Show HN

The rules

Hacker News expects a Show HN to be something people can try right away: a working product, a demo or open source code. Sign up walls, landing pages with a waitlist and blog posts do not qualify. The maker should be around to answer questions in the comments.

Writing the post

Keep the title plain and specific: "Show HN: Acme, a time tracker that writes your invoices". Avoid hype words and exclamation marks, which the audience dislikes. Add a first comment explaining what it is, why you built it, how it works technically and what you want feedback on.

What to expect

Most Show HN posts get a few points and fall off the new page. The ones that reach the front page can bring thousands of technical visitors and blunt, useful feedback. Links on Hacker News are nofollow, so the value is in the people and the conversation, not in SEO.

Handling the comments

Hacker News readers are direct. Expect questions about how it works, why it costs what it costs, how it differs from an existing tool, and what you do with their data. Answer each one plainly, admit what is missing, and thank people for criticism even when it stings. A maker who argues in the thread loses the room quickly.

If the post does not take off, do not repost it the same day. You can share it again later with a meaningful update, and the moderators sometimes invite good posts that were missed into a second chance pool.

Example

Show HN: Acme, open source uptime monitoring in one binary

Questions people ask

When should I post a Show HN?

Weekday mornings US time are common, but the quality of the title and the product matters more than the hour. Our Show HN title scorer checks a title against the community's style.