10 HARO Alternatives To Score Real Media Backlinks in 2025

If you're knee-deep in marketing, digital PR, or building links through media outlets, then you've probably heard of HARO (now Connectively). In addition to being a hub where the media community shares expertise and offers publication opportunities, this platform gave rise to the term “HARO link-building” widely used by the entire digital marketing world.

For all the fans of the platform, including me, it was such as bummer to hear it's shutting down on December 9, 2024 😱

But no worries! We've put together a quick list of HARO alternatives for you to check out once it's gone. Some are totally FREE, others are paid, but we're sure you'll find something that works for you in the long run.

⚠️ Short Disclaimer ⚠️ This list isn’t an endorsement or promo for any specific platform. The order doesn’t reflect quality either — it's simply our personal picks of HARO alternatives based on our experience using them and trusting their reliability. The choice is all yours!

Top 10+ HARO Alternatives You Shouldn't Miss

1. Qwoted

Founded in 2018, a decade after HARO launched, it quickly became a strong competitor with its reputation for top-notch experts, their competence, and great query matching.

Here’s how Qwoted positions itself:

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

👥 Journalists & Media Creators — reporters, writers, podcasters, producers, event organizers, and more can tap into connection opportunities and a database of nearly 100K vetted experts for expert commentary!

👥 PR & Marketing Professionals — communications pros can access tailored press opportunities and a free media database, featuring experts from Qwoted’s Media Advisory Board, to promote clients or thought leaders.

The ranking is updated quarterly, so it’s all merit-based, giving everyone a fair shot at success!

PS: Top PR agencies can earn the same recognition based on their real-time performance.

👥 Self-Representing Experts & Businesses — standalone experts without PR back-up can endorse their expertise and acquire press coverage for themselves or their business, all while avoiding high PR costs.

💰 Qwoted pricing

The free plan is perfect for all kinds of users — whether you're a journalist, media creator, PR and marketing pro, or a self-representing expert or business. The only drawback: free plan allows you to pitch only to three queries per month.

If you're after more advanced features, this HARO alternative has paid plans starting at $149.99/month.

⚙️ What’s inside?

You'll love how intuitive the features are and how easy it is to navigate the dashboard as soon as you log in to your Qwoted account.

Creating a request takes just seconds with a simple button, allowing you to customize your query to a database of experts, guests, and speakers — whatever you need.

Each request takes a bit of time for verification before it goes public. You can easily track all your requests in the "My Requests" section.

Here, you can fully control your pitch flow — click "I want more pitches" if you need more responses, or hit "I have enough pitches" if you're all set.

When checking pitches, you have automatic response buttons that will let the pitcher know either they’ve been accepted or you are not interested in their replies, “Let’s talk” and “Sorry I can't use this”.

If you think a pitch is spammy or AI-generated, you can simply click "Report Pitch." Or, if the person doesn’t quite match your needs, just hit "Mute User."

Alternatively, you don’t have to wait for pitchers to respond — just head over to Qwoted’s "Source Directory" and reach out to experts you think are a good fit for your request.

Say, when looking for SEO experts to match our recent query on link-building tips, we headed to the “Experts Section” and simply typed "SEO Experts" in the search bar.

Once selected from the results, we reached out to the chosen experts. In the message, you can either choose an EXISTING  pitch for them to respond to or create a brand new request.

Once received, your answers will appear in your inbox.

For example, we reached out to Adam Berry first, asking for advice on how to disavow backlinks, and after a short delay, he responded to our request.

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

Qwoted is known for its strong spam protection and top-notch vetting process. Plus, you'll gain access to opportunities with leading media outlets, and the networking is exceptional considering live messaging, especially if you're in PR.

💎 Bonus: Ask Qwoted! 💎

Big shoutout to Shelby Bridges, Success Manager at Qwoted, for sharing insights on the platform’s latest updates and what’s coming next!

