Comparison
The oldest name in attorney directories, dating back to 1868.
Overview
Martindale-Hubbell began publishing in 1868 as a printed directory of American lawyers. For most of the twentieth century it was the definitive reference used by attorneys, judges, and corporate legal departments to research counsel. The AV Preeminent and BV Distinguished ratings, based on confidential peer and judicial evaluations, became genuine signals of professional standing.
The modern Martindale.com is a very different product. Internet Brands acquired the directory in 2018 and folded it into the same portfolio that houses Avvo, Nolo, and Lawyers.com. Product investment has been minimal since then. The famous peer review rating still exists and still carries some weight with older clients and traditional referral networks, but consumer facing traffic has declined substantially.
For attorneys, Martindale is now primarily a defensive listing and a source of the ratings badge that many firms still display on their own websites. The lead generation side of the business exists but is a shadow of the FindLaw or Avvo lead engine.
Owned by Internet Brands, same parent as Avvo, Nolo, and Lawyers.com.
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Feature comparison
Honest breakdown
Historic peer review ratings
The AV Preeminent rating remains a meaningful credential in traditional legal circles and is often cited on firm websites.
Long standing brand recognition among older clients
General counsel and referral sources who came of age before the internet still recognize the Martindale name.
Judicial confidence surveys
Peer input from judges is one signal the platform still gathers, which is rare in the industry.
Declining consumer traffic
Younger clients rarely arrive through Martindale directly. Most traffic now comes from attorneys linking to their own ratings badges.
Peer rating process is slow and opaque
Attorneys report waiting months for peer surveys to close and never fully understanding how the final rating is calculated.
Aging interface
The site design has changed very little in a decade.
Internet Brands overlap
Profiles often duplicate what appears on Avvo, Nolo, and Lawyers.com, which reduces the marginal value of managing the listing.
Limited attorney facing tools
There is no meaningful analytics dashboard or lead inbox comparable to modern platforms.
Pricing
Basic profiles are free. Enhanced profiles and lead generation packages are sold through sales representatives, typically at a few hundred dollars per month for basic upgrades and several thousand dollars per month for premium lead packages in competitive markets.
Lexoor keeps pricing transparent. The free tier includes a full profile, lead inbox, analytics, and messaging. Paid promotion is offered as a simple monthly plan with no annual contracts and no per lead surcharges.
The recommendation
Choose Lexoor
Choose Lexoor if you want to attract clients today rather than collect a badge that impresses fellow attorneys, and if you want a real dashboard with lead management and analytics rather than a static listing.
Choose Martindale-Hubbell
Choose Martindale if you value the AV Preeminent peer rating as a credential to display on your own firm website and marketing materials, particularly in practices that serve institutional or older clients.
Verdict
Martindale is a brand built for the twentieth century and still has real credibility in traditional legal circles. Lexoor is the platform attorneys actually use to grow a practice in 2026.
Frequently asked
If you serve institutional clients, general counsel, or older referral sources, the AV Preeminent rating still helps. If your client base is primarily consumer facing, it matters much less.
No. Lexoor emphasizes verified credentials and client reviews. Peer ratings are a separate signal that some attorneys will always want to display alongside those.
Not directly. Many attorneys list their Martindale rating in the credentials section of their Lexoor profile.
Still deciding? Compare Lexoor vs Avvo, Lexoor vs FindLaw, or Lexoor vs Justia.
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