How Bookify Directory Results Are Ranked
Last updated: August 2026 · v1.0
This policy explains, in plain language, how the Bookify Directory orders search and browse results. We keep this explanation accurate and up to date so that businesses and visitors can understand how results appear.
1. The main ranking factors
When you search or browse the Directory, results are ordered using these factors:
- Relevance to your query — how well the business name and category match what you searched for;
- Category match — whether the business falls in the category you are browsing;
- Locality or distance — businesses in the locality you select, or closer to it, appear before more distant ones;
- Open status — where opening hours are sufficiently reliable, businesses that are open may appear before those that are closed or have unknown hours;
- Information freshness — listings whose information was checked more recently may rank slightly higher;
- Neutral tie-breaker — where two results are otherwise equal, we use a stable, neutral ordering.
2. Claimed, unclaimed and Featured status
Whether a listing is claimed, unclaimed or Featured may affect its ranking. Claimed listings benefit from information confirmed by the business itself, which generally makes them more useful, and they may therefore appear above otherwise comparable unclaimed listings.
A profile may display a “Featured” label where the business has a working relationship with Bookify Malta. Featured profiles may rank above otherwise comparable unclaimed listings.
Some Featured profiles may have a direct working relationship with or be affiliated with Bookify. Featured status is not an endorsement of a business’s services, licences, qualifications or quality.
3. Paid placement
There is currently no paid placement, sponsorship or promoted placement in the Directory. If Bookify Malta ever introduces paid placement, we will clearly label each paid result as “Sponsored” or “Promoted”, we will update this policy and the Terms of Service before activation, and payment will never be disguised as an organic ranking factor.
4. Manual intervention
Bookify Malta may manually demote, hide or remove a result where information is seriously inaccurate, where a business is closed or the subject of an ownership dispute, where a listing is under legal review, or where required by law. We do not sell manual placement.
5. Keeping this policy accurate
This policy is reviewed whenever the ranking system changes. We do not publish exact internal weights or security-sensitive implementation details, but the description above always reflects the main parameters actually in use. Questions about ranking can be sent to legal@bookify.mt.