🎤“Considering HARO's impending closure, what steps is Qwoted taking to attract users from HARO, and do you anticipate any challenges in converting its audience?”

There’s been an outpouring of love for Qwoted from our community since the Connectively news, and we’re happy to welcome HARO users to our network by being the tool they wish it could have been.

We don’t anticipate any challenges since Qwoted’s network is well-prepared to meet these users’ needs. Additionally, our dedicated support staff is ready to answer any questions to help make the transition as smooth as possible for users navigating the network for the first time.

🎤“What specific features or advantages does Qwoted have over its competitors, particularly those targeting journalists and PR professionals looking for a HARO alternative?”

Our platform constantly evolves and adds new features and resources for our community. For media professionals and content creators, we have features to share your work within our network and attract a higher volume of quality pitches. Our Expert Insights feature gives journalists the scoop on what experts are talking about so they can source story ideas for future articles. 

For experts and PRs, we have a free media database with over 250,000 reporters, Media Insights that track what journalists are actively covering, a Product Database to get media coverage for your products, and a new feature that lets you distribute free press releases to over 25,000 media users. 

We’re excited about what we have to offer because it’s more than just a space where journalists and experts can find each other; Qwoted helps you build meaningful, authentic connections and celebrate the work you’re collaborating on.

🎤“Given the frustration many users have with irrelevant or excessive queries on platforms like HARO, what steps is Qwoted taking to ensure a higher quality of match-making that justifies its users’ time?”

Our platform uses advanced technology to connect journalists and experts based on what is most relevant to their needs. Journalists receive the most well-matched responses instead of being overwhelmed by irrelevant pitches, and experts can access tools like mute and block features to customize their notifications. 

We want those in our network to know that we understand their time is valuable and offer the tools they need to create stories and secure coverage without spending hours wading through irrelevant pitches and opportunities.

2. SourceBottle

Launched in 2009, this Aussie platform has become one of the leading alternatives to HARO, continuing to help journalists, bloggers, and influencers effectively source media opportunities to this day.

SourceBottle is a FREE and easy-to-use connection platform that enables journalists and bloggers to efficiently find knowledgeable sources.

Conversely, it provides PR professionals and subject-matter experts with timely insight into publicity opportunities to help them gain brand awareness for their clients’ products and services or themselves.

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

👥 Bloggers, journalists, writers, and content creators — anyone on the hunt for reliable sources to quote or include in a story.

👥 Sources, platforms, website and media owners — those looking for media opportunities to get noticed, featured, and mentioned.

💰 SourceBottle pricing

SourceBottle is FREE for participants looking to pitch or be featured. However, For instant email alerts on new pitch opportunities, you can grab the "Drink Up" subscription for just $5.95 a month. That way, you won't miss any opportunities without having to keep an eye on the platform.

For PR pros, business owners, or event managers, a $25 monthly subscription grants premium features like giveaways, samples, goody bag fillers, product reviews, and insightful case studies.

If you're working with a team and need more advanced features and coverage, the "Agency Access" plan is available for $95 per month.

⚙️ What’s inside?

Once you register and log in to your personal dashboard, you'll see two simple options: "Find a Source" or "View Call Outs."

If you're searching for sources, you'll be asked to fill out a quick questionnaire. Just include your query title, a brief summary (keep it under 280 characters), the related topic, the countries you’d like pitches from, and of course, your deadline.

When you click the extension icon, it will automatically fill in the call-out title, summary, and deadline, letting you submit a new request in a flash!

Remember, SourceBottle is email-based, so you won’t be able to check your messages directly on the platform like with Qwoted or HARO. Instead, any pitch you receive will be sent to the email address you provided during registration.

As you’ll notice, each pitch includes the sender's name and email address, so you can reach out directly if you're interested. For a faster response, you can also connect with them on LinkedIn.

Alternatively, you can browse existing call-outs, sorted by different topics, and search for specific queries by country.

