What City Has the Most Traffic on Craigslist? (2024)

Used wisely, Craigslist becomes a valuable resource to your business. The site is not just for individuals; many companies across the world use the site to post jobs or advertise services. Craigslist boasts "more than 700 local sites in 70 countries," giving you plenty of places to post. But with so many options, choosing the right city to post in may seem like a game of chance, like throwing darts while blindfolded. Removing that blindfold reveals which US cities see the most Craigslist traffic.

Top Five Cities

  1. Website traffic ranking service Alexa estimates Craigslist is the eighth most-visited site in the United States as of April 2013. While the actual statistics collected by Alexa may not be completely accurate, they offer a clear idea of which US cities see the most Craigslist traffic. Not surprising, the results show five of the most heavily populated cities in the country. In order of most visited, the Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City, Seattle and Chicago sites have seen the most traffic over Alexa's three-month data collection period. According to the Alexa data, the Los Angeles Craigslist accounts for 6.41 percent of the traffic going to Craigslist, while Chicago makes up 3.07 percent of Craigslist traffic.

Changes

  1. While it's safe to say that these big cities will continue to see high traffic, the exact ranking may change. The percentage difference in traffic between Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York is less than one percent. One of the lower ranked cities may easily overtake Los Angeles as the most visited city on Craigslist.

Sub-Sections

  1. Craigslist's city sites can be viewed as a whole or broken down into smaller sub-sections based on location. For example, while the New York City craigslist encompasses all areas of the city, users may choose the "Manhattan" section to only see listings from Manhattan. The sites may also include areas that aren't actually within the designated city, but closeby. The NYC Craigslist also encompasses the entire state of New Jersey, while the Los Angeles Craigslist includes nearby cities like Long Beach and others within the Los Angeles County area. While posting to the whole city may increase your post's overall traffic, targeting a specific and relevant sub-section helps ensure the right people see your post.

Posting in Multiple Cities

  1. Craigslist's Frequently Asked Questions page expressly states that it is against the site's rules to post the same ad in multiple cities. The document suggests that you post to the site closest to you in location, but also says that "if your ad is equally relevant to all locations, your ad does not belong on Craigslist." While skirting this rule might seem like a harmless way to give your ad more exposure, getting caught will likely get your post deleted and may result in you losing your account.

What City Has the Most Traffic on Craigslist? (2024)

FAQs

What City Has the Most Traffic on Craigslist? ›

Top Five Cities

How do I get more hits on Craigslist? ›

Include at least one image to attract more viewers. Customers typically like to see the conditions or status of your offering, because this eliminates the need to contact you requesting further details. Additionally, many users prefer to search only for ads that contain images.

What is the best time to post on Craigslist? ›

The authors recommend posting during the employee break time slot of 10 am to noon, or at 5 pm Monday through Friday, when the work day ends for most people. During the weekend, mornings work best.

Can I post on Craigslist in multiple cities? ›

If you're looking to reach a wider audience with your Craigslist ads, you may want to consider posting in multiple cities at once. After all, the more cities you post your Craigslist ads on, the wider the audience you will reach. However, just because you have the ad in multiple cities doesn't mean you'll succeed!

Does Craigslist have a view counter? ›

Getting a clear idea of how many people actually read your posts is vital to creating effective ones, but default Craigslist options don't allow you to add a view count, or "hit counter," at the bottom of the page. You'll need to go outside of Craigslist to do so.

How do I bump my Craigslist post to the top? ›

Make a new ad and repost the information from the old ad. Craigslist doesn't offer an option for you to repost the original listing automatically, hence the need for you to manually redo the ad. Once you have submitted the new ad it will appear at the top of the listings again.

How do I make my Craigslist post more visible? ›

Optimize Your Posting : Keep your posts clear, concise, and easy to read. Include important details such as price, location, condition (if selling items), and contact information. Use proper formatting and avoid excessive use of all caps or special characters.

