Compare · Launch platforms

Hacker News vs Indie Hackers

Both are communities, not launch boards. Hacker News' Show HN wants something people can try, from the person who built it, with no vote rallying. Indie Hackers rewards founders who share numbers and lessons; it also has a products database and a daily Build Board of build-in-public posts.

Neither is a reliable SEO link: Show HN links were mixed nofollow when we checked, and Indie Hackers' Build Board buttons were nofollow.

Hacker News vs Indie Hackers side by side

From each product’s own site or our research, at the time of writing (September 2026). Prices and terms change, so check before you decide.

Comparison of Hacker News and Indie Hackers
Feature	Hacker News	Indie Hackers
Best post	A working product people can try now	A story with numbers or lessons
Audience	Engineers, technical founders	Bootstrapped founders
Rules	Strict Show HN guidelines	Community norms; self-promotion works best inside a useful post
Products listing	None beyond the thread	Products database with self-reported revenue
Link	Mixed nofollow	nofollow (Build Board)
Price	Free	Free

Which should you pick?

Pick Hacker News if…

Your product is technical and ready to try.
You want critical feedback fast.

Hacker News’s site · LaunchRanked vs Hacker News

Pick Indie Hackers if…

You're building in public over months.
You want advice from other bootstrappers.
Your product serves founders.

Indie Hackers’s site · LaunchRanked vs Indie Hackers

Where LaunchRanked fits

Disclosure: LaunchRanked is our product. Where we list it, we say so, and we place it under the use case it fits rather than at the top by default. Everything else here is from the vendors’ own sites or our research, and we say where they’re better.

LaunchRanked is a weekly launch board where every listing that passes human review gets a followed link: no badge, no vote threshold, no payment. Boost ($15) and Featured ($29) only buy visibility. Communities bring people; a launch board with a followed link and permanent page brings lasting search value.

We're new, so our audience is smaller than established communities. The lasting value is the permanent, SEO-ready product page and the link.

Frequently asked questions

Can I cross-post the same launch to both?

You can, but write for each audience: a demo-first Show HN, a lessons-first Indie Hackers post.

Which is better for a SaaS for developers?

Show HN, if people can try it without friction.

Which is better for a bootstrapped B2B tool?

Indie Hackers, especially if other founders are your buyers.

Sources we checked

Checked on their own sites on 23 September 2026. Prices and terms change, so check before you buy. Domain ratings are approximate third-party estimates.