Guide / 2026-10-18
Hacker News keyword alerts: the free options, compared
For free Hacker News alerts:
- use an hnrss.org search feed (for example
https://hnrss.org/newest?q=postman) in any RSS reader, or - sign up for F5Bot's free email alerts (it covers Reddit, Hacker News and Lobsters).
If you want buying-intent phrases, ranked and shown only once, run the free AskHound CLI on a schedule. AskHound's paid hosted watches do not include Hacker News. They cover Stack Exchange and Bluesky only.
Try it now (free, no signup)
Why alerts beat searching HN by hand
HN is busy: in the 30 days to 2026-10-18 there were 3,882 Show HN and 881 Ask HN posts (HN Algolia API, counted 17:19 IDT). Any single phrase is rare, though. "Postman alternative" matched 3 HN items in 90 days, and "Supabase alternative" matched 1 (our snapshot pages). Low volume spread across a huge feed is the case where an alert works and manual checking doesn't.
The options
| Tool | What it watches on HN | How you get alerts | Price (from its own page, 2026-10-18) |
|---|---|---|---|
| hnrss.org | New posts and/or comments matching q=; also Ask HN, Show HN, replies to a user | RSS, Atom or JSON Feed | Free. For its Favorites feeds, its page says it "scrapes Hacker News first and then fetches from Algolia" and asks you to be "extra conservative" with refreshes |
| F5Bot | Keywords on Reddit, Hacker News and Lobsters | Email (instant, batched or daily), plus Slack/Discord, RSS and JSON on higher plans | Free; Silver $9.99/mo (20 keywords); Gold $49.99/mo (200 keywords, RSS/JSON feeds, AI filtering, Slack & Discord) |
| Syften | HN among many communities | Email, Slack, RSS, API, webhook | Entry $29.95/mo; 14-day trial |
| AskHound CLI | HN stories and comments via the official Algolia API, plus GitHub, Stack Exchange and Bluesky | Markdown/JSON file from pack run; only new results | Free, runs on your machine |
A daily HN digest with the AskHound CLI
npx -y https://askhound.haullabs.dev/askhound-0.1.5.tgz pack save mine \
--competitor Postman --competitor Insomnia --category "api client"
# then, from cron each morning:
askhound pack run mine --days 2 --md ~/askhound-today.mdpack run returns only results you haven't seen, and askhound mark <url> replied records what you've answered. HN content goes from Algolia straight to your machine; AskHound's servers never fetch it.
HN's rules, before you reply
From the HN guidelines:
- "Don't post generated text or AI-edited text."
- "Please don't automate posting."
- "Don't solicit upvotes, comments, or submissions."
An alert can tell you where to look. The reply has to be yours, written by you. Answer the question, say that you build the product, and name alternatives.
Continue?
Get HN plus Stack Exchange and Bluesky in one daily file, free.
Install the free CLI and save a pack. When you want hosted alerts for Stack Exchange and Bluesky as well, watches start at $19/mo (daily email digest, beta and not sending yet; Pro's Slack, Discord and webhook delivery works now).
FAQ
Does Hacker News have built-in keyword alerts?
We couldn't find any in HN's own interface. The common routes are hnrss.org feeds, F5Bot or Syften, or a script against the official Algolia API.
Are AskHound watches able to alert on Hacker News?
No. Hosted watches cover Stack Exchange and Bluesky. HN (and GitHub) run in the free CLI and local MCP on your machine.
Can I auto-reply to HN threads I'm alerted to?
No. HN asks people not to automate posting or post AI-generated text, and AskHound never posts.
What should I alert on?
Competitor plus "alternative", "switched from X", and "is there a tool that…". Volume per phrase is small, so watch 10 to 30 phrases.
Related
- Find users on Hacker News
- F5Bot alternative
- Syften alternative
- Discord alternative: who is asking
- Social listening tools compared
Guides: where your users ask
- Find users on Hacker News
- Find users in GitHub issues
- Find users on Bluesky
- Bluesky monitoring
- Stack Exchange recommendation questions
- Where to find beta users
- Social listening for developer tools
- MCP for lead generation
- Social listening tools compared
Sources
- https://hnrss.org/ (feed types and the Favorites-feed scraping note)
- https://f5bot.com/ (sources, plans, prices)
- https://syften.com/ (Entry plan, sources, trial)
- https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- HN Algolia API:
search_by_date?tags=show_hn/ask_hn, 30-day counts at 17:19 IDT - https://askhound.haullabs.dev/docs and /watch (sources per product)
Cartridges
Give it to your agent
Remote MCP
zero install · Stack Exchange + Bluesky, from our serverFree: 10 results per call, 20 calls a day. A key lifts the cap and returns 50 to 100.
{
"mcpServers": {
"askhound": { "url": "https://askhound.haullabs.dev/api/mcp" }
}
}Claude Code: claude mcp add --transport http askhound https://askhound.haullabs.dev/api/mcp
Local MCP
all 4 sources · runs on your machine · Node 18+HN and GitHub are queried with your own access.
{
"mcpServers": {
"askhound": {
"command": "npx",
"args": ["-y", "https://askhound.haullabs.dev/askhound-0.1.5.tgz", "mcp"]
}
}
}CLI
one file · zero dependenciesnpx -y https://askhound.haullabs.dev/askhound-0.1.5.tgz \
search "otter.ai alternative" --context meeting,transcript
# save a pack, run it daily, new results only
askhound pack save mine --competitor Otter.ai \
--competitor Fireflies --category "transcript export"
askhound pack run --md today.mdHonest-reply policy (built into every tool response): a human approves every public reply; never auto-post or mass-DM; disclose that you build the product; answer the question first and name alternatives; follow each community's rules. Hacker News, for example, does not allow AI-generated or AI-edited comments, so replies there must be written by you. AskHound finds the conversation. You decide whether you have something useful to say.
Insert coin
Pricing: select your player
Free is for looking around. Paid plans are for not missing anyone: watches re-run your searches on our server and send you only people you haven't seen yet. Hosted searches cover Stack Exchange and Bluesky (the sources whose terms allow server-side use). Hacker News and GitHub run in the free CLI on your machine. No Reddit, no X.
- Browser search: 3 a day, last 7 days, top 10
- Remote MCP: 10 results per call, 20 calls a day
- Free CLI + local MCP: HN, GitHub, Stack Exchange, Bluesky
- Local reply-state
- 3 always-on watches
- Daily email digest of new askers only (beta, not sending yet)
- Search 90 days back, every result
- Remote MCP: 50 results per call, no daily cap
- Cloud reply-state sync
- 15 watches
- Hourly checks (beta, see note)
- Slack, Discord or any webhook, plus email
- Remote MCP: 100 results per call
- 3 seats sharing reply-state
- Everything in Pro
- 50 watches (one set per client)
- White-label client reports (Markdown/HTML)
- 10 seats
Beta, plainly: email digests are in beta and not sending yet: our email sender isn't switched on. A new email watch is saved now and starts sending the day the sender goes live. Slack, Discord and webhooks on Pro deliver today. Hourly checks are in beta too: an external hourly scheduler was added on 2026-10-18, and the label stays until we've confirmed hourly runs in production. Your license key appears right after checkout. Cancel anytime: reply to your Stripe receipt and we cancel it. Full refund within 14 days if it isn't useful to you.