Hacker News “Show HN” is free, high-intent tech traffic — but the audience is ruthless about substance. One shot at the front page; no guaranteed placement or permanent listing.
Top pick best for Launch & referral traffic
Developers, technical founders, and YC-adjacent builders
One shot — no re-posts within ~6 months; promotional tone gets downvoted
Use the Submit page. Title format matters: “Show HN: [Product] – [concrete value prop]”. Link directly to your product or demo, not a landing-page wall.
Post a top-level comment explaining what you built, who it’s for, what’s different, and what feedback you want. HN rewards transparency and technical honesty.
Tuesday–Thursday, 8–10 AM ET tends to perform best. Avoid major tech news days when the front page is crowded.
Answer every question without marketing fluff. Acknowledge limitations. The community downvotes promotional tone quickly.
Duplicate Show HNs for the same product get flagged. Save it for meaningful launches (v1, major pivot, open-source release).
Nofollow links from HN. Value is qualified traffic and occasionally inbound links from blogs that pick up your launch — not direct DR transfer.