Comparison guide
Reddit keyword alerts: F5Bot vs Syften vs IntentHunter
Three ways to get told when Reddit mentions your keywords, compared on sources, speed, filtering, delivery, and price. Facts come from each tool's own website, checked on November 1, 2026. We make IntentHunter, so weigh our view accordingly.
Updated
At a glance
F5Bot and Syften are keyword alert tools: they tell you, quickly, that a word appeared. IntentHunter is a scored inbox: it checks less often but judges each conversation for buying intent and drafts a reply.
| F5Bot | Syften | IntentHunter | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sources | Reddit, Hacker News, Lobsters | Reddit, Hacker News, Indie Hackers, GitHub, Product Hunt, Stack Exchange, Discourse forums, Lobsters, Dev.to, Slack communities, newsletters, podcasts, Bluesky, Mastodon; X and YouTube as paid add-ons | Reddit, Hacker News, Bluesky on every plan; X, Threads, LinkedIn on Pro; YouTube on Scale |
| Speed on Reddit | Instant, batched, or daily digest emails | Aims for at most a 1-minute delay | Daily on Starter, every 2 hours on Pro, hourly on Scale |
| Filtering | Keyword flags; advanced flags on Silver; AI filtering on Gold | Keyword filters; AI filtering on Standard and PRO | Every conversation scored 0 to 100 by buying intent, with a reason and signal type |
| Delivery | Email; RSS, JSON feeds, Slack, and Discord on Gold | Email, RSS, and API; Slack on Standard; webhooks on PRO | Email on every plan; Slack, Discord, Telegram, and webhooks on Pro and Scale |
| Reply help | None listed | None listed | A drafted reply on every conversation; you post it yourself |
| Free option | Free plan | 14-day free trial of PRO, no card | Free scan of your website |
| Paid plans | Silver $12.99/mo (non-commercial), Gold $49.99/mo | Entry $29.95/mo, Standard $49.95/mo, PRO $119.95/mo | Starter $29/mo, Pro $79/mo, Scale $149/mo |
F5Bot: free, simple, fast
F5Bot emails you when a keyword appears in a new Reddit, Hacker News, or Lobsters post or comment, instantly, batched on a delay, or as a daily digest. The free plan covers keyword alerts with basic filtering. Silver ($12.99 a month, non-commercial) adds 20 keywords, advanced filtering flags, and full post text. Gold ($49.99 a month) adds 200 keywords, AI filtering that evaluates each discussion against a description you write, RSS and JSON feeds, and Slack and Discord.
Choose F5Bot if you want free brand-name alerts, or if Lobsters matters to you.
Syften: the most communities, near real time
Syften monitors the widest set of communities of the three, from Reddit and Hacker News to GitHub, Stack Exchange, Discourse forums, newsletters, and podcasts, and aims to deliver Reddit matches within a minute. Entry ($29.95 a month) includes 3 community filters. Standard ($49.95) adds AI filtering, 20 filters, and Slack. PRO ($119.95) adds webhooks and full archive history. X and YouTube cost extra, and Syften says it does not cover LinkedIn.
Choose Syften if speed and community breadth matter most and you are happy to judge each match yourself.
IntentHunter: fewer, better matches with a reply drafted
IntentHunter reads your website and writes searches in the words your buyers use, instead of waiting for an exact keyword. Every conversation it finds is scored 0 to 100 by how close the poster is to buying, labeled with why it matched, and paired with a drafted reply. It never posts for you.
It is slower than a pure alert tool: Reddit is checked daily on Starter, every two hours on Pro, and hourly on Scale. Choose IntentHunter if you want a short daily list of conversations worth answering rather than every mention.
Which one to choose
Want free alerts for your brand name? Use F5Bot. Want the broadest community coverage with alerts inside a minute? Use Syften. Want each Reddit, Hacker News, and Bluesky conversation judged for buying intent with a reply drafted? Try IntentHunter with a free scan of your site.
Many teams combine them: a free F5Bot alert for the brand name, and a scored inbox for the category and competitor conversations where buyers are deciding.
Frequently asked
- What is the best free Reddit keyword alert tool?
- F5Bot has a free plan that emails you when a keyword appears on Reddit, Hacker News, or Lobsters. Syften offers a 14-day free trial, and IntentHunter offers a free scan of your website.
- Which Reddit alert tool is fastest?
- Syften says it aims for at most a one-minute delay on Reddit, and F5Bot can email you instantly. IntentHunter checks Reddit on a schedule, from daily on Starter to hourly on Scale.
- Do these tools use AI filtering?
- F5Bot offers AI filtering on its Gold plan and Syften on Standard and PRO. IntentHunter scores every conversation by buying intent on every plan.
- Does any of them cover LinkedIn?
- Syften says it does not. F5Bot covers Reddit, Hacker News, and Lobsters. IntentHunter covers LinkedIn on Pro and Scale.