Free Local Citation Sites for UK: What to Claim First

Claim these free Local Citation Sites for UK first, in this order:

1. Google Business Profile
2. Bing Places for Business
3. Apple Business (for Apple Maps; it replaced Apple Business Connect in April 2026)
4. Yell.com
5. Facebook Page
6. Yelp UK

Then add a handful of established UK directories and the sites specific to your industry.

Use exactly the same business name, address and phone number on every one. Ten accurate listings do more good than fifty messy ones.

What is a local citation?

A local citation is any online mention of your business’s name, address and phone number (NAP), usually with your website, hours and category.

Directory profiles like Yell or Yelp are structured citations.

A mention of your business in a local news story or a supplier’s page is an unstructured citation.

Citations help in two ways.

They let search engines and map apps confirm that your business details are real and consistent. And they put you in front of people who search directly on those platforms. Some directories also supply data to other services, so one wrong entry can spread.

Citations are a supporting signal, not a ranking shortcut.

Your Google Business Profile, reviews, website and proximity to the searcher usually matter more. That is exactly why the order you claim things in matters.

Before you claim anything: build a master NAP sheet

Most citation problems start before the first listing is created. Spend 15 minutes writing one reference record and copy from it every time.

Field	What to decide	UK example
Business name	Your real-world trading name, no keywords added	Harlow & Sons Plumbing
Address	One format, used everywhere	Unit 4, Riverside Park, Leeds LS10 1AB
Postcode	Always included, with the space	LS10 1AB
Phone	One local number, one format	0113 496 0123
Website	Final URL, with or without www, https	https://harlowplumbing.co.uk/
Hours	Including bank holiday policy	Mon–Fri 08:00–18:00
Categories	Primary plus 2–3 secondary	Plumber; Heating engineer
Short description	50 and 250 word versions	—
Assets	Logo, 5–10 real photos	—

UK formatting tips:

• Postcodes matter. Many UK directories match or de-duplicate listings by postcode. A typo can create a second listing.
• Pick one phone format. Use the local landline format (0113 496 0123) or the +44 format, and stick with it. Avoid call-tracking numbers as your main citation number.
• Service-area businesses (plumbers, cleaners, mobile hairdressers) working from home should hide the address where the platform allows it, rather than inventing an office address.
• Keep “Ltd” consistent. Either include it everywhere or nowhere in the public name.

Tier 1: Claim these core platforms first (week 1)

These platforms power the maps and search results most UK customers actually use. All offer a free listing.

1. Google Business Profile

Your Google Business Profile is your most important citation. It controls how you appear in Google Maps and the local pack.

Search Google Maps for your business first, because a profile may already exist and need claiming rather than creating. See our step-by-step guide to creating a Google Business Profile.

2. Bing Places for Business

Bing feeds results in Windows search and Microsoft’s AI products. The quickest route is to import your verified Google profile, which saves re-entering everything.

3. Apple Business (Apple Maps)

Apple combined Business Connect, Business Manager and Business Essentials into one free platform called Apple Business, launched on 14 April 2026 in more than 200 countries and regions. Location claiming and place cards for Apple Maps now live there, and existing Business Connect data moved across automatically. If an older guide tells you to use “Apple Business Connect”, use Apple Business instead. iPhone users searching Maps or Siri see this data.

4. Yell.com

Yell is the UK’s best-known online directory, and Yell states that a basic listing on Yell.com is free, including its reviews platform. Search your business name and postcode first: Yell may already have a record for you, and you should claim that rather than create a duplicate. Yell offers paid advertising too; you don’t need it to get the citation.

5. Facebook Page

A Facebook Page works as a free, trusted listing with your address, hours and reviews, and many customers check it before calling. Make sure the NAP matches your master sheet exactly.

6. Yelp UK

Yelp is most useful for restaurants, retail and personal services, and its data is used by other apps. Claim your existing page if one exists.

Tier 2: Add established UK directories (weeks 2–3)

Once Tier 1 is clean, add a small set of general UK directories.

Most have a free basic listing with paid upgrades; check each site’s current terms before signing up, and decline paid add-ons you don’t need.

Directory	Best for	Note
Thomson Local	All local businesses	Long-running UK directory
FreeIndex	Services, trades, B2B	Strong review features
Cylex UK	All industries	Quick to set up
Foursquare	Retail, hospitality	Its location data is licensed to many apps
192.com	All local businesses	UK business search
Hotfrog UK	SMEs	General listings
LinkedIn Company Page	B2B, professional services	Also a brand signal

You don’t need every UK directory. Five to ten good general listings, all accurate, is a solid base for most small businesses.

Tier 3: Industry and local sites (ongoing)

Industry sites often send real enquiries, which general directories rarely do. Choose by sector:

Sector	Sites worth checking
Trades and home services	Checkatrade, MyBuilder, Rated People, TrustATrader, Bark
Hospitality and tourism	TripAdvisor, OpenTable, Visit England / regional tourism boards
Home design and renovation	Houzz
Health and dental	NHS service directory (if eligible), Doctify, relevant professional bodies
Legal	Law Society “Find a Solicitor”, Review Solicitors
Local community	Chamber of Commerce, council business directories, local news sites

Many trade platforms have a free basic profile but sell leads or memberships.

Check what’s included before committing. Membership bodies and chambers of commerce often include a directory listing as part of membership.

Find and fix duplicates and old listings

If your business has moved, rebranded or changed numbers, old citations are probably still live. Fixing them is often worth more than adding new ones.

1. Search your old details. Search Google for your old phone number and old address in quotation marks.
2. List what you find in a spreadsheet: site, URL, what’s wrong.
3. Claim and correct listings you can control.
4. Merge or remove duplicates using each site’s support or “report a problem” option.
5. Re-check in 4–6 weeks. Some directories update slowly or re-import old data.

Make your website the source of truth

Every citation should match your website, so the website has to be right first. On a WordPress site:

• Show your NAP in the footer or contact page in the exact master-sheet format.
• Add LocalBusiness schema so search engines can read your name, address, phone, hours and geo-coordinates in a structured way. Our guide to LocalBusiness schema for WordPress explains the fields.
• If you serve several towns, build genuine location pages rather than stuffing town names into one page.

FoundHint helps here: it adds LocalBusiness schema, creates location landing pages and connects to your Google Business Profile for posts and review management from WordPress, so your on-site data and your primary listing stay aligned.

Its local ranking grid lets you see whether your visibility changes across your area after the citation work, rather than guessing.

Common mistakes to avoid

• Chasing volume. Mass submissions to low-quality directories rarely help and are hard to keep updated.
• Adding keywords to your business name (e.g. “Harlow Plumbing – Emergency Plumber Leeds”). It breaks consistency and can breach Google’s guidelines.
• Creating instead of claiming. Always search before you sign up, or you’ll create duplicates.
• Using a different phone number per site without a clear tracking plan.
• Forgetting to update. Changed hours or a new number? Update Tier 1 the same day, then Tier 2.
• Paying for upgrades you don’t need. The citation value comes from the free listing.

Your first-week checklist

• Master NAP sheet written
• Website NAP and LocalBusiness schema match the sheet
• Google Business Profile claimed and verified
• Bing Places imported from Google
• Apple Business location claimed
• Yell.com listing claimed
• Facebook Page and Yelp checked
• Old details searched for duplicates

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Frequently Asked Questions