12 Indie Hackers alternatives
Directories with a similar audience to Indie Hackers, ranked by domain rating, link type and fit.
Indie Hackers is a long-term founder community — your product page compounds when paired with revenue milestones, build-in-public posts, or genuine discussion.
Ranked alternatives
6 dofollow · 12 free| # | directory | category | DR | link | price | verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 🥇 | Peerlist best for community & founder reach · peerlist.io | Community | 77 | Dofollow | Free | RECOMMENDED |
| 🥈 | Lobsters best for community & founder reach · lobste.rs | Community | 75 | Dofollow | Free | RECOMMENDED |
| 🥉 | Fark best for community & founder reach · fark.com | Community | 73 | Dofollow | Free | RECOMMENDED |
| 04 | The Hive Index best for community & founder reach · thehiveindex.com | Community | 51 | Dofollow | Free | WORTH IT |
| 05 | Unita best for community & founder reach · unita.co | Community | 47 | Dofollow | Free | WORTH IT |
| 06 | Pinkary best for community & founder reach · pinkary.com | Community | 60 | Dofollow | Free | OPTIONAL |
| 07 | Reddit best for community & founder reach · reddit.com | Community | 95 | Nofollow | Free | TOP PICK |
| 08 | DEV Community best for community & founder reach · dev.to | Community | 91 | Nofollow | Free | RECOMMENDED |
| 09 | Hashnode best for community & founder reach · hashnode.com | Community | 83 | Nofollow | Free | WORTH IT |
| 10 | Growth Hackers best for community & founder reach · growthhackers.com | Community | 77 | Nofollow | Free | WORTH IT |
| 11 | F6S best for community & founder reach · f6s.com | Community | 83 | Nofollow | Free | RECOMMENDED |
| 12 | TechRepublic best for community & founder reach · techrepublic.com | Community | 89 | Nofollow | Free | WORTH IT |
Why look beyond Indie Hackers
- Indie Hackers links are nofollow, so a listing does nothing for your backlink profile — 6 of the 12 alternatives in this list are dofollow.
- Bare link drops underperform — share story, metrics, or lessons learned
- Listings compound: the same product kit (name, tagline, descriptions, logo, screenshots) works across every directory here, so one afternoon covers all of them.
Each alternative, briefly
- 01
Peerlist is a professional network for makers — project pages drive discovery through stack tags, endorsements, and cross-posting to LinkedIn/X.
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 02
Lobsters reaches developers through content and community — lead with docs, demos, and technical honesty, not marketing fluff. (dofollow listing, free to submit, DR 80 authority)
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 03
Fark is a community platform — success requires value-first participation in the right subcommunity, not promotional link drops. (dofollow listing, free to submit, DR 81 authority)
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 04
The Hive Index is a community platform — success requires value-first participation in the right subcommunity, not promotional link drops. (free to submit, relatively easy submit)
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 05
Unita is a community platform — success requires value-first participation in the right subcommunity, not promotional link drops. (free to submit, relatively easy submit)
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 06
Pinkary is a community platform — success requires value-first participation in the right subcommunity, not promotional link drops. (dofollow listing, free to submit)
dofollow where Indie Hackers is nofollow · same category (Community) - 07
Reddit offers massive niche reach through subreddits — value comes from genuine participation in r/SaaS, r/startups, r/artificial, etc., not spammy link posts.
higher DR (+14) · same category (Community) - 08
DEV Community (dev.to) distributes content to millions of developers — publish useful technical articles with product context, not bare promotional posts.
higher DR (+10) · same category (Community) - 09
Hashnode hosts developer blogs with built-in distribution — technical articles about problems you solve drive dev audience better than product pages.
higher DR (+2) · same category (Community) - 10
Growth Hackers community shares marketing experiments — visibility through genuine growth case studies, not product link spam.
same category (Community) - 11
F6S is a community platform — success requires value-first participation in the right subcommunity, not promotional link drops. (free to submit, relatively easy submit, DR 88 authority)
higher DR (+2) · same category (Community) - 12
TechRepublic is a community channel — participate authentically and add value before mentioning your product. (nofollow listing, free to submit, DR 88 authority)
higher DR (+8) · same category (Community)
FAQ
What is the best alternative to Indie Hackers?
Peerlist (DR 77, dofollow, free) ranks highest among directories similar to Indie Hackers. Peerlist is a professional network for makers — project pages drive discovery through stack tags, endorsements, and cross-posting to LinkedIn/X.
Are there free alternatives to Indie Hackers?
Yes — 12 of the 12 alternatives are free: Peerlist, Lobsters, Fark, The Hive Index, Unita.
Which Indie Hackers alternatives give dofollow links?
6 of them: Peerlist, Lobsters, Fark, The Hive Index, Unita. A dofollow link passes authority to your domain; nofollow links still send referral traffic.
Should I still submit to Indie Hackers?
Yes. Indie Hackers is rated top pick on the leaderboard (#14 of 1000). Submit there first, then work through the alternatives — they add reach, they do not replace it.