs, or wouldn't open, the list says so.

The short version

A business directory is an online overview of companies with their address, phone number and website. For your position in Google, start with your Google Business Profile. We found no proven effect of listings in general Dutch directories on Google or on AI answers. Directories can still put you in front of more people, as long as your business details match everywhere and you don't sign up for a paid subscription by accident. Below you'll find 26 directories with what each one charges, according to its own site.

What is a business directory?

A business directory is an online overview where companies are listed in a structured way, usually with an address and phone number, plus a website and opening hours. Think of it as the digital version of the old phone book, built to be read by search engines.

The profiles that come before directories

• With Google Business Profile you add or claim your business for free. Google ranks local results on relevance, distance and prominence. For prominence, Google itself says the number of websites linking to your business and the number of reviews both count.
• Bing Places moved from bingplaces.com to bing.com/forbusiness on October 3, 2025. It's free, existing users were moved automatically, and you can import your Google profile. Microsoft says the import has been faster and more reliable since the move, and that a recommendations feature suggests what your profile is still missing.
• Apple Business Connect stopped existing as a separate service on April 14, 2026. It became part of Apple Business, which Apple offers for free in the United States and in more than 200 countries and regions. According to Apple, what you had claimed in Business Connect, such as locations, photos and details, was carried over automatically. Apple doesn't say which features are available in the Netherlands.
• A Facebook page from Meta and a LinkedIn company page are also profiles that carry your business details. Use the same details there as in your Google Business Profile.

What business directories do for you

Local visibility

A listing with a link to your website is a reference from another site, and Google counts the number of such references under prominence. Google doesn't say whether a link from a business directory carries much weight. In the Whitespark survey of 47 local SEO experts, the top twenty factors for map results are mostly about your Google profile and distance, plus reviews and your own site. Directory listings aren't among them. That survey, the 2026 Local Search Ranking Factors from November 6, 2025, collects expert opinions, not measurements.

Name, address and phone number

Google asks that the name in your profile match the name you use on your storefront, website and letterhead, without extra keywords or location details. Keep these three details (NAP, in SEO jargon) the same in every directory. In the Whitespark survey, the factor "NAP in your website code matches your Google Business Profile" ranks 15th for map results. No factor about the details in directories themselves appears in the top twenty.

Traffic from the directory

Telefoonboek.nl reports 71,645 daily visitors on its homepage, and the Gouden Gids (the Dutch Yellow Pages) cites 3.5 million visitors per year. These are the directories' own figures, and we couldn't verify them. People searching there only see the businesses that are listed.

AI search results

We can't show that a listing in a Dutch business directory influences what ChatGPT, Gemini or Perplexity say about your business. This is what the sources do show:

• Yext, a vendor of listings-management software, analyzed 6.8 million citations from Gemini, OpenAI and Perplexity answers (July and August 2025). About 86 percent of the citations shown to consumers came from sources a brand can manage itself. More than 2.9 million citations pointed to listings on platforms where you can claim a profile, such as Google Business Profile, Mapquest and industry directories like TripAdvisor. The data comes from Yext's customers and prospects in four industries: financial services, food and beverage, healthcare and retail.
• In the Whitespark survey, the top 10 for visibility in AI search results include mentions on lists compiled by experts, a dedicated page for each service and presence on key industry sites. A general business directory isn't among them.
• Yelp wrote on August 10, 2026 that a partnership lets ChatGPT show Yelp reviews and ratings, plus photos and business details, and that you can book through Yelp inside ChatGPT, for now in the US and Canada. Yelp doesn't say whether this works in the Netherlands.

So a profile on the big platforms does appear in these sources. A listing in a general Dutch directory doesn't.

How do you check that your details match everywhere?

NAP should be written the same way in every directory and on your website. That means your name and address, plus your phone number. Small differences look harmless, but they make it harder for people and for systems to see that it's the same business. Here is a company that appears differently in three directories:

This is a made-up example that shows where it goes wrong: the order of the name, an abbreviated address, a legal form added to the name, or a different phone number format. To check your own business:

1. Write down how your NAP appears on your website. This becomes your standard version.
2. Search Google for your business name and your phone number, and note every directory and profile that comes up.
3. Open each listing and compare the three details with your standard version. Make a list of what differs.
4. Claim the listing where you can and correct the details. If you can't claim it, email the directory's owner and ask for a correction.
5. Put a reminder in your calendar to repeat this twice a year, and right after a move or a new phone number.

