If you search "best places to launch a SaaS" on Reddit, you will find the same debate repeated across r/SaaS, r/indie_startups, and r/SideProject. The list below reflects what founders in those threads actually recommend, not what launch directories say about themselves.
The short list Reddit keeps returning to
Product Hunt comes up every time, but with heavy caveats. The r/SaaS community has debated whether it still delivers for solo founders, with a widely cited thread arguing that Product Hunt is no longer built for indie hackers. The consensus is that it is still worth doing for the backlink and brand signal, but you should not count on it for paying users.
Hacker News (Show HN) is consistently rated higher for developer tools. A strong Show HN post can deliver thousands of views in a single day if the title lands. The upside is real, and so is the failure rate.
Indie Hackers (the site, not just the subreddit) gets steady praise for build-in-public posts that compound over weeks, not hours. It is welcoming to first-time founders and skews early stage, which means your audience already understands the grind.
Directories dominate the mid-list recommendations. Founders pass around GitHub repositories with 100 or more free directory submissions. The appeal is steady SEO traction instead of a one-day spike. Sites like SaaSHub, Uneed, BetaList, and Peerlist come up regularly in these threads.
Reddit threads themselves are both a source of advice and a real launch venue. Subreddits like r/SideProject and r/SaaS tolerate honest "I built this" posts when the founder stays to answer questions and does not disappear after posting.
What most Reddit founders miss
Several threads make the same point: the real value of any launch is staying power. A Product Hunt day is gone by midnight. A well-placed directory listing or a build-in-public post can keep picking up backlinks and traffic for months.
One option in this category is a dedicated launch listing with a permanent public record. SaaS Rocket does exactly that: a free launch submission places your product as a permanent star on the galaxy map, generates a shareable launch cinematic, and automatically lists you on directree.io. It is not a replacement for Product Hunt or Hacker News. It is a different kind of asset that sticks around after launch day.
The honest answer from Reddit is that no single place is enough. Founders who get early traction use several channels at once and keep showing up after the launch is over.