Introducing RadiusDirectory: Business Directory Software

Most directory sites don’t fail because the idea was bad. They fail somewhere between the fourth plugin install, the add-on invoice nobody budgeted for, and the 2 a.m. message that the site is down again. The founder who wanted to sell listings ends up running a server instead.

We’ve watched that happen for more than a decade. So we built the shortcut.

RadiusDirectory is fully managed business directory software for launching a business directory, a classified ads site, or a multi-seller marketplace. Every module ships in the core product, so there is nothing extra to buy. We handle setup, hosting, backups, and updates, and your site runs white-label on your own domain.

RadiusDirectory comes from RadiusTheme, the team behind the Classified Listing plugin and the Classima theme: 10+ years in business, 250,000+ customers, 90+ themes released, and 14 plugins maintained. This post covers what RadiusDirectory is, who it’s for, what’s in the box, what it costs, how far it scales, and when a WordPress plugin is still the better choice.

Key takeaways

• RadiusDirectory is SaaS business directory software from the RadiusTheme team. One platform runs directory, classified, and marketplace sites.
• All 16 modules are included on every plan. There are no premium add-ons, and we charge 0% platform fees on your sales.
• It is fully managed: setup, hosting, security updates, daily backups, SSL, and a custom domain are all handled for you.
• Pricing is by active listings, from 20,000 (Starter) to 100,000 (Pro), with a Dedicated tier above that. Monthly plans start at $63, annual plans start at $553.
• Three themes are live today, with eight more in progress, and the interface supports 30+ languages.
• If you want full code ownership, a custom stack, or the lowest possible license cost, WordPress plus a plugin still wins. If you want to launch in days with nothing to maintain, RadiusDirectory is built for you.

Why we built RadiusDirectory

We have supported thousands of directory and classified sites built on our WordPress products, and the same support tickets keep coming back. They are rarely about the directory itself. They are about everything around it.

• The plugin stack. A working directory on WordPress usually needs a theme, a directory plugin, a payment extension, a maps add-on, a chat plugin, a review plugin, and a caching plugin. Each one updates on its own schedule, and one update can break another.
• Add-on pricing. Many directory platforms sell a cheap base plan and then charge for claim listing, verification, chat, analytics, or extra themes. The real cost appears after launch, when switching is hardest.
• Hosting and security. Founders do not want to compare hosting plans, set up backups, renew SSL, or wake up to a hacked site. They want to sell listings.
• Speed at scale. A site that is fast with 500 listings can crawl at 20,000. Fixing that on a general-purpose stack takes engineering time that most owners do not have.

RadiusDirectory is our answer to those four problems. It is business directory software purpose-built for listings, every module is included, we run the infrastructure, and the pricing is a flat fee based on how many active listings you have. There is nothing to install and nothing to patch.

Who needs RadiusDirectory

RadiusDirectory is for people who want to own a listing business, not a website project. In practice, that is five groups.

Who	What they are building	Why it fits
First-time founders	A local or niche business directory, such as “wedding vendors in Austin” or “EV charging installers”	Launch in days, no technical setup, flat monthly cost, 30-day money-back guarantee
Classified site owners	A buy-and-sell board for cars, property, jobs, pets, or used goods	Seller verification, mark as sold, renewals, report listing, and live chat are built in
Marketplace builders	A multi-vendor store where sellers list and buyers check out in one cart	Marketplace checkout, seller stores, and commissions are included, with 0% platform fees from us
Associations and chambers	A member directory with claimed, verified profiles	Claim listing, verification badges, and starter listings imported at setup
Agencies and publishers	Directory sites for clients, or a directory beside an existing content site	100% white-label, custom domain, EU or US data location, and nothing to maintain between projects

It is also a good fit if you already run a directory on another platform and are tired of paying for add-ons. We import your starter listings during setup, so you do not start from an empty site.

Who should not use it yet: teams that need custom code on the server, a self-hosted install, or deep integration with an existing WordPress site. For those, our WordPress products remain the right tool, and we cover that choice later in this post.

One platform, three business models

Most business directory software does one thing. RadiusDirectory runs three listing models on the same site, and you can mix them.

Business directory. Businesses hold a profile with hours, map, gallery, and reviews. You earn from paid listings, featured placement, claim fees, and leads. Claim Listing and Seller Verification keep the data trustworthy.

Classified ads. Individuals post items for sale with a price, condition, and location. Renew Listing, Mark as Sold, Report Listing, and Live Chat handle the full life of an ad, from posting to the sale.

