How We Rank Providers

The factors ProviderScout uses to order providers in search results and category pages. Published publicly so there are no surprises.

The one thing payment doesn't do: pay their way up the organic rankings. A provider who pays $99/month for a Premium listing is ranked in organic results in exactly the same position as a provider who pays nothing. Paid features appear in a clearly-labelled Featured Providers carousel at the top of the page, separate from the organic results below.

The short version

When you search for a service, or browse a district or category page, the providers you see are ordered by how well they match what you're looking for — using a combination of relevance, location, listing quality, verification, and recency. Payment is not a factor. The goal is to show you the providers most likely to actually help you, not the ones who've paid the most.

The factors we use, in order of weight

Relevance match

How well does the provider match what was searched? If you search for "speech pathology in Parramatta", providers who list speech pathology as a primary service rank above providers who list it as a secondary service, who in turn rank above providers who offer it alongside many other services. Exact service match beats category match. This is the single largest factor.

Geographic proximity

How close is the provider to the searched location? For location-specific searches, providers within the searched suburb rank above nearby suburbs, which rank above providers serving the broader district. Providers offering telehealth are treated as reachable from anywhere in Australia for relevant service categories.

Listing completeness

How fully has the provider filled out their listing? Providers who have claimed their listing and added a full description, listed their services, indicated whether they're accepting new clients, and provided up-to-date contact details rank above stub listings with only basic information. This rewards effort and makes the directory more useful for participants. Claiming a listing is free — there is no cost to being a fully-completed listing.

Verification status

Is the provider verified? Providers whose ABN has been independently verified through the Australian Business Register, and whose NDIS registration number has been checked against the NDIS Commission register, rank above unverified listings. Verification is free and available to any legitimate provider. Both badges appear on verified listings alongside their name.

Recency of updates

How recently has the listing been updated? Providers whose listings have been updated in the last 90 days rank above dormant listings. This rewards providers who keep their availability, contact details, and service descriptions current, which directly helps participants avoid contacting providers whose information is out of date.

Engagement signals

Do participants engage with the listing when they find it? We measure dwell time (how long participants stay on a listing page) and return visits. Listings that participants actually read rank above listings that are clicked and immediately abandoned. Raw click count is not used because it can be manipulated; dwell time is harder to fake and better reflects genuine interest.

Editorial signals (small contribution)

Has the provider been recognised by a trusted independent source? A small ranking contribution comes from editorial signals — things like being a winner at the Australian Allied Health Awards, or appearing on a curated list published by an independent industry body. These signals are never for sale and cannot be obtained by payment. Editorial signals are visually marked on the listing itself so participants can see where the recognition came from.

Factors we explicitly don't use

For transparency, here's what we deliberately don't factor into ranking:

Payment. Whether a provider pays for Enhanced or Premium features has zero effect on their organic ranking. This is the most important commitment we've made.
Raw click count. Click-through rate is easy to manipulate with bots, and pure popularity-based ranking creates feedback loops where the top provider stays on top regardless of quality. We measure engagement quality instead.
Google rating alone. We display Google ratings on listings as one data point, but we don't use them as a ranking signal. Google ratings in the NDIS space are widely gamed and often don't reflect actual service quality for participants with disability.
Size or revenue of provider. Large corporate chains don't rank higher than small independent providers because of their size. A solo psychologist can rank above a national chain if they match the search better, fill out their listing more completely, and verify their credentials.
Relationship with ProviderScout. Providers who happen to correspond with us, are partners on other initiatives, or are referred by someone we know do not receive ranking boosts. Partnership is separate from ranking.

If you're a provider and you want to rank better

The good news is that all the ranking factors are things you can improve without paying us anything. In order of impact:

Claim your listing — takes about 2 minutes, free, and immediately improves your listing completeness score
Fill out every field — description, services offered, availability, telehealth option, contact details
Verify your business — submit your ABN and NDIS registration number for verification badges
Keep your listing current — update availability and any changes as they happen; recency is a ranking factor
Make sure your service categories are accurate — relevance match is the largest factor, so being specific about what you offer matters more than being broad

If your listing is fully complete, verified, and recently updated, you are competing on equal terms with every other provider. Payment cannot beat this. Claim your listing at providerscout.com.au/claim.

When the algorithm changes

If we change how ranking works, the change is published on our changelog with the date it took effect and a short explanation. We don't make silent changes to the algorithm. If a provider wants to understand why their ranking moved, they can look at the changelog and see what changed.

If you think a ranking is wrong

If you're a participant who thinks the order of providers doesn't match what you'd expect, or a provider who thinks your position is unfair — email us at hello@decisionlab.com.au. We'll look into it, and if there's a genuine bug or oversight we'll fix it. If the ranking is working as designed, we'll explain why.

See also: How ProviderScout Works for the full picture of how the business operates.

Last updated: 13 April 2026
Algorithm version: 1.0