There's no single best place to launch. Each channel has its own audience, norms, and amount of work. This page compares common free options so you can choose a few that fit your product instead of posting everywhere.
Rules and features change. Read each platform's current guidelines before you post.
Comparison
| Channel | Audience | Effort | What tends to work | Caveats |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product Hunt | Tech-curious early adopters, makers, investors | High: listing assets, launch-day presence, answering comments | A clear tagline, good visuals, a maker comment explaining why you built it, being around all day | It's a one-day event. Visibility depends on activity during that day, and a quiet launch fades quickly |
| Hacker News (Show HN) | Developers and technical founders | Medium: one post, then staying in the thread | Something people can actually try, a plain title, honest technical detail, replying to criticism calmly | Follow the Show HN guidelines (it has to be something you made that people can try — not just a landing page, and not something people have to sign up for before they can try it). Marketing language goes down badly. Results vary a lot |
| Indie Hackers | Bootstrapped founders and solo makers | Low to medium | Build-in-public posts, lessons, numbers you're comfortable sharing | It's a community first. Pure announcements get little response |
| Reddit (niche subreddits) | Very specific communities | Medium: you need to find the right subreddits and read the rules | Posting where your product solves a problem people there talk about, and taking part beyond your own post | Self-promotion rules differ by subreddit and are often strict. Read the sidebar first |
| Dev.to | Developers | Medium: writing an actual article | Tutorials, build notes, and lessons where the product is context, not the point | Articles that are mostly ads don't get much attention. Long-tail search traffic can build up over time |
| LaunchSignal | People and AI agents browsing new product listings | Low: a form, a JSON API, or an MCP tool | An accurate one-liner, the right category, a working URL | Submissions are reviewed before they appear. It's a listing, not a launch-day event |
| Your own audience (newsletter, X, LinkedIn, Discord) | People who already follow you | Low to medium | A short story about why it exists, a direct link, asking for feedback | Reach is limited to the audience you already have, but people there are the most likely to care |
A note on BetaList
BetaList used to be a common free option. Its FAQ now says all submissions are paid, with a refund if your startup isn't selected. It's a curated option for early-stage products, but it's no longer a free one.
How to choose
- Developer tool? Show HN and Dev.to are usually the best fit. Product Hunt is optional.
- Consumer or prosumer app? Product Hunt and relevant subreddits.
- Bootstrapped or solo, with a story to tell? Indie Hackers and your own audience.
- Want something that stays findable after launch week? Listing sites and written articles keep working long after the first day.
Practical tips that apply everywhere
- Write one clear sentence about what the product does and reuse it everywhere.
- Make sure the URL works without signing up, or say plainly that signup is required.
- Spread launches out over days or weeks. You'll learn more, and you can fix things between launches.
- Stay around to reply. On nearly every channel, the replies matter more than the post.
- Keep your listings up to date as the product changes.