Which directory fits which kind of business?

Not every directory makes sense for every business owner. A local shop has different needs than a B2B supplier or a freelancer (zzp'er) who wants to receive quote requests. The table below follows the types of directory in the list further down and reflects our judgment, not a measurement.

The more places you choose, the more you have to maintain. Pick three directories you fill in completely rather than twenty where you left only your name.

How do you recognize a trustworthy directory?

A short check pays off before you place a listing. These points help you judge whether a directory is worth your time:

• The price of a listing is clear on the site up front, including whether the amount is per year or per month and whether VAT is added.
• You can edit your details yourself and remove your listing yourself.
• The site shows a company name, a business address and a KVK number (the registration number from the Dutch Chamber of Commerce), so you know who you're dealing with.
• The directory shows recent listings, not broken pages or empty categories.
• You don't get a call or email asking you to confirm something. The Dutch Chamber of Commerce (KVK) warns about exactly that tactic.

If you doubt a provider, search for its name together with "reviews" and read the small print before you sign or click anything.

How to use business directories

1. Complete your Google Business Profile, Bing Places and Apple Business first. Directories come after.
2. Choose one way to write your NAP and use it on your website, in your profiles and in every directory.
3. Before you sign up, read what the free listing shows. At De Bedrijvengids, a free listing shows only your name and address, and the phone number, email address and a link to your website come with the premium package at 249 euros per year (excl. VAT). The MKB-Bedrijvengids shows no contact details and no links on its basic listing.
4. Fill in everything the directory allows: website, opening hours, logo, photos and a short business description. Put place names and regions in that description, for example "Physiotherapist in Utrecht Oost" or "Installation company in the Rotterdam region". According to Google, the business name in your Google profile shouldn't contain location details.
5. Check your listings regularly. If your phone number, address or opening hours change, update them everywhere.
6. Don't respond to calls or emails about a free listing you didn't ask for. The Dutch Chamber of Commerce warns about messages offering a free listing on an advertising agency's website, where the small print contains an expensive subscription. Don't sign anything you haven't read.

What about reviews and your own website?

For local search results, reviews and your own website weigh more than a directory listing. Google mentions reviews under prominence, and in the Whitespark survey the top factors are your Google profile and distance, plus reviews and your website. Ask satisfied customers for a review in your Google Business Profile, for example in the email you send when a job is done, and answer reviews with a short, personal line.

Make sure your own website says where you are and what you do. A page for each service, with your town where it fits naturally, helps visitors and search engines alike. You can find help with this on our pages about marketing and websites.

Business directories in the Netherlands

Dozens of business directories let you register your company for free or for a fee. Besides the general platforms, there are international directories with a Dutch version. The list below covers the directories that matter in the Netherlands. The city and province pages of Opendi, Yalwa, Cylex and Bedrijvenpagina are no longer listed separately. At Make it Matter, we register business owners in the right directories and optimize their local SEO, so they're easier to find in Google, Bing and AI search results such as ChatGPT.

Frequently asked questions

Are business directories still relevant?

As a supplement, yes. For local search results, your Google Business Profile weighs more. Directories help customers find you in more places, but we found no proven effect on your position in Google or in AI answers for general Dutch directories.

Are all business directories free?

No. Alle Bedrijven in Nederland charges 120 euros per year (excl. VAT) and AlleOndernemers.nl 25 euros per year (excl. VAT). De Bedrijvengids has a free listing with only your name and address, and a premium listing at 249 euros per year (excl. VAT). The table in the directory list shows what we found for each one.

How many directories should I use?

We found no source that names a target number. Begin with the big profiles. Then pick directories that fit your industry or region and that let you fill in everything for free. Every listing you take, you also have to maintain later.

Can business directories affect my position in Google Maps?

Google names the number of websites linking to your business and your reviews under prominence, and doesn't mention business directories. We found no proven effect of directory listings on your position in Google Maps.

What is the risk of bad business directories?

The first risk is money. The directory may be a subscription you didn't want, as the Dutch Chamber of Commerce describes. The second is that the directory no longer exists. In our check on October 6, 2026, seven addresses from an earlier version of this list no longer worked: the domain was gone, parked or returned an error page.

What is NAP consistency?

NAP is short for the three details that identify you: your name, your address and your phone number. NAP consistency means you write all three exactly the same way everywhere: on your website, in your profiles and in every directory. Differences such as an abbreviated address or a different phone format make it harder to see that it's the same business.