How do I post my project as a Show HN?
19 September 2026 · by Nordva, who make Nordva Launch
The short answer
Post something people can try right away, with a title that starts with "Show HN:" and says plainly what it does. Hacker News's rules exclude landing pages, signup pages and newsletters, and ask that people can try it without barriers such as signups. Add a first comment explaining why you built it, stay to answer questions, and never ask friends to upvote.
What the rules say
Hacker News keeps its Show HN rules on one page (Show HN guidelines). The parts that matter most for a first launch:
- It’s for something you made that other people can play with.
- Blog posts, signup pages, newsletters, lists and other reading material are off topic, and so are landing pages and fundraisers.
- Make it easy to try, ideally without signups or emails in the way.
- Don’t ask friends to upvote or comment.
The title must start with “Show HN”. The guidelines also note that the work doesn’t need to be complicated or look slick; early and rough is fine if it’s real.
If your product needs an account
Many products can’t be tried without signing up. Give readers a way in anyway: a demo account with sample data, a public example, or a version of the core feature that works without logging in. A demo that shows the result in one click keeps the people who would have closed the tab at a signup form.
The title
Say what it is and who it’s for in plain words: “Show HN: A changelog you can publish from your editor”. Leave out adjectives. Readers there respond to specifics.
The first comment
Post a comment yourself right after submitting. Cover, briefly:
- Why you built it (the problem you had).
- What it does today, and what it doesn’t do yet.
- How it’s built, if that’s interesting.
- What you’d like feedback on.
Then stay. Answer every question, including the critical ones, without arguing. The thread is often worth more than the visits.
What to measure
Link to your site with a tag, such as ?utm_source=hn&utm_campaign=show-hn, in the post’s URL. Hacker News sends a referrer when readers click through in a browser, but readers who open the link from an app or a digest often arrive with none, and the tag keeps them apart from “direct”. A month later, compare what the post sent: signups, people who came back, and anyone who paid.
With Nordva Launch
Launch’s analytics records each visit’s referring site and UTM tags, and its live map shows the post’s traffic arriving. Signups through a Launch waitlist or your own form (with identify) keep the first visit’s source, and with Stripe connected (read-only, every plan) you can see whether the post brought paying customers. Launch also has a public demo with example data at app.nordva.dev/demo/, which is one way to let people try a product without signing up.
When Launch is the wrong tool
If what you have is a waitlist and no product yet, Show HN isn't the place; its rules exclude signup pages. Post where people discuss the problem instead, and come back with something to try.
- Can I post a landing page on Show HN?
- How do I launch on Hacker News?
- What should the first comment on a Show HN say?