Industrial directory is a directory for targeted buyers of industrial manufacturers and suppliers. It consists of an elaborate list of industrial suppliers and manufacturers of products and services. This list is of goods and services are the requirement of the industries rather than the final consumers. These products such as batteries, bearings, gasket, power transmission, steel, electronics, castings, and rods are all examples of intermediated goods used by different manufacturers to produce finished goods for consumers.

Global industrial directories list industrial products and suppliers from all across the world. As we know about the fact that different countries have different resources and cost structures, such a register could help industries find the best products suited to their requirements, and also the best bargains. For example, some countries might be rich in certain minerals and metals, and these might give them a comparative advantage to produce certain kinds of industrial supplies over other countries. On the other hand, there are countries that have cheap labor enabling them to make the same products made by developed countries at lower costs. These can enable the manufactures to reap the benefits of the directory which will serve its purpose.

The distinguishing characteristic of an industrial directory is that it lists products, services and suppliers needed by industries, rather than by final consumers. These would be mainly such intermediate products as automation equipment, CNC machining, transformers, advertising novelties, engineering services, leak detectors and a large variety of others. These intermediate products are used in making consumer products, or major projects such as space and ocean going ships, public utilities, defense requirements and so on.

While a few consumer products or dual use products might be listed, the emphasis in the industrial directories is on industrial products and services needed by other industries.