Say, you’ve decided to explore the “Technology” category, specific to New Zealand, and you’ll be provided with a list of call-outs to consider.

 If you find something relevant, just click and add your response!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

Perfect for budget-conscious small business owners, entrepreneurs, bloggers, and journalists. Covering topics from tech to lifestyle, it connects you with curated sources. Plus, pitches include contact details for easy follow-ups via email or LinkedIn.

On the flip side, relying on emails means you could miss urgent calls if your inbox isn’t on your radar. And with less advanced search filters, narrowing down call-outs might feel a bit clunky compared to other platforms.

🎤Ask an expert!

”What’s your favourite HARO alternative?”

One standout option I recommend is SourceBottle. It offers a similar model to HARO, connecting journalists and PR professionals with experts for media mentions. What sets it apart is its focus on niche industries, ensuring you’re connecting with a more targeted audience, which can result in higher-quality backlinks.

3. Featured (Formerly Terkel)

Originally launched as Terkel in 2021, the platform started as a hub connecting businesses with media opportunities. Fast forward to September 2023, it got a fresh rebrand as "Featured" to better highlight its mission: creating content that showcases top-tier experts.

And their manifesto is pretty inspiring too:

Despite its relatively recent launch, Featured has definitely become one of the top alternatives to HARO.

My favorite platform is Featured so far. Honestly I love it because it simplifies the pitching process and tracking workflow all in one easy to understand dashboard. Having that kind of clarity makes my life a lot easier than juggling email threads like with HARO.

Also, they’ve done a great job of getting legitimate brands on board which on top of the link-building benefits, adds credibility to our brand when we share the logos where we’ve been featured on our site and Linkedin.

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

👥 Industry experts:

• Professionals aiming to build authority and gain media features in articles, blogs, and more.
• Educators & thought leaders — professors, consultants, and trainers sharing knowledge to reach broader audiences.

👥 Various publishers:

• Creators: Businesses, writers, and marketers enhancing content quality with expert insights.
• PR professionals: Securing media placements to showcase client expertise.
• New-biz: Establishing authority as industry thought leaders.

💰 Featured pricing

With Featured's free plan, both publishers and experts get a solid account — answer up to 3 questions a month, set 3 keyword alerts, and track unlimited answers.

For advanced features like SEO tools or full-length article pitch submissions, paid plans are available from $49.75 to $99 per month.

If you don’t need full access to all the tools but want more answering capacity, you can opt for a credit-based pay-as-you-go option, starting at $4.99 to $6.99 per extra answer.

⚙️ What’s inside?

Sign up, verify your email, and boom — you’re in! Your private dashboard lets you roll as either a publisher or an expert.

🖨️ For Publishers

Head straight to “Qotes” or “Q&A Articles” to request expert comments and answers — totally FREE! Plus, the platform keeps tracking your requests simple and hassle-free.

Looking for authors to whip up a bylined article for your site? You can easily place a request and track offers with the same super user-friendly tools Featured is known for.

The same option is available for Q/A interview requests.

If you're feeling stuck with your content strategy, Featured can provide articles on your chosen topics. You can then pick the best ones and get expert insights to level up your content!

✍🏼 For Experts

The expert toolkit keeps it simple:

• Questions: Browse and track queries on a range of topics already on the platform — and with the free plan, you can answer up to 3 questions for free!

• Bylined articles: Keep an eye on call-outs, pick topics that match your expertise, and pitch your articles to publishers!

• Interview Profiles: Let experts conduct and submit in-depth Q&A interviews for possible publication.

To discover more questions that fit your expertise, go to the "Alerts" section. Pick the keywords that match your skills, and Featured will email you whenever a great opportunity comes up!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

The obvious perk of Featured? It's built for experts and publishers to connect, no fluff. The clean design gives everyone an equal shot.

Plus, beyond PR pros, the platform is a goldmine for SEOs, offering insights on quality link-building with DR, link type, and keyword tracking tools.

