Free Product Hunt Alternatives: 5 Questions to Ask Before You Launch

Photo: Laptop and coffee on a desk via Wikimedia Commons (CC0), edited.

Product Hunt is the big name, but it's not the only place to launch. There are lots of free Product Hunt alternatives now, and some of them are a better fit for small makers. The trick is picking the right ones. A bad pick costs you an evening and gives you nothing back.

Here are the five questions I ask before I list a product anywhere.

1. Is it really free?

Some sites say "free" on the home page and then hide the useful parts behind a fee. Read the pricing page before you sign up. Look for small print like "free plan reviewed in 6 weeks" or "paid plans get featured."

A free plan that works is fine. A free plan that only exists to push you to pay is a waste of time.

2. Does the product page stay up?

This one matters more than most people think. Launch day traffic fades in a day or two. A product page that stays online keeps working for months. People can still find it in search, and it links back to your site.

Open a few older listings on the site. If old products still have clean pages with a working link to their website, that's a good sign.

3. Do real people visit?

A launch site with no visitors is just a list. Check a few things:

• Do recent launches have upvotes or comments from real accounts?
• Is the site updated every day or every week?
• Does it have a newsletter or social account that people follow?

You don't need huge numbers. You need signs of life.

4. How long until I go live?

Some free queues are weeks or even months long. That's fine if you're not in a rush, but most makers want feedback now. I skip anything where the free launch date is more than two weeks away. You can always come back later.

5. Can I talk to the people who find me?

The best part of a launch is the feedback. Sites with comments let you answer questions, fix confusing copy and spot bugs early. A plain list with no way to talk is still useful for links, but it won't teach you much.

Where to start

Pick three, not thirty

You don't have to be everywhere. Pick three free launch sites that pass the questions above. Launch on them over two or three weeks, so you can answer every comment.

Try a free launch platform first

If you want an easy first step, PeekLaunch is a free Product Hunt alternative made for indie makers and small SaaS teams. You add your product, it gets its own page, and people can find it after launch day too.

Keep notes as you go

Write down where you launched, the date, and what you got from it. After a month you'll know which sites are worth your time. I keep a few short guides on this too, like how to pick launch platforms, and a simple maker log on IndieLogs.

One last tip

Use the same name, short tagline and logo on every site. It looks more trustworthy, and people who see you twice will remember you. That's how small launches add up.