Marketplace. Sellers open a branded Store, buyers add items from several sellers to one cart, and the Marketplace module handles checkout. You set a commission on each sale, and RadiusDirectory takes 0% of it.

The practical benefit is that you do not have to pick one on day one. A city directory can add a classifieds section in year two, or a vendor directory can switch on checkout once sellers ask for it, with no migration and no new plugin.

Features in detail: the 16 modules

Everything below is included on every plan. On most platforms, at least half of this list would be a paid add-on. Full descriptions are on the modules page.

Core features

Module	What it does
AI Features	Writes listing descriptions, generates SEO content, suggests keywords, and powers smart search that understands what buyers mean. Runs on your own AI provider key.
Seller Verification	Verifies sellers by document, phone, and email, then awards a trust badge. You approve every submission from one moderation queue.
Leads	Captures inquiries from listing pages, even from anonymous visitors, and tracks them as new, read, replied, or archived.
Store	A branded storefront per seller with logo, banner, gallery, business hours, social links, map, and store-level ratings.
Marketplace	Multi-seller checkout in one cart, with multi-vendor payouts. You earn a commission on every sale.
Booking (coming soon)	Appointments and reservations from a listing, with availability, time slots, and confirmations.

Listing features

Module	What it does
Claim Listing	Lets real owners claim an existing listing, with five verification methods and document uploads before approval. Essential when you seed the site with imported data.
Compare	Places listings side by side to weigh price, specs, and features, pulled from your custom fields.
Quick View	Previews a listing in a pop-up so visitors keep browsing search results.
Mark as Sold	Keeps a sold item visible with a sold label and its history, which protects your indexed pages.
Add to Favorites	Saves listings to a personal shortlist in the user’s account.
Renew Listing	Pre-expiry reminders and paid renewals, so expired ads become recurring revenue.
Report Listing	A report button with eight reasons for spam, scams, or violations. Reports land in a moderation queue with reviewer notes.

Engagement

Module	What it does
Reviews & Ratings	1 to 5 star reviews with approve and spam moderation, plus replies.
Analytics	Views, clicks, chats, favorites, and revenue per listing, with daily roll-ups and search insights. Sellers see their own numbers, which is what makes them pay for upgrades.
Live Chat	Real-time buyer-to-seller messaging with attachments, read receipts, blocking, and moderation.

Platform features that are not modules

• Custom fields and categories for any niche, from property specs to service areas.
• Maps and location pages for local search.
• Themes: two are live today, with eight more in progress. Every theme is white-label.
• 30+ languages for the interface, so you can launch outside English markets.
• Payments: connect your own payment provider. We do not sit between you and your money.
• SEO basics handled by the platform: fast pages, clean category and location URLs, and mobile-first layouts.

Fully managed means you never touch a server

“Managed” is used loosely in this industry, so here is exactly what we handle on every plan:

• Done-for-you setup. We configure your site, theme, categories, and payment connection, and import your starter listings. Setup is included on annual plans and a small one-time fee on monthly plans.
• Hosting and full maintenance. We run the servers, monitor uptime, and tune performance. There is no hosting bill from anyone else.
• Platform and security updates. New features and patches ship to your site automatically. There are no update buttons and no compatibility checks.
• Daily backups. Your listings, users, and media are backed up every day.
• Custom domain with free SSL. Your site runs on yourdomain.com with HTTPS, not on a subdomain of ours.
• 100% white-label. No RadiusDirectory branding anywhere on the public site. Your customers see your brand only.
• EU or US data location. Choose where your data lives at signup, which matters for GDPR and for local page speed.
• Priority support on Starter, Growth, and Pro, and dedicated support on the Dedicated tier.

Bring your own keys, 0% platform fees

Two decisions set RadiusDirectory apart on cost.

First, you connect your own provider accounts and they bill you directly, at cost. We connect everything during setup and add no markup and no usage caps of our own.

Service	Providers you can connect
AI	OpenAI, Gemini, Anthropic, or a custom endpoint
Email	SMTP, Amazon SES, SendGrid, Mailgun, Postmark, or Resend
Maps	Google Maps (maps and geocoding)
Real-time chat	Pusher

Second, when your users pay for listings, memberships, or marketplace purchases, we take 0% of the transaction. Every dollar of your revenue is yours.

Pricing

RadiusDirectory is priced by active listings, not by features. Every plan gets all modules, hosting and maintenance, daily backups, a custom domain with SSL, white-label branding, and EU or US data location. Only the limits change. Prices are in USD, excluding applicable taxes; see the pricing page for current terms.

