The 12 Best Journalist Request Platforms in 2026
Every major platform compared. Pricing, strengths, limitations, and which ones are actually worth your time.
The short answer
The best journalist request platform is JournoFinder Requests. It's a free search engine that aggregates requests from HARO, Qwoted, #journorequest, and every other major source into one place. Search by topic, see domain authority scores and deadlines, respond before anyone else.
If you want the full breakdown of all 12 platforms and how to build the right stack, read on.
Why this guide exists
For 16 years, HARO was the default journalist request platform. Then Cision rebranded it to "Connectively," added a paywall, and watched it collapse. By December 2024, it was dead. Featured.com bought the brand in April 2025 and brought it back as a free newsletter, but the landscape has fractured. There are now at least a dozen serious platforms where journalists post requests, and no single one covers everything.
According to a BuzzStream study, the average overlap between any two journalist request platforms is just 17%. If you're only checking one platform, you're missing 80%+ of the opportunities. This guide breaks down every HARO alternative so you can build a stack that actually covers the ground.
The comparison table
| Platform | Price | Free Tier | Geography | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| JournoFinder Requests | Free | Yes (fully free) | Global | All-in-one search across platforms |
| HARO | Free | Yes (fully free) | US-focused | High volume, beginners |
| Qwoted | Free / $99 mo | Yes (2 pitches/mo) | US-focused | Top-tier publications |
| Source of Sources | Free | Yes (fully free) | US-focused | Dofollow links, quality control |
| Featured.com | Free / from $19 mo | Yes (3 queries/mo) | US-focused | High conversion, DA filters |
| #journorequest on X | Free | Yes | 78% UK | Real-time UK requests |
| ResponseSource | ~£625/yr per category | Trial only | UK | UK PR agencies |
| Help a B2B Writer | Free | Yes (fully free) | US-focused | B2B / SaaS niche |
| PressPlugs | £29/mo | 7-day trial | UK | UK small businesses |
| SourceBottle | Free / $25 mo | Yes | Australia / NZ | ANZ businesses |
| Dot Star Media | £40-80/mo | 14-day trial | UK + global | Real-time X/Bluesky alerts |
| ProfNet | $1,500-40,000/yr | No | US-focused | Enterprise, academia |
Pricing as of February 2026. Check each platform for current rates.
Every platform, reviewed
JournoFinder Journalist Request Search
Aggregator · AI-powered · Free search
Most platforms on this list are individual sources of journalist requests. JournoFinder pulls from all of them and puts everything into a single, searchable interface. Type a topic, get results in under three seconds. Each result shows the publication name, what the journalist wants, the domain authority score, when it was posted, and the deadline. No account needed. No credit card.
The search uses AI semantic matching, not basic keyword matching. Search "fintech founder" and you'll also get requests for startup CEOs, banking disruptors, and digital payments experts. You find the opportunity here, then submit your pitch on the original platform. You can also set up free email alerts tailored to your expertise.
Strengths
- Searches across multiple platforms at once
- AI semantic matching (not just keywords)
- Shows DA scores, deadlines, and outlet names
- No login required for search
- Free email alerts
Limitations
- Aggregates public requests (not proprietary networks)
- You still pitch on the original platform
HARO (Help A Reporter Out)
Email newsletter · Now owned by Featured.com · Free
The original. Peter Shankman started HARO in 2008 as a small Facebook group. It grew to 800,000+ sources and 55,000 journalists. Vocus acquired it in 2010, merged with Cision in 2014, who rebranded it to Connectively, added a paywall, and killed it by December 2024. Featured.com bought the brand in April 2025 and brought it back to basics: three daily email digests, free for everyone, no login required.
The revival is promising but imperfect. AI-generated spam responses are flooding the system, and some queries lack clear outlet information. Still, it's free, high-volume, and the most recognised name in the space.
Strengths
- Completely free
- Legacy brand recognition
- High volume of queries
- Simple email format, no platform to learn
Limitations
- AI spam responses are a growing problem
- Some queries have vague outlet details
- No filtering by DA or link type
- US-centric
Qwoted
Platform · Vetted network · Free tier + paid
If you want placements in Forbes, Reuters, CNBC, and the Wall Street Journal, Qwoted is the platform to watch. 70.3% of Qwoted requests come from publications with a domain rating of 80+. That's the highest of any platform. They vet users through interviews and IP tracking, keeping quality high on both sides.
The free plan gives you two pitches per month with a two-hour delay on new requests. In a space where speed matters, that delay hurts. Pro at $99/month removes those restrictions.
Strengths
- Highest percentage of DR 80+ publications
- Rigorous vetting keeps quality high
- Highly rated on G2 and CrowdReviews
- Pitch analytics and tracking
Limitations
- Free plan is severely limited
- $99/month for full access
- Vetting can be a barrier
- US-centric
Source of Sources (SOS)
Email newsletter · By HARO's founder · Free
Peter Shankman created HARO. Then he watched Cision destroy it. So he built Source of Sources. Same format: free email digests up to three times daily. It's grown to nearly 40,000 members since launching in April 2024, and Shankman enforces a zero-tolerance quality policy. Send an off-topic pitch and you're banned immediately.
The stat that matters for SEO: SOS has the highest dofollow link rate of any platform at 36.26%. If backlinks are your primary goal, this belongs in your stack.
Strengths
- 100% free, always
- Highest dofollow link rate (36%)
- Strict quality control
- Created by the inventor of HARO
Limitations
- Smaller volume than HARO or Qwoted
- Email-only (no search or filtering)
- Still growing its journalist base
Featured.com
Marketplace · HARO's parent company · Free tier + paid
Featured.com (formerly Terkel) bought HARO but also runs its own separate marketplace. You submit short expert answers (four to five sentences) that get placed into roundup and Q&A articles. No direct journalist communication. Users report some of the highest conversion rates in the space because the response format is so simple.
The free plan gives you three queries per month. Paid plans start at $19/month (Lite, billed annually) and go up to $100/month with DA filters and publication blocklists.
Strengths
- High conversion rates
- DA and link type filters (paid)
- Simple response format
- Also gives access to HARO queries
Limitations
- Free plan is very limited
- No direct journalist communication
- Placements tend toward roundup-style articles
#journorequest on X / Twitter
Social media hashtag · Organic · Free
Created in 2008 by journalist Sarah Ewing, #journorequest is a live, unfiltered stream of media opportunities posted directly by working journalists. About 76 posts per day on average. The geographic skew is extreme: 78.5% from UK-based accounts. If you're targeting UK media, this is gold. If you're US-focused, less useful. The hashtag is now spreading to Bluesky as UK journalists migrate there.
The biggest drawback is the monitoring burden. Manually refreshing a hashtag search all day is not sustainable, which is why monitoring tools like Dot Star Media and JournoFinder exist.
Strengths
- Completely free
- Real-time requests
- See the journalist's profile and beat instantly
- 76+ requests per day
Limitations
- 78% UK-based (limited US coverage)
- No filtering whatsoever
- Easy to miss requests
- Fragmenting across X, Bluesky, LinkedIn
ResponseSource
Journalist enquiry service · UK market · Paid
The UK's equivalent of what HARO was to the US. Running since 1998, now owned by Access Intelligence (parent of Vuelio), with 30,000+ verified journalists. Every request gets reviewed by a human team before distribution, sorted into 25 industry categories. No noise.
Pricing is category-based at roughly £625/year per category. Most agencies need three or more, so you're realistically looking at £2,000+/year. Out of reach for freelancers, but considered essential by UK agencies.
Strengths
- 30,000+ verified journalists
- Human quality control on every request
- 25 industry categories
- Established since 1998
Limitations
- UK-only coverage
- Expensive (category-based pricing adds up)
- Annual commitment
- Requires a sales call for exact pricing
Help a B2B Writer / MentionMatch
Email platform · B2B niche · Free
Originally launched by Elise Dopson and acquired by Superpath, now rebranding to MentionMatch. Connects B2B content writers with industry experts. If you work in SaaS, fintech, HR tech, or enterprise software, the requests come from writers at sites like Shopify, HubSpot, and similar publications. Every request shows domain authority.
Completely free. Lower volume than general platforms, but virtually zero overlap with other services, making it a useful addition to any stack.
Strengths
- 100% free
- Shows domain authority per request
- Highly targeted B2B niche
- Near-zero overlap with other platforms
Limitations
- B2B only (no consumer or lifestyle)
- Lower volume
- Mid-rebrand (transitioning to MentionMatch)
PressPlugs
Dashboard + email · UK market · Paid
The budget-friendly UK alternative to ResponseSource. At £29/month, it's accessible to small businesses and solo entrepreneurs. Requests are delivered in real-time (not batched), filtered by sector, to a personalised dashboard and inbox. It also monitors #journorequest on X. Smaller journalist pool than ResponseSource, but it fills a real gap in the UK market for the price.
Strengths
- Affordable (£29/month)
- Real-time delivery
- Personalised dashboard
- Good for UK small businesses
Limitations
- UK only
- Smaller journalist network
- Less established than ResponseSource
SourceBottle
Email alerts · Australia / NZ focused · Free + paid
The regional platform for Australia and New Zealand. Founded in 2009, it connects journalists and bloggers with experts through email "call outs." Free plan gets you general alerts. $25/month adds a targeted Expert Profile, filtered emails, and product review opportunities. They also offer a human-curated pitching service with a "No Pitch, No Pay" guarantee. Lower volume than US platforms, but much less competition per opportunity.
Strengths
- Strong in Australia/NZ market
- Free base tier
- Human-curated pitching service
- Less competition per request
Limitations
- Primarily ANZ-focused
- Lower overall volume
- Interface feels dated
Dot Star Media
Real-time monitoring · X + Bluesky · Paid
Solves the #journorequest monitoring problem. Tracks X/Twitter and Bluesky, classifies requests by topic, and delivers alerts within 30 seconds. Pricing runs from £40/month (5 topics) to £80/month (all 29 topics with Slack/Teams integration). Company-wide licences included. US/Canada/international requests are free, and UK/Irish charities get free access. Built for UK digital PR teams that need speed.
Strengths
- 30-second alert delivery
- Monitors X and Bluesky
- Slack/Teams integration
- Free for charities and international requests
Limitations
- Only covers social media requests
- Doesn't include HARO, Qwoted, etc.
- UK-focused pricing model
ProfNet
Enterprise platform · By PR Newswire / Cision · Paid
Running since 1992, operated by PR Newswire (part of Cision), with 14,000+ PR professionals representing hundreds of thousands of experts. Smaller user base means less competition per query. But pricing is enterprise-level: $1,500 to $40,000 per year depending on features, and you need a sales call to get a quote. Squarely aimed at large agencies, universities, and corporate PR departments.
Strengths
- Running since 1992
- Lower competition per query
- Unique Speaker Service for events
- Free for journalists
Limitations
- $1,500-$40,000/year
- Dated interface
- Opaque pricing (sales call required)
- Overkill for small teams
Which platform should you use?
Depends on your budget, target geography, and goals.
By budget
HARO + Source of Sources + Help a B2B Writer + JournoFinder request search. Covers a surprising amount of ground at zero cost.
Add PressPlugs (£29/mo) if you're UK-focused, or SourceBottle ($25/mo) for ANZ.
Qwoted Pro ($99/mo) for top-tier publications, or Featured.com Business ($100/mo) for DA filtering.
ResponseSource + Qwoted Pro + ProfNet. Full coverage but you're looking at $10,000+/year.
By geography
HARO, Qwoted, Source of Sources, Featured.com.
ResponseSource, PressPlugs, Dot Star Media, #journorequest on X (78% UK).
SourceBottle is the clear regional player. Supplement with global platforms.
JournoFinder's request search aggregates across geographies. Combine with region-specific platforms.
By use case
Source of Sources (highest dofollow rate) + Qwoted (highest DR publications).
Help a B2B Writer / MentionMatch + Source of Sources.
Qwoted for tier-one placements. ResponseSource if UK-based. HARO for volume.
The fragmentation problem
With only 17% average overlap between platforms, each service surfaces genuinely different opportunities. HARO, Qwoted, #journorequest, ResponseSource, Help a B2B Writer: different pools of journalists, different stories, different publications. You need to be on more than one.
But checking HARO emails, monitoring Qwoted, scanning #journorequest on X and Bluesky, refreshing Featured.com, and watching LinkedIn journalist posts is a lot of tabs and a lot of time. 61% of PR professionals say keeping media databases current is their biggest pain point. Journalists receive 100+ pitches per week with a 3.43% response rate. Speed and relevance are everything.
This is why aggregation matters. Instead of checking 10 different places, you search once and see everything. Filter by topic, by publication authority, by deadline. JournoFinder's free request search was built for exactly this. It won't replace your Qwoted subscription or your ResponseSource alerts, but it will show you what you're missing.
How to actually get picked
Finding the right request is half the job. Journalists receive dozens (sometimes hundreds) of pitches per query. If you're new to pitching, our startup PR guide covers the fundamentals. Here's what separates responses that get picked from ones that get deleted.
- 1
Lead with your credentials in one sentence
"I'm a fintech founder who's raised $4M in seed funding" beats "I'm an expert in finance."
- 2
Answer the actual question
Respond to what they asked, not what you wish they'd asked. Journalists can tell when you're repurposing a generic pitch.
- 3
Include a specific anecdote or data point
"Revenue grew 340% after we switched to usage-based pricing" is useful. "Our growth has been significant" is not.
- 4
Keep it under 200 words
Four to five sentences is the sweet spot. Journalists are on deadline.
- 5
Respond fast
The first solid responses have a huge advantage. Aim for within two hours of the request posting.
- 6
Never send AI-generated responses
Journalists spot them instantly. AI spam is the single biggest problem in the space right now. Authentic expertise is your edge.
Frequently asked questions
What replaced HARO?
Featured.com acquired the HARO brand in April 2025 and relaunched it as a free email newsletter with three daily digests. The main alternatives are Qwoted (premium quality), Source of Sources (free, by HARO's original founder), and JournoFinder's free request search (aggregates across platforms).
Are journalist request platforms free?
Several are completely free: HARO, Source of Sources, Help a B2B Writer, #journorequest on X, and JournoFinder's request search. Others offer limited free tiers (Qwoted gives you 2 pitches/month, Featured.com gives 3 queries/month). Enterprise platforms like ProfNet and ResponseSource are paid only.
What is the best platform for SEO backlinks?
Source of Sources has the highest dofollow link rate at 36.26%. Qwoted has the highest concentration of DR 80+ publications at 70.3%. JournoFinder's search shows domain authority scores for every result so you can prioritise high-value targets across all platforms.
Is HARO still working?
Yes. Featured.com purchased the brand after Cision shut down Connectively in December 2024 and relaunched it in April 2025 as a free email newsletter. Operational, though users report ongoing issues with AI spam responses.
What is the #journorequest hashtag?
Created in 2008 by journalist Sarah Ewing. A hashtag on X/Twitter (and increasingly Bluesky) where journalists post requests for expert sources. About 76 posts per day, 78.5% from UK journalists.
How do I respond to a journalist request?
Lead with credentials, answer the specific question, include a concrete data point, keep it under 200 words, respond within two hours. Never send AI-generated pitches.
Which platform has the best publications?
Qwoted. 70.3% of its requests come from DR 80+ publications including Forbes, CNBC, Reuters, and the New York Times. Source of Sources ranks second. ResponseSource is best for UK national and trade media.
Can I use multiple platforms at once?
You should. With only 17% overlap, using one service means missing most opportunities. A good stack: one free email platform (HARO or SOS), one premium service if budget allows (Qwoted), and an aggregator like JournoFinder to catch everything else.
Stop checking 12 platforms. Search once.
JournoFinder aggregates journalist requests from across the web into one free search. Type your topic, see every relevant opportunity, respond before anyone else.
Search journalist requests freeSources
- [1] BuzzStream, "Journalist Request Platform Study" (2025) buzzstream.com/blog/journalist-request-platform-study/
- [2] BuzzStream, "10 Best HARO Alternatives" buzzstream.com/blog/haro-alternatives/
- [3] BuzzStream, "#JournoRequests: Where Do They Come From?" buzzstream.com/blog/journorequests/
- [4] BuzzStream, "Digital PR Statistics 2025" buzzstream.com/blog/digital-pr-statistics/
- [5] Octiv Digital, "Connectively Shut Down on December 9, 2024" octivdigital.com/ideas-and-advice/connectively-formerly-haro-to-shut-down-on-december-9-2024/
- [6] Octiv Digital, "Featured Acquires HARO" octivdigital.com/ideas-and-advice/featured-acquires-haro-rolls-it-back-to-version-users-love/
- [7] Cision, "Sale of HARO to Featured.com" (April 2025) cision.com/about/press-releases/2025-press-releases/cision-announces-sale-of-help-a-reporter-out-haro-to-featuredcom-302427990/
- [8] Originality.AI, "Featured Acquires HARO" originality.ai/blog/featured-acquires-haro
- [9] Backlinko, "5 Best HARO Alternatives in 2026" backlinko.com/haro-alternatives
- [10] Prezly, "12+ Connectively (HARO) Alternatives for 2026" prezly.com/academy/the-best-haro-alternatives
- [11] Imprint Digital, "HARO Is Officially Gone" imprint-digital.com/blog/seo/haro-is-officially-gone
- [12] Cision, "Top PR Challenges 2025" cision.com/resources/articles/top-pr-challenges/
- [13] ResponseSource, "Journalist Enquiry Service" responsesource.com/pr/journalistenquiry/
- [14] ContentPowered, "ResponseSource Guide" contentpowered.com/blog/responsesource-guide/
- [15] Dot Star Media, "Top Hashtags Used by Journalists" dotstar.media/top-hashtags-used-by-journalists-on-journorequest/
- [16] Bright Valley Marketing, "Digital PR in 2025" brightvalleymarketing.com/digital-pr-in-2025-key-stats-trends-and-insights/
- [17] Cision, "2025 State of the Media Report" cision.com/resources/articles/pr-trends/
- [18] Superpath, "Superpath Has Acquired Help a B2B Writer" superpath.co/blog/superpath-has-acquired-help-a-b2b-writer