Free path only

Indie Builder Launch Playbook: Product Hunt, Directories, and the 30 Days After

A launch plan you can follow, not a pile of tactics.

What to prepare, where to launch, and which free directories still exist a year later. Follow it in order and you'll have one permanent listing live by day +7 — without paying for any of it.

5 min read30-day sequenceUpdated Sep 2026

Read it later

Take the checklist with you

Every box in this guide on one printable page — keep it open while you fill in the forms.

The guide above is free and complete either way.

Key takeaways

The whole playbook, in nine lines.

  1. Launch ≠ listing ≠ mention. Know which one you're doing.
  2. Product Hunt is optional; fit and helpers matter more than the brand.
  3. Day +7: one permanent reviewed listing live.
  4. Free path only — skip paid queue-jumps.
  5. Badge-tolls (listing only if you add their badge/backlink) — decline.
  6. Pace: 5–10 free submits per week.
  7. Day 0: can a stranger try it + a clear one-liner. Day 30: return use, conversations, lasting URLs.
  8. This page is the sequence; deeper lists live in PH alternatives and where to submit.
  9. Soft-CTA WAYB in discovery threads; thank-you and listing posts get short hype only.

Three words you will mix up

Getting these wrong is what costs a week.

  • Launch boardone-day (or one-week) spike: Product Hunt, Show HN, Peerlist Launchpad.
  • Permanent listinglasting URL on someone else's site, often with a link back.
  • Mentionnewsletter or roundup; you usually earn it, you don’t "submit" it.

Spend scarce time on permanent listings first.

Before you submit

Write this pack once and every form after it takes ten minutes.

  • Name · one-liner under 12 words · short paragraph · tags
  • Square logo · screenshot · socials · two-sentence founder bio
  • A working og:image
  • Soft presence where people already discuss the problem

The 30 days

Your sequence, from a week before to a month after.

  1. Days −7 to 0Prep

    • Finish the assets pack above.
    • Join or lurk in 1–2 communities where the problem is discussed.
    • No promo yet.
  2. Launch windowGo publicoptional

    • Product Hunt only if the product fits — fast demo, maker crowd — and people will show up.
    • Otherwise one or two smaller rooms that match it: DevHunt and Show HN for dev tools, Peerlist Launchpad for a builder audience.
    • Skip paywalled boards and badge-tolls on the free tier.
    • Full list: Product Hunt alternatives.
  3. Day +7Checkpoint

    • One permanent reviewed listing is live. Non-negotiable.
    • Worked example: list on WhatAreYouBuilding.AI — free, human review, do-follow, and the LISTED ON badge is optional.
  4. Days 1–14Evergreen

    • Free lasting directories at a human pace, about 5–10 a week.
    • Log status. Follow up once on moderated queues after ~2 weeks.
    • Use the criteria below, and the full filter on where to submit.
  5. Days 15–30Follow-through

    • Talk to users. Watch activation and return use.
    • Add a true badge only if the listing exists without it.
    • Write one honest week-3 update.
    • A second Product Hunt attempt is usually the wrong spend.

Quick launch picker

Two columns, five rows, one answer.

If you built…Try…
A dev toolDevHunt + Show HN
Something with a fast visual demoPeerlist Launchpad, or another free board that fits — not paywalled "free" lines
B2B with a long sales cycleSkip launch boards; comparison listings later
Something unfinishedWaitlist first; don't burn launch day
A second Product HuntUsually no — do lasting listings instead

Lasting listings

Only list places that pass all of these: free path · permanent page · reviewed or curated · honest outbound link · no badge-toll · not a never-review queue.

  • WhatAreYouBuilding.AIworked examplePermanent directoryFreeDo-follow (noopener only)No badge-toll

    Human review; country, category and stage.

    Submit
  • Indie Hackers — ProductsPermanent product pageFreeNofollowNo badge-toll

    Lasting /product/{slug}. Instant after an account; treat it as a living profile.

    New product
  • SaaSHubComparison listingFreeNofollow on VisitNo badge-toll

    Editorial queue, days typical. Blog "dofollow" claims are stale.

    Submit
  • AlternativeToSoftware listingFree backlogDo-follow on Official WebsiteNo badge-toll

    Free review often takes months. The optional $5 is speed only — skip it unless you choose to pay. Account → Suggest new application.

  • Peerlist — projectProfile projectFreeNofollow unless top 5 of the weekNo badge-toll

    Project stays on your profile after the week. Don't count on SEO unless you place.

    Launchpad

One of these is ours. It is marked as the worked example, and it is held to the same six criteria as the rest — the guide above tells you how to check that yourself.

Skip, for this thin list

Named with the reason, so a decline is something you were told about.

  • Uneedtreat as paid — the free waiting line closed in September 2026, so it is not a free lasting path.
  • BetaListpaid-only.
  • Fazierthe free tier is a badge/backlink toll.
  • MicroLaunchfree path not proven.
  • G2 / Capterrareview and sales-cycle heavy for day 0.

More options and the full filter: where to submit your startup.

Questions builders ask

Where to launch, what a listing is worth, and what to do after the spike.

  • Where should I launch besides Product Hunt?

    One or two rooms that match the product (DevHunt, Peerlist Launchpad, Show HN for technical tools), then put most time into permanent listings above. Full list: Product Hunt alternatives.

  • Launch board vs permanent directory?

    Launch = spike, then fade. Directory = lasting page, often with a link back. One afternoon → do the directory.

  • What is worth doing in week 1?

    Assets, soft community presence, at most one or two launch channels, and by day +7 one permanent reviewed listing live.

  • What do I do in the 30 days after?

    Free lasting listings at a human pace, one follow-up on moderated queues, and measure conversations and return use.

  • Is Product Hunt still worth it for solo builders in 2026?

    Only with fit and people who will show up. Otherwise skip it and do listings.

  • What do I measure on day 0 vs day 30?

    Day 0: can they try it, clear one-liner. Day 30: return use, real conversations, lasting listing URLs live. Upvotes alone are not the score.

Using an assistant

Optional. This guide is written for you; an agent can run the same sequence.

Run it with an agent

  • Ask Grok Bot to run the skill Indie Builder Launch Playbook with your product fields — checklist, Soft-CTA drafts, badge-toll checks.
  • After you are listed on WhatAreYouBuilding.AI, agents can query builders by country, category and stage over MCP: https://whatareyoubuilding.ai/api/mcp
  • WAYB is a product directory agents query — not the public MCP server registry. More: /mcp.

Next

List what you built, or take the checklist with you.

Day +7: one permanent reviewed listing live

Free, human review, do-follow, and the LISTED ON badge stays optional.

Submit a product