🎁 Early Bird annual: 30% off the first year, free setup, then regular price

Monthly plans

🎁 Early Bird monthly: 20% off the first year, then regular price. Cancel anytime

Plan	Early Bird first year	Regular price
Starter	$63 / month	$79 / month
Growth	$119 / month	$149 / month
Pro	$159 / month	$249 / month

All three plans include 100 starter business listings imported at setup.

What you will still pay for

We would rather you know this now than after signup:

• Your own provider accounts for AI, transactional email, maps, and chat, billed by those providers at cost. For a small site this is often a few dollars a month, and several providers have free tiers.
• Payment processing fees from Stripe, PayPal, or whichever processor you connect. These are the processor’s standard rates. RadiusDirectory adds nothing.
• Your domain name, from any registrar.

Guarantee

Starter, Growth, and Pro come with a 30-day money-back guarantee, so you can build the site, import listings, and test checkout before the decision is final.

Scalability: from first listing to 100,000 and beyond

A directory’s cost structure changes as it grows. Here is how RadiusDirectory handles each stage.

Launch (0 to 20,000 listings). Starter covers this with room to spare. We import your first 100 listings at setup, so the site is useful on day one, and the AI module writes descriptions so you are not staring at blank pages.

Growth (20,000 to 50,000 listings). Still Starter. Because the platform is built only for listings, search and category pages stay fast as the database grows, without caching plugins or server tuning. Analytics shows which categories and locations attract searches, which tells you where to recruit more sellers.

Scale (50,000 to 100,000 listings). Move to Growth or Pro. Upgrades keep your data, theme, and settings; only the limit and storage change. The 10% grace buffer means a seasonal spike does not lock you out mid-month.

Enterprise (100,000+ listings or strict compliance). The Dedicated tier runs your site on an isolated server with dedicated support, for large portals, publishers, and clients with data-residency requirements.

Scaling beyond listing counts

• Languages. The interface supports 30+ languages, so a directory can expand into a second market without a second site.
• Business models. Add classifieds or marketplace checkout to a directory at any stage. The modules are already there.
• Team. Verification, reports, and reviews flow through moderation queues, so you can add moderators as volume grows instead of handling everything from one inbox.
• Media. Storage scales from 20 GB to 100 GB across plans, enough for tens of thousands of listing photos.
• SEO. Clean category, location, and listing URLs mean every new listing is a new indexable page. For how to make those pages rank, see our directory SEO guide.

RadiusDirectory vs WordPress: which business directory software should you choose?

We make both, so we have no reason to push you the wrong way. Here is the honest split.

	RadiusDirectory (SaaS)	WordPress + Classified Listing or a directory theme
Setup	Done for you, live in days	You install, configure, and theme it
Hosting, updates, backups	Included and handled	Your responsibility, or your host’s
Features	All 16 modules included	Core plugin plus paid extensions as needed
Code access	None; it is a hosted service	Full access, any custom code, any integration
Themes	3 live, 8 in progress	Hundreds across the WordPress ecosystem
Ongoing cost	From $63 / month or $553 / year	Hosting plus licenses, often lower at small scale
Performance at scale	Managed by us	Depends on hosting, caching, and plugin choices
Ownership	Your data, exportable; platform is ours	You own the stack end to end
Best for	Founders, agencies, and businesses who want to run the directory, not the site	Developers, tight budgets, and sites that need WordPress for other reasons

Choose WordPress when you already run WordPress and want the directory inside it, when you need custom server-side code, when you want the lowest possible license cost, or when theme choice matters more than maintenance. Our Classified Listing plugin remains fully supported and actively developed.

Choose RadiusDirectory when you want to launch fast, never think about hosting or updates, use every module without buying extensions, and run directory, classified, and marketplace models on one site.

If you are weighing hosted platforms against each other, our team has also written a detailed comparison of the best business directory software that includes competitors.

How to get started

1. Pick a plan on the pricing page. Starter is right for almost every new site. Choose monthly if you are validating an idea, annual if you are committed and want free setup and the founding discount.
2. Tell us about your site. Niche, location, categories, and whether you want directory, classified, marketplace, or a mix. We set it up.
3. Send your starter listings. A spreadsheet is enough. We import 100 to 300 listings depending on the plan, so you launch with content.
4. Connect your accounts. Payment processor, email, maps, and AI provider keys. Each takes a few minutes, and our team helps.
5. Point your domain and launch. SSL is automatic. You are live, white-label, on your own domain.
6. Recruit and monetize. Invite businesses to claim their listings, switch on paid upgrades, and watch Analytics for the categories that convert.

You have 30 days to change your mind on Starter, Growth, and Pro.

Explore RadiusDirectory · See the modules · View pricing

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