The vetting process is top-notch, ensuring the platform matches you with the best experts, questions, and resources. Plus, support is super responsive, so you won't be left hanging, especially if you're on a paid plan.

The only downside might be the subscription cost, but even with the free plan, you can do plenty!

💎 Bonus: Ask Featured! 💎

In this section, we had the pleasure of interviewing Brett Farmiloe, founder of Featured, about the platform's competitiveness, its advantages, and the vetting process.

🎤“Considering HARO's impending closure, what steps is Featured taking to attract users from HARO, and do you anticipate any challenges in converting its audience?”

It’s business as usual at Featured. Our focus remains on getting experts featured in articles, and letting their success do the marketing for Featured. With that said, we are seeing an usually high number of signups since the announcement of Connectively’s plans to shut down.

🎤“What specific features or advantages does Featured  have over its competitors, particularly those targeting journalists and PR professionals looking for a HARO alternative?”

I think what we commonly hear from users is that Featured is easy to use, affordable (freemium model with plans that start at $39 / month), and that they find a lot of success in using the platform.

For example, we typically see a PR professional have a “time to value” of about 4 minutes. Meaning that it takes about 4 minutes to sign up for Featured, answer a relevant question, and be featured in an article.

We’re working to drive that time to value even lower for PR professionals. For journalists, it’s our goal to deliver them a relevant quote in 30 minutes or less, without all the noise in an inbox. Meanwhile, publishers can receive a full-length article featuring expert insights, just by asking a question”.

In addition, there’s products that are unique to Featured. For example, experts can submit bylined articles and interview profiles for publication consideration. 

And finally, pricing. As I mentioned, Featured has a freemium model where anyone can answer three questions a month at no cost. If you want unlimited submissions, then there’s subscriptions that start at $39 / month. And if you want to unlock just a few extra answers, then credits are a great way to submit without the commitment of a subscription.

🎤“Given the frustration many users have with irrelevant or excessive queries on platforms like HARO, what steps is featured taking to ensure a higher quality of match-making that justifies its users’ time?”

Personalization is a huge priority for Featured. We want our experts to see questions that speak to their expertise, so that they can maximize their time and improve the quality of responses that journalists receive.

Currently, there’s product features we have like Search and Alerts that help quickly surface relevant questions in the inbox and via Featured.com. But, we believe the connection between relevant questions and expertise should be more organic and intuitive, so we’ll be working on personalization more in the year ahead.

The same goes for journalists. They don’t want to receive irrelevant or excessive insights from experts. Which is why over the last three years in building Featured, we’ve prioritized “filtering” to quickly match, vet, and qualify insights for a journalist.

4. JustReachOut

JustReachOut has been around since 2014, created by PR pro Dmitry Dragilev. He saw how tough it was for small businesses and individuals to handle PR on their own, so he made a comfy platform to simplify finding and pitching journalists. Since its launch, the platform has come a long way and now packs AI tools to make things even faster.

In 2014 I started JustReachOut to help “the small guy” (solopreneur, author, startup, small business, coffee shop, trainer, author, musician) do PR and get exposure on their own.

Now our team is 15 strong and over the years we’ve helped 5000+ customers use JustReachOut to get exposure every week without the help of PR firms.

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

👥 Small businesses/startups — those with tight budgets or aspiring entrepreneurs eager to pitch their products/services to the media.

👥 Professionals & Solopreneurs — freelancers and consultants looking to boost visibility or showcase expertise, or those who are managing their own PR. 

👥 Marketers, SEO experts & content creators — anyone seeking to endorse their blogs, courses, books through features in articles.

💰 JustReachOut pricing

JustReachOut offers a FREE 7-day trial for all their plans, which range from $147 to $497 per month.

⚙️ What’s inside?

Once you sign in to your dashboard, simply add a brand to promote and select the relevant categories that define it.

You're all set to kick off your first campaign!

