How Rankings & Sponsored Placements Work
RankUp gives creators and founders a direct, transparent way to showcase their products. Learn how promotional placements rank your listing, how rank upgrades credit previous payments, and how daily vs. all-time leaderboards operate.
Getting Ranked in 3 Simple Steps
From zero to live global visibility in under 60 secondsChoose Your Category
Pick the vertical where your audience browses and submit your website URL.
Set Your Placement
Enter any amount to claim the #1 spotlight, or take any rank fitting your budget.
Get Instant Traffic
Upon instant payment confirmation, your listing goes live across the leaderboards.
Core Placement Rules & Governance
Top Placement Takes Rank #1
Rankings are calculated directly by your active sponsored placement amount within your chosen category. The highest placement sits at Rank #1, the second highest at Rank #2, and so on.
Promote for #1 or Any Position
You don't have to pay for Rank #1 right away. You can place any sponsored amount starting from as low as $1.00 to enter the category leaderboard.
You Only Pay the Difference!
When you want to raise your rank or reclaim the top spot, you never pay the full amount again. Your existing active placement is credited 100% toward your new target.
Today vs. All-Time Rank
RankUp provides two distinct views to maximize discoverability:
- Today: Features products that placed or upgraded a placement today (UTC). This is the active daily feed visitors check to discover what's hot right now.
- All-Time Rankings: The permanent leaderboard showing every product ranked by its all-time highest active placement.
- Hall of Fame: A prestigious showcase celebrating the platform-wide top featured products across all categories.
You Never Lose Your Listing
If another creator places a higher promotional amount and overtakes your position, your product is never removed.
Your listing smoothly shifts down to the next position (e.g. from #1 to #2) and continues receiving visitors. You can reclaim your top spot at any time simply by topping up the difference.
Direct Traffic & Protected Ownership
Every visitor click sends users directly to your official website. Real-time click counters track your exposure on your public profile.
To protect your listing, your domain is securely locked to your contact email. Only you can upgrade rankings or edit details for your product.
Example: How Upgrading & Reclaiming Works
See exactly how your payments accumulate when competing for the top spot.
You Place an Initial Placement
You launch your product in AI Tools with a $100 placement. You pay $100 and claim Rank #1.
A Competitor Moves Ahead
Another maker places $120. They move to Rank #1. Your listing slides to Rank #2 (still fully visible and gaining clicks).
You Reclaim Rank #1
You want to reclaim #1 with a $150 placement. Because your previous $100 is credited: You only pay: $150 - $100 = $50 Your listing immediately jumps back to Rank #1!
Frequently Asked Questions
Clear answers to common questions about placements and rankingsDo I have to pay every day to stay on the leaderboard?
No! Once placed, your placement is permanent on the All-Time Leaderboard for as long as your listing is active. To appear in Today, you simply need to have placed a placement or top-up on that day.
Can I lower my placement amount or withdraw it?
No. Placements can only be increased, never decreased. This ensures complete transparency, stability, and fairness for all competing products on the leaderboard.
Can someone else change or promote my website URL?
No. Every listing is securely tied to the contact email you provided during your first placement. If someone tries to submit a placement on your website using a different email, the system rejects it immediately.
What if another creator places a placement at the exact same moment?
Our system processes transactions securely in real time. If a competitor's payment confirms a fraction of a second before yours and renders your placement too low, your funds are never lost—they are automatically held safely for immediate reconciliation or refund.
Where do users go when they click on my listing?
Visitors are sent directly to your website URL in a new browser tab. We don't route them through annoying interstitial pages or ad walls.
Can I update my product's name, description, or logo?
Yes! Whenever you place an upgrade on your existing listing, our system automatically re-scrapes your URL's updated metadata (title, logo, and description) to keep your profile fresh.