What cities are most popular on Craigslist? ›

Top Five Cities

In order of most visited, the Los Angeles, San Francisco, New York City, Seattle and Chicago sites have seen the most traffic over Alexa's three-month data collection period.

What is the fastest selling item on Craigslist? ›

12 Items That Currently Sell the Most Money On Craigslist
  • Home Appliances. Gently used or well-maintained appliances like refrigerators, washing machines, and dryers are always in demand. ...
  • Furniture. ...
  • Electronics. ...
  • Cars and Motorcycles. ...
  • Power Tools. ...
  • Sporting Goods. ...
  • Garden Equipment. ...
  • Tech Accessories.
Jan 24, 2024

What should I not do when selling on Craigslist? ›

6 WAYS TO AVOID GETTING SCAMMED ON CRAIGSLIST
  1. Deal locally. It's always safest to finalize a transaction in person. ...
  2. Examine the product before finalizing a sale. ...
  3. Don't accept or send a cashier's check, certified check or money order as payment. ...
  4. Use cash — safely. ...
  5. Don't share your personal information.

Can you have 2 Craigslist accounts? ›

There is no explicit rule that limits the number of Craigslist accounts. You can have multiple accounts but you are at the risk of getting flagged if you post the same ad across different locations.

How to post multiple ads on Craigslist without getting flagged? ›

Posting Numerous Ads Within 48 Hours

One of the best tips on how to post Craigslist Ads without getting flagged is to avoid overposting using the same account within 48 hours. As emphasized previously, Craigslist tends to flag users that spam the website with the same ads repeatedly.

How to make your Craigslist ad stand out? ›

As an advertiser on Craigslist, you can use a few methods to make your advertisem*nt stand out above the rest of the pack.
  1. Research optimal keywords for your product or service. ...
  2. Write a catchy title. ...
  3. Work keywords into the text of your Craigslist posting wherever possible.

What does everyone use instead of Craigslist? ›

Here are the top five Craigslist competitors to consider.
  • OfferUp. OfferUp is a popular alternative to Craigslist, and you can find almost any item on there. ...
  • Oodle. Oodle is another marketplace with a dated-looking website reminiscent of Craigslist. ...
  • 3. Facebook Marketplace. ...
  • Gumtree. ...
  • Locanto.
Apr 26, 2024

Can you tell if your Craigslist ad has been viewed? ›

While there is no accurate way of tracking views on your Craigslist ads without violating Craigslist's rules, that's totally fine because views are not what you should be worried about anyway.

How do you boost on Craigslist? ›

Be A Super Spy – Google your product or service, find the best websites and research what they are saying, use this information to write your own awesome descriptions, titles and include all the features, then search for your product or service on Craigslist, what is your competitor saying, selling and for how much.

How to improve Craigslist postings? ›

Follow These 10 Tips to Sell More With Your Craigslist Ad
  1. Know Your Target Audience. ...
  2. Use an Eye-Catching Headline. ...
  3. Include Key Information in the Body of Your Ad. ...
  4. Use Attractive Visuals. ...
  5. Use a Call to Action. ...
  6. Create Many Unique Ads. ...
  7. Be Realistic About Prices. ...
  8. Use Keyword-Rich Titles and Descriptions.
Aug 26, 2022

How to make a Craigslist ad stand out? ›

Research optimal keywords for your product or service. Craigslist filters search results based on simple keyword analysis. If your posting contains the right keywords, it rises to the top of the search results. To make your posting stand out, try a few searches yourself for products or services similar to yours.

How do I promote myself on Craigslist? ›

With the ease of the platform in mind, here are six of our top tips for selling your stuff on Craigslist quickly and painlessly.
  1. Choose the Right Craigslist Market. ...
  2. Re-List Weekly. ...
  3. Use Strong SEO Keywords. ...
  4. Take a Good Photo. ...
  5. Keep an Eye On Your Inbox. ...
  6. Choose a Competitive Price.
Oct 5, 2021

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