Next, the system will prompt you to enter the email for your campaigns and choose whether you'll use the platform for press coverage or acquiring SEO links for your brand.

No matter which option you pick, the platform will provide a list of tools tailored just for you, including:

🔎 Search Tools

You’ll find these on the left side of your dashboard, covering features like:

• Find and Pitch Journalists — here, you can search for journalists by the topics they cover. Just type in a keyword and hit search!
• Journalist Pitch Requests — this is an extensive database of current journalist pitch requests. You can look up for new opportunities by your brand category or a certain keyword.
• Podcast Outreach — enter any keyword related to your niche, and JustReachOut will find the perfect podcasts for you to pitch.
• Broken Link Building — write one of your main key phrases, and the platform will spot broken links on the top-ranked pages for you.

Once it's done, you'll get a notification by email!

📨 Campaigns

Unlike individual searches, these tools allow you to create bulk outreach campaigns for your brand.

The system can then automatically send your requests to multiple journalists, podcasters, or broken link opportunities as part of Journalist Campaigns, Podcast Campaigns, and Broken Link Campaigns.

For example, if you're launching a new Journalist Campaign, all you need to do is provide a campaign nickname, select the journalist list as your target audience, and craft a short pitch.

Once you hit "Create Campaign," the system will use AI to refine your pitch for greater accuracy. If you’re not satisfied with the AI-generated version, you can easily make your own final tweaks.

Next, you'll need to add journalists to your outreach campaign. You can either select from the system's suggestions or search for them in the JustReachOut database.

After you've got your list of journalists, you can either shoot them a group email or go for a more personal touch by writing a pitch on your own.

Whatever option you choose, AI’s got your back in crafting the perfect message before you hit send!

When it comes to Podcast and Broken Link Campaigns, the process is pretty much the same: create your request, refine it with AI for better accuracy, target podcasters or broken link opportunities, and send out those AI-personalized emails!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

The biggest advantage so far is total automation of your brand PR. From smart search tools that uncover fresh opportunities to campaigns that let you reach out to journalists in bulk — it's all streamlined, so anyone can handle it without needing a pro.

SEO pros will love the broken link building opportunities — both for search and outreach—plus the handy reporting features to stay on top of things. PR experts will be impressed by access to a curated database of journalists, bloggers, and media outlets, perfect for building relationships and landing coverage.

The disadvantages are probably the cost and the learning curve. While it's fairly simple, new users — especially those new to PR — might need some time to master all the features.

💎 Bonus: Ask JustReachOut! 💎

In this quick interview, Jonathan Mest, CEO of JustReachOut, answers some key questions for anyone looking for HARO alternatives and thinking about making the switch to their platform.

🎤“Considering HARO's impending closure, what steps is JustReachOut taking to attract users from HARO, and do you anticipate any challenges in converting its audience?”

The core idea of HARO was for journalists in search of sources to be easily connected to the best information and people so that they can effectively write their stories. Just Reach Out has that same ethos. We make it very easy for potential sources and businesses looking to help journalists with stories to easily connect to the right journalists that cover the most relevant topics. 

While HARO was great at many things, the problem is that it was often all about who could respond the quickest to a request, not necessarily guaranteeing that the best person is able to help the journalist with their story. By flipping the order of operations around, Just Reach Out customers are proactively telling journalists about their expertise and ability to help on future stories. 

Just Reach Out is not about spamming the world with irrelevant press releases, it is about developing long-lasting relationships with journalists. We believe the users that love HARO would happily convert to our way of thinking because we help users get meaningful press mentions for themselves/ their businesses, while helping journalists tell better stories.

🎤“What specific features or advantages does JustReachOut  have over its competitors, particularly those targeting journalists and PR professionals looking for a HARO alternative?”

Just Reach Out does not really cater to the journalist in that journalists usually aren’t using our tool. Just Reach Out is more for the PR professional or individual / business to reach out to journalists to be used as a source for their stories or to pitch them a good idea to report on. In that way, we have a lot of advantages over our competition.

 First, we are an AI-powered platform that makes finding relevant journalists super efficient, saving tons of time and effort. The AI can then help you craft the right narrative to pitch to the journalists, ensuring the journalist finds value in what you have to offer and putting you in the best light possible to get that press or media mention. Finally, we have a team that verifies all information in our system, ensuring that you don’t waste time crafting messaging to someone that will never receive your email.

Just Reach Out hates the traditional “spray and pray” approach of PR and media databases that tell you to send 5,000 emails and hope for the best. Just Reach Out is all about being thoughtful in finding the 50 hyper-relevant and appropriate journalists to connect with, then developing a relationship with those journalists over time to ensure whenever the journalist is ready to write their story, you will be the first person they call.

🎤“Given the frustration many users have with irrelevant or excessive queries on platforms like HARO, what steps is JustReach Out  taking to ensure a higher quality of match-making that justifies its users’ time?”

Just Reach Out isn’t really in the matchmaking per se in that we only really work with one side of the match. But for that one side (i.e. PR professionals and individuals / businesses), we spend SO MUCH time and effort ensuring that you only reach out to journalists that will actually be of value to you.

 In Just Reach Out, users tell us about their business and some of the ideas they hope to evangelize, or areas where they might be an expert. Our AI system then identifies the best possible journalists for them based on what those journalists have actually written recently. Users are able to click into actual news articles written by the journalists to see if they would be the right fit for what they are trying to accomplish.

 All of this happens before we ever tell the user who that journalist is and what their name is! That’s because we don’t want people to be biased! We want people to make an objective assessment of whether someone would be a good fit to start a relationship with, and only then provide the journalist’s name and contact info to reach out. 

This extra level prevents our users from falling into the usual traps of giving preference to certain people or ignoring potential outlets that could be incredibly fruitful for them down the road.

5. Source of Sources

Well, well, well, as we mourn the loss of HARO, let’s not forget its creator, Peter Shankman, who's now proudly showcasing his new venture — Source of Sources!

After HARO was acquired by Cision in 2010, Peter made a major comeback in 2023 with a similar, honest  platform to connect journalists and experts.

The "honest" part is no joke — Peter’s one and only requirement for users is simple: no fluff, just the real deal:

Up to three times a day, you’ll get an email with queries by journalists from various media outlets. If a journalist asks about a topic you know a lot about, simply reply directly to the source. It’s that easy.

Here’s the rub, though: ONLY REPLY IF YOU ACTUALLY HAVE SOMETHING PRODUCTIVE TO ADD. If you pitch a reporter off topic even once, and it gets back to me, you’re gone. No exceptions, no appeals.

Even though the platform is pretty new, its straightforward motto has already drawn over 20,000 trusted platforms, brands, experts, and bloggers from around the world to Source of Sources!

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

As Peter himself puts it:

Source of Sources was designed to make it easier for journalists to find the sources they need, and for sources to get the publicity they seek.

Overall, the platform could be an excellent source of fresh insights for practically all audiences, including:

💰Source of Sources pricing

The platform won’t cost you a dime to use, though to keep the good Karma rolling,  Peter’s cool with donations to pet shelters instead:

First off, yes, it’s free. It takes me a few minutes each day to do this, and the good Karma is immeasurable. So I’m not charging. If you really feel like sending me a donation or something, why not just send a few bucks to an animal hospital or animal rescue society somewhere.

⚙️ What’s inside?

The idea behind the platform is super simple — just sign up for FREE daily media queries to get started!

Once you subscribe, you'll get a confirmation that you're all set, along with info on what's next. Basically, you'll receive three emails a day with journalist queries, and you can respond to any that catch your eye.

If you want to post your own query for others to respond to, just head to the homepage and click the "Submit a Pitch" button.

You'll be instantly taken to a simple, user-friendly form to fill out your query — include a quick summary, your website details, and, of course, your deadlines!

