Product Hunt Launch Security Checklist: 12 Items Before Launch Day

January 2026Launch Security

TL;DR

A Product Hunt launch brings traffic spikes and public scrutiny. Before launch day, verify your app handles load, test all user flows with fresh accounts, remove debug features, and ensure you can monitor and respond to issues in real-time.

Pre-Launch Verification 4

Test complete signup flowCreate a new account from scratch. Verify every step works.

Test with fresh browserIncognito mode, no cached data. This is what new users experience.

Remove all debug featuresAdmin backdoors, test accounts, verbose logging should be disabled.

Run a security scanFind obvious vulnerabilities before hackers on PH do.

Traffic and Scale 4

Enable rate limitingProtect against abuse from traffic spikes or bad actors.

Test under loadCan your app handle 10x normal traffic? 100x?

Check database connection limitsConnection pool exhaustion is a common PH day failure.

Set up CDN for static assetsOffload images, CSS, JS to handle the traffic spike.

Launch Day Operations 4

Set up real-time monitoringError tracking, uptime monitoring, and alerts ready.

Prepare rollback planKnow how to quickly revert if something goes wrong.

Have team availableSomeone should be ready to respond to issues quickly.

Test payment flow (if applicable)Make a real small purchase to verify payments work.

How much traffic should I expect from Product Hunt?

A featured product can see 10,000-50,000 visitors on launch day. Top products may see more. Plan for at least 10x your normal traffic, and have a plan if it goes higher.

What's the most common PH launch failure?

Site going down due to traffic, followed by signup/onboarding bugs that only appear at scale. Test your critical paths thoroughly and have monitoring ready.

Scan Before Launch Day

Don't let security issues ruin your Product Hunt launch.

Start Free Scan

Launch Security