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Work · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to Comments Owl for Hacker News

Highlight new comments, mute users & tweak UI on Hacker News

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. Comments Owl for Hacker News launched in 2023; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

  1. 1

    Highlight new Hacker News comments, and other UX tweaks

    2019 · its alternatives →

  2. 2AC
  3. 3HF

    I've been working on and off on a Chrome Extension for Hacker News, the extension focusses on improved usability rather than design. I can almost guarantee that after a day you won't want to go back to regular Hacker News. Give it a try, features include: - Improved readability - Quick inline replies from comments page - Quick profiles with social network info when hovering over usernames - Filtering of stories based on terms and phrases / domain or user - Endless scrolling - Collapsible comment threads - Social sharing for Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Buffer Forks, improvements and comments…

    2012 · chrome.google.com · its alternatives →

  4. 4LB
  5. 5

    Focus on the really fresh and unread news in Hacker News.

    2017 · its alternatives →

  6. 6HN

    Hello everyone! This is a browser extension that attempts to enhance Hacker News user experience, while your data is kept secure, and private (never leaves the browser). Browsers have evolved significantly since doing a v1 back in 2010, which was one of the contributing factors, for attempting a complete re-take few months ago. Personally, I was surprised how useful it turned out to be when browsing around HN. On the linked page you can find install link(s) from web-browser stores, and demo video/screenshots of the features[1] What do you think ? [1] including, browsing content with…

    2023 · carina.app · its alternatives →

  7. 7

    HN is great for the links people share, but a big part of the value I get comes from reading the discussion around them. I realized I was always opening the article in one tab and the comments in another, constantly switching back and forth. I figured there was probably a simpler way, so I threw together this userscript to merge the two. 1. Clicking a link from Hacker News opens the article with a side panel containing the discussion. It doesn't require your credentials, is resizable, and is easy to tweak if you want to customize it. 2. If you land on an article that has previously been…

    Jul 2026 · github.com · its alternatives →

  8. 8

    A beautiful, clean, modern web UI for Hacker News

    2022 · its alternatives →

  9. 9

    iOS Hacker News client to not get lost in big discussions

    2023 · its alternatives →

  10. 10IM
  11. 11HA

    It's been 2 years since the initial release [here](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=36102610). The initial version was a very basic prototype which was not available anywhere beyond the GitHub repo. You had to install it as a userscript or load the extension manually. Since then, it remained simple but better, new features include: - Improved accuracy by also using comments to help gauge the topic of discussion and the right keywords. - Published as plugin for more browsers: Chrome, Firefox (including android), and more recently Microsoft Edge. - Support for narrow screens…

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

  12. 12DA
  13. 13HB
  14. 14HH
  15. 15HS

    Hacker Smacker adds friend/foe functionality to Hacker News. Three little orbs appear next to every commenter's name. Click to friend or foe a commenter and you'll more easily spot them on future threads. Makes it easy to scroll and spot the commenters you love to read (and hate to read). Main website: https://hackersmacker.org Chrome/Edge extension: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/hacker-smacker/lmcg... Safari extension: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/hacker-smacker/id1480749725 Firefox extension:…

    Feb 2026 · hackersmacker.org · its alternatives →

  16. 16HN

    2012 · hncomments.nathancahill.com · its alternatives →

  17. 17HN
  18. 18CE
  19. 19

    Human-curated Hacker Noon stories in your new tab.

    2020 · its alternatives →

  20. 20HN

    Hey Hacker News community, We're excited to announce the launch of our new Chrome extension, "Hacker News Summarizer," which uses OpenAI API to summarize articles on Hacker News. It helps you quickly understand the key takeaways without reading the whole article. Plus, no login or confirmation is required to use it! Simply install the extension and click the "summary" link next to "comments" when you want to read an article. Disclaimer: Not all articles are summarised, or supported but we will change and try to support them later. Additionally, this extension is not affiliated with OpenAI or…

    2023 · chrome.google.com · its alternatives →

  21. 21UH
  22. 22HA
  23. 23NG
  24. 24AN

    Hey HN! I'm excited to share a tool I've been working on - a native Hacker News reader built with Rust and egui. Here's a screenshot: https://github.com/haojiang99/hacker_news_reader/blob/main/s.... As a daily HN reader, I've always struggled with keeping track of interesting posts I want to read later. Browser tabs pile up, bookmarks get forgotten, and I lose track of what I've already read. I needed a way to: 1. Browse HN efficiently (across all sections - hot, new, show, ask, jobs, best) 2. Quickly mark posts as "todo" for later reading 3. Mark posts as…

    2025 · github.com · its alternatives →

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Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →