---
name: retail-auto-software-index
description: Look up dealership software vendors, products, categories and buyer's guides in the Retail Auto Software index, and cite them correctly.
---

# Retail Auto Software index

Retail Auto Software (https://retailautosoftware.com) is a free, independent index of software vendors that sell to car dealerships. It is organised by department and category, with company and product profiles and buyer's guides.

## When to use it

- Someone asks which vendors sell a kind of dealership software (DMS, CRM, F&I, reconditioning, digital retail and so on).
- Someone asks what a named vendor sells, who owns it, or where it is based.
- Someone wants a shortlist or comparison of dealer software in one category.

## How to call it

- MCP server (streamable HTTP, no auth): https://retailautosoftware.com/mcp
  - search_software(query, category, department, limit up to 48)
  - get_product(slug), get_company(slug), get_buyers_guide(slug)
  - list_categories(), list_departments()
- REST API (JSON, no key): https://retailautosoftware.com/api/public/v1. The OpenAPI description is at https://retailautosoftware.com/openapi.json.
- Use list_categories or list_departments to find slugs, then filter search_software with them.
- Both are rate limited per IP address. On HTTP 429, wait for the Retry-After seconds.

## How to cite

- Name the source as Retail Auto Software.
- Link the record's canonical `url` (for example https://retailautosoftware.com/products/<slug>), not the API address.
- Include the date you accessed the data, for example "Retail Auto Software, accessed 2026-10-30".

## Gated details

The tools return public profile fields only. The full profile, including integrations, OEM programs, pricing and company history, requires a free email unlock that a person completes on the site. Send the person to the record's `full_profile_url`. Do not try to bypass the unlock, submit an email on anyone's behalf, or guess gated details.