Glossary
What is a launch platform?
A launch platform is a site where makers post a new product on a set day, the community votes on it, and the best-voted products are featured at the top for that day or week. Product Hunt is the best-known example. Traffic arrives mostly on launch day, so placement matters more than the listing itself.
How a launch platform works
You schedule your product for a launch date. On that day it appears in a list with the other launches, people upvote and comment, and a leaderboard orders the products. The top products are shown first for the rest of the day and often win a badge such as Product of the Day.
Most launch platforms share a few mechanics:
- A launch date or queue. Free launches often wait in a queue for weeks; a paid option skips it.
- Featuring. Many platforms only rank products their team has featured. Unfeatured launches still get a page but little traffic.
- Votes and comments. Rankings use votes, but most platforms weight them by account age and activity, so a burst of new accounts counts for little.
- A badge. Winners get a badge to show on their site. On many platforms the free listing also requires the badge, which is a badge exchange.
Launch platform vs directory
| Launch platform | Directory | |
|---|---|---|
| Timing | A launch day or week | Always on |
| Ranking | Votes on the day | Category, search, recency |
| Traffic | A spike, then little | Slow and steady |
| Effort | Prepare and promote on the day | Submit and wait |
What the numbers look like
Over 30 days of Product Hunt leaderboards (459 featured launches), the median votes were 443 for #1 of the day, 292 for #3, 191 for #5 and 110 for #10. The #1 spot ranged from 251 to 1,855 votes depending on the day, so the day you pick changes how many votes you need. Smaller launch platforms such as Uneed, Fazier, Peerlist and Microlaunch need far fewer votes to place, and send far less traffic.
Common mistake
Launching everywhere on the same day. Each platform rewards attention on its launch day: replying to comments, sharing the page, updating the first comment. Spread smaller launches over the weeks after your main one so each gets your full attention. See all launch platforms we checked.
How to prepare for a launch day
The platforms reward the same preparation:
- Pick the day. Weekdays get more traffic and more competition; weekends need fewer votes for a top spot.
- Write the page. A launch tagline under 60 characters that names the job, a launch gallery of three to five screenshots, a short demo video and a first comment that tells the story.
- Line up your people. Tell your users and followers the date in advance, and ask them to look and comment, not to vote on command; platforms penalise vote rings.
- Be there all day. Reply to every comment within the hour. Comments are the second signal most platforms rank on.
- Follow up. Add the badge if you placed, send a launch email to your list, and move on to the next platform a week later.
Our guide on launching on Product Hunt goes step by step, and sites like Product Hunt covers the alternatives.
FAQ
Which launch platform is best?
Product Hunt still sends the most traffic by far. After it, pick smaller platforms whose audience matches yours and spread them over a few weeks.
Do launch platforms give backlinks?
Most do. Product Hunt gives a dofollow link from the product page. Many smaller platforms give a dofollow link only with their badge on your site or on a paid plan.
Can I launch on a platform more than once?
Usually yes, after a major update. Product Hunt allows a relaunch after significant changes, with rules about timing; see our guide to Product Hunt relaunch rules.
What day is best for a launch?
Tuesday to Thursday get the most traffic on Product Hunt and the most competition. Weekend launches need fewer votes to place but reach fewer people.