10 Better Alternatives to Clutch (Clutch.co)

May 28, 2024

Clutch.co is a popular two-sided review directory that lets companies browse and look for agencies to hire, contract, outsource to, or partner with. For example, you can find firms on Clutch that specialize in Web Development, Graphic Design, SEO, Advertising, and hundreds of more categories. A major benefit of Clutch is that you can see reviews of firms written by others to gain an understanding an agency's performance capacity.

However, with an increasingly high number of listings (over 500,000 firms & agencies) on Clutch, it can be overwhelming for top companies to discover & work with the best of the best firms.

There are 4 major issues identified with Clutch:

  1. Pay to Play: for many categories, the first, second, and third pages of listings are all sponsored advertisements
  2. Oversaturation: hundreds of thousands of firms & agencies make it hard to find the right one with confidence (or, if you are an agency, to get found & discovered in front of future clients)
  3. Unvetted: virtually any agency can set up an account on Clutch, allowing space for scammers on Clutch
  4. Expensive: in addition to paid ads and sponsored listings, the Clutch Plus plan is $1,500 per year and the Clutch Sponsor plan is $1,800+ per year (plus ads fees)

As you result, you might find yourself looking for better alternatives to Clutch. Our team of experts has extensively researched, gathered, and curated the best 10 alternatives & similar platforms to Clutch that companies, firms, and agencies can connect together for any upcoming project, task, or initiative.

#1: 50Pros - "the Porsche of directories"

50Pros is a curated directory of only the top 50 firms within 50 categories.

50Pros offers an exclusive, "white-glove" service for Fortune 1,000 companies to quickly access firms they can trust.

In order for a firm to be listed on 50Pros, it must met 50Pros' 4-point vetting process and rigorous vetting process to determine if a firm is:

  1. competent in their field
  2. able to produce results
  3. reliable & trustworthy
  4. well-equipped for long-term potential

#2: A.team - "Build your dream team"

Founded in 2020, A.Team is a platform that lets you build a team from scratch, or temporarily expand your current team for any project.

This is different than hiring an agency or firm, as individual members of any team might be independent freelancers or belong to different & various firms of their own. For example, you might get a UI/UX designer from Company A, a front-end developer from Company B, and a back-end developer from Company C all coming together on your team.

To start, you tell A.team what you're building and what roles, skills, and experience you're looking for, an estimate your start date, and how long you expect your mission to last. After your team request, you will receive a team proposal and choose the team you're most happy with.

#3: Aciety - "Hire dedicated developers"

Founded in 2014 as a small network of 30 Lithuanian companies, Aciety is now an AI-powered developer's long-term rent platform, uniting 1600+ top software companies in Europe.

These companies employ 100,000+ developers. Aciety offers a solid matchmaking service, which helps tech companies to find the most suitable specialists or software development partners. Eastern European presence and EU funding make it financially competitive.

#4: GoodFirms - "Research & reviews of IT companies"

Similarly to Clutch, GoodFirms allows companies to browse and see ratings of service companies, primarily in the IT industry. GoodFirms is a trusted global leader in listing, rating, and reviewing B2B services and products. With nearly a decade of experience working with some of the top B2B leaders, the company has been expertly steering its partners through their digital journey. As a top B2B platform, GoodFirms operates with a vision to amplify the business potential of its users and create next-generation opportunities for them through its valuable insights and research outcomes.

More than 110,000 firms are listed on Goodfirms, with categories including:

  1. Mobile App Development
  2. Software Development
  3. Web Development
  4. E-Commerce Development
  5. Blockchain Technology
  6. Digital Marketing
  7. SEO Services
  8. Web Design (UI/UX)
  9. Big Data & BI
  10. Artificial Intelligence

#5: Procurated - "Connecting public sector buyers with peer-reviewed suppliers"

If you are in the public sector, Procurated is a top platform connecting government contractors with public procurement professionals.

"Procurated helps government, education, and healthcare buyers find businesses who have done outstanding work for public organizations like theirs. Procurated's comprehensive vendor directory highlights top-rated suppliers in hundreds of goods and service categories, across geographic areas and socio-economic designations."

#6: Sortlist - "Build great business stories"

Belgium-based Sortlist is a directory of agencies, with a focus in the European market and on digital marketing & design services.

Sortlist pulls in more than 100,000 firms & agencies of all sizes and service providers in marketing, advertising design, and web development. Combined with AI, Sortlist allows to hiring companies to quickly find a supplier to outsource a task or project.

#7: CrowdReviews - "Rankings you can trust"

With over 600,000 companies, CrowdReviews is a direct competitor to platforms like Clutch, G2, and several others. Categories include:

  1. Digital Marketing
  2. Web Design
  3. Web Hosting
  4. Mobile Development
  5. Merchant Services
  6. Public Relations

"Our rankings are based on client experiences or as we commonly refer to as user reviews. We are tired of the pay for play review platforms where companies simply pay to get ranked higher. Companies that deliver positive experiences and attract positive feedback get ranked higher than those that don't."

#8: G2 - "Where you go for software"

G2 is the world’s largest and most trusted tech marketplace where people can discover, review, and manage the software they need to reach their potential.

You can choose the right software and services for your business based on 1,861,300+ authentic, timely reviews from real users.

"We give buyers better guidance than traditional analyst firms, which can take up to 2 years to update and publish technology research. That timeline just can’t keep up with the pace of technology. At G2, we aim to be a trusted source that helps every business professional in the world make better technology decisions."

#9: Toptal - "the Top 3% of Freelance Talent"

Founded in 2010, Toptal is an exclusive network of the top freelance software developers, designers, finance experts, product managers, and project managers in the world. Top companies hire Toptal freelancers for their most important projects.

Similar to 50Pros, each applicant to the Toptal network must pass a screening process designed to measure subject matter expertise, professionalism, and communication skills. The full screening process takes between 2-5 weeks to complete.

#10: DesignRush - "B2B Marketplace to find agencies"

DesignRush is a guide to find the best professional agencies, categorized by their areas of expertise. Find top full-service agencies, web design companies, digital marketing firms & top technology companies.

DesignRush pricing starts at $1,500 per year and goes as high as $60,000+ per year for higher tier memberships.

Showing 50 of 1,500+ keyword specialties

Why the best companies in the world choose 50Pros to find firms

100% vetted

Browse only the best agencies and be confident knowing your project is in great hands

150+ in-demand categories

From PR to SEO to AI, we have the curated the best firms for any project you have

On-demand expertise

Each agency is ready to start on your project or task with professionalism

No-noise directory

Get a fast snapshot of each firm so you can create a shortlist in record time

Best-in-class match-making

Tell us your unique project goals and we tell you what services & agencies you need

Always free & easy

Agencies pay us a small monthly fee to be listed, so using 50Pros is 100% free

50Pros is the recognized authority on the top-rated Top 50 agencies