Weekly launch platforms
An honest comparison for solo founders choosing where to launch in 2026.
EarlyHunt is a Hunt-network weekly launch platform focused on AI products—Monday 8:00 AM UTC competitions, top-3 badges, and the same three-tier pricing as IndieHunt (free with badge, nofollow, premium $19 guaranteed dofollow). 1,613+ builders cited. Choose based on AI vs broader indie positioning.
Researched and updated 2026-07
EarlyHunt's homepage: 'Hunt Early Products'—where early adopters discover AI launches. This week's hunt shows live countdown, upvote counts, and past week/month archives. It shares infrastructure patterns with IndieHunt: weekly competition, seven-day homepage, launch blog posts, premium social promotion.
Pricing (earlyhunt.com/pricing) mirrors IndieHunt almost exactly: Free Launch requires EarlyHunt badge on website, nofollow by default, dofollow if top 3, includes launch blog post. Nofollow Launch is free without badge, always nofollow, includes launch blog post. Premium Launch is $19 one-time—guaranteed dofollow, no badge, launch blog, social promo on LinkedIn, X, and Pinterest, skip queue, unlimited weekly slots (does not count toward 15 free slots).
Terms of service confirm: 15 free/nofollow slots shared per week; premium unlimited. Projects launch Monday 8:00 AM UTC. Top 3 win badges; free launches upgrade to dofollow on top-3 finish. Relaunch option exists for eligible non-top-3 projects to upgrade to premium.
IndieHunt positions for indie hackers and solo founders broadly (micro-SaaS, AI, bootstrapped tools). EarlyHunt narrows marketing to AI early adopters. Audience overlap is high—many products fit both. Premium Launcher license ($300/mo) works on both per Aura++ docs.
Practical advice: pick one as your primary weekly Hunt launch unless you have distinct angles. Launching the same product on both the same week splits votes from the same network.
Quick reference for founders evaluating launch platforms in 2026.
| Dimension | ||
|---|---|---|
| Network | Hunt ecosystem | Hunt ecosystem |
| Positioning | AI early adopters | Indie hackers + AI makers |
| Launch day | Monday 8:00 AM UTC | Monday 8:00 AM UTC |
| Premium price | $19 one-time | $19 one-time |
| Free slots | 15/week (shared) | 15/week (shared) |
| Premium dofollow | Guaranteed | Guaranteed |
| Launch blog | All tiers (per earlyhunt.com/pricing) | All tiers (per indiehunt.io/submit) |
| Best for | AI-first product narrative | General indie/AI launch |
Facts in this comparison were checked against official documentation and third-party reports. External links are nofollow.
Sister platforms in the Hunt network with nearly identical pricing and mechanics. EarlyHunt emphasizes AI discovery; IndieHunt emphasizes indie makers broadly.
Technically yes, but the same audience overlap means split votes. Better to choose one primary weekly Hunt launch per product version.
Per earlyhunt.com/pricing: $19 one-time for guaranteed dofollow, launch blog, social promotion, no badge, skip queue, unlimited slot access.
Weekly competitions, premium dofollow backlinks, and launch content designed for search and AI discovery.
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