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Show HN: requirements, how to submit, and what you actually get

Visit

The most technical audience you can reach for free, and the least forgiving.

news.ycombinator.com
Show HN homepage
Eligibility

Who Show HN accepts

You need
An account, and the title must begin with "Show HN:"
Something people can actually try, ideally without a signup
Work you did yourself and can discuss in the thread
You'll be rejected if
Blog posts, sign-up pages, newsletters, lists and other reading material, which they name as off topic
Landing pages and fundraisers
Quickly generated one-offs
Work that is not ready for users yet
Developer toolsWeb appsOpen source projectsFree tools
What you actually get
If it lands, the most technically literate traffic on the internet and a permanent link from a DR 91 domain. Most Show HNs get little attention, and the thread is unmoderated in tone, so expect blunt feedback.

How to submit to Show HN

  1. Read the guidelines and be honest about fit
    Show HN is for something people can run or hold. They explicitly rule out lists and reading material, so a directory has to lead with the part you actually use.
  2. Remove the barriers
    They ask you to make it easy to try without signups or emails, and say you will get more feedback that way.
  3. Fill three fields
    The form is title, url and text, and that is all. Supply a url and the text box is ignored: their own note says text only appears if there is no url. So the title carries the whole pitch.
  4. Start the title with Show HN
    The title must begin with "Show HN: " and fits inside 80 characters. It appears on /shownew and only reaches the Show page after clearing a small points threshold.
  5. Post the first comment yourself, immediately
    Because the text field is ignored, the explanation has to be added as a comment straight after submitting. Then stay in the thread: the rules require you to be around to discuss it.

Show HN requirements

A Hacker News account, username and password only
A title beginning with "Show HN:"
80 characters
A live URL usable without a signup
A first comment to post immediately after
Time to answer the thread

Gotchas

Their guidelines name lists and other reading material as off topic, so a directory is a borderline case: lead with what a reader can actually do, not with the catalogue.
The text field is ignored when you supply a url. Their note says text only appears if there is no url, so the explanation has to be posted as a comment after submitting rather than typed into the form.
Submission needs an account, and it is a plain username and password with no social login, so an agent cannot create or use one.
Anything gated behind a signup or an email is discouraged, and they say plainly you will get less feedback that way.
New features and version bumps generally do not qualify as a Show HN.
The submit page rate-limits aggressively, so an automated fetch is likely to see a 429 even when the site is fine.

Let your agent submit to Show HN

Connect SubmitMap to your AI over MCP and this page stops being something you read and copy. Your agent asks for the Show HN playbook and gets the brief for this exact form, with the values already taken from your submission pack instead of placeholders you fill in by hand.

What it does for this platform
Checks your product against the 7 Show HN rules above, so you find out you would be rejected before you open a tab.
Hands your agent all 5 fields this form asks for, none of them optional, already filled from your pack.
Types it into Show HN in your own browser, and stops for you when the form wants a sign-in.
Records what it sent, so the dashboard can answer "did I ever submit to Show HN?".
Connect your agentHow this worksTools and endpointsWorks with Claude Code, Claude, Codex, Cursor, VS Code and Hermes.

Show HN FAQ

How long does Show HN approval take?
Show HN's typical time from submission to going live is instant.
How much does it cost to submit to Show HN?
Submitting to Show HN is free.
Does Show HN give a dofollow backlink?
No, links from Show HN are nofollow. The site has a domain rating of 91.
Does Show HN require a backlink to your site?
No, Show HN does not require a link back from your site.
What gets you rejected from Show HN?
Blog posts, sign-up pages, newsletters, lists and other reading material, which they name as off topic; Landing pages and fundraisers; Quickly generated one-offs; Work that is not ready for users yet.