Stacker News
Get paid for quality content. Bitcoin-powered social news.
Overview
Stacker News is a Hacker News-style forum where users earn Bitcoin (satoshis) for creating and curating content. Unlike traditional platforms where karma is worthless, Stacker News pays real Bitcoin via Lightning Network.
Key Features
Earn Bitcoin
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Stacker News │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ Traditional Reddit/HN: │
│ Post ──► Upvotes ──► Karma (worthless) │
│ │
│ Stacker News: │
│ Post ──► Zaps ──► Sats (real Bitcoin!) │
│ │
│ Quality content = real money │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Core Features
| Feature | Description |
|---|---|
| Zap to upvote | Send sats to content you like |
| Earn sats | Get paid for quality posts |
| Territories | Community-owned spaces |
| No custody | Platform never holds your funds |
| Cowboy Credits | Onboarding for new users |
Territories
Community-owned spaces (like subreddits):
- Founders earn 70% of posting fees
- 21% from zaps to founders
- Custom moderation rules
- Topic-focused discussions
Revenue Model
┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Revenue Distribution │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ │
│ Posting fees: │
│ ├── 70% → Territory founder │
│ └── 30% → Platform │
│ │
│ Zaps on posts: │
│ ├── 79% → Content creator │
│ └── 21% → Territory founder │
│ │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
Topics
Popular territories:
- Bitcoin
- Lightning
- Nostr
- Technology
- Finance
- Memes
Technical Stack
| Component | Technology |
|---|---|
| Frontend | Next.js |
| API | GraphQL |
| Database | PostgreSQL (Prisma) |
| Lightning | lnd |
Cowboy Credits
Onboarding system for new users:
- Start without a Lightning wallet
- Earn credits through participation
- Convert to real sats later
Comparison
| Feature | Stacker News | Hacker News | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rewards | Bitcoin | None | None |
| Karma value | Real money | Status only | Status only |
| Censorship | Community | Centralized | Centralized |
| Open source | Yes | No | No |
Links
- Website: stacker.news
- GitHub: stackernews/stacker.news
See Also
- Nostr Protocol — Related protocol
- LNbits — Lightning wallet
- Alby — Browser extension