Once you've reviewed all the data you've entered, simply click "Submit" to finalize your query.

Now, all you need is patience! Just remember to check your inbox regularly for any updates!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

The standout benefit is that the platform is entirely FREE and accessible to everyone. Submitting queries and tracking opportunities couldn’t be easier — no lengthy onboarding or complex tools required. Everything is simple and intuitive.

Plus, the Muck Rack integration helps get the platform in front of new audiences who haven’t heard of SOS yet, expanding its pool of experts.

On the flip side, the indefinite wait time might be a turnoff (though you can mark your query as urgent), and constant email checking can be a hassle. Peter Shankman also mentioned that the platform strictly monitors off-topic responses — get caught, and you're out. And, being a newer platform, its user base isn't as big as HARO’s, so there might be fewer opportunities.

💎 Bonus: Ask Source of Sources! 💎

We couldn't resist chatting with HARO creator Peter Shankman to get his take on HARO's closure — pretty sure everyone’s curious about that! Not to mention the future of SOS  and its recent integrations.

🎤”As a creator of HARO, what was your initial reaction when you learned that it would be shutting down?”

Was definitely bittersweet, but then, it hasn’t been remotely like what I built for years. Change happens, and especially the changes that have plagued Cision of late, it’s not surprising. Had it stayed the same as what I built, and followed the same ethos that it did when I ran it, I doubt I would have ever started SOS.

🎤”How does your current creation Source of Sources differentiate itself from other journalist-source matching services that have emerged?”

Simply put, I’m focusing on the basics again. I had a journalism professor at Boston University who used to tell us to “be brilliant at the basics.” My basics are the same as they were with HARO: No off topic pitching, no non-credible journalists, no AI responses. 

The rules are there for a reason. If they’re broken by either side, that person is gone. I’m ejecting roughly four people a week, on average, primarily SEO farms out of Asia and the mid-east. SOS is for real people. And of course, unlike others, we’re free, and always will be.

🎤”What role do partnerships, like your collaboration with Muck Rack, play in helping SOS build credibility and compete with alternative platforms?”

The partnerships are a great way to differentiate ourselves from the other players in the game. For instance, when journalists use us, their Muck Rack link is automatically entered into their SOS query. 

This allows our members to instantly confirm that the journalist they’re pitching is real, and focuses on a topic that will help their business. It’s a win/win for both the journalist and the source, and it’s exclusive to SOS.

🎤”What lessons from HARO’s journey have you applied to SOS to make it more sustainable, effective, and ready for today’s media challenges?”

Same as with HARO, the key is to listen to my audience. Having an audience is a privilege, not a right. I understand that. My goal is to continue to grow SOS into the largest source repository in the world, just like I did with HARO.

I’ll do that by continuing to respect both our sources and our journalists who use us regularly. There’s no rocket science here. I’m a guy who likes helping people. Always have been. And like I used to say with HARO, everyone’s an expert at something. SOS lets that expertise shine, and benefit both journalists and sources.

🎤”What gives you confidence that SOS will achieve (or even surpass!) the level of popularity that HARO reached?”

There’s no rocket science here. I’m a guy who likes helping people. Always have been. And like I used to say with HARO, everyone’s an expert at something. SOS lets that expertise shine, and benefit both journalists and sources. When the goal of an entrepreneur is to help people do things better, success usually follows by default.

6. Muck Rack

Muck Rack started in 2009 to help journalists connect on social media, but by 2011, it transformed into a powerful software platform with AI-powered PR tools and one of the most trusted media databases in the industry.

The project quickly gained traction, allowing Muck Rack to invest more in creating completely FREE solutions for journalists, backed by solid research and reliable media data. All in line with their motto: "...serving the journalist community and supporting a free press."

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

💰 Muck Rack pricing

Muck Rack offers three plans each for brand and agency customers, all designed to support the complete PR workflow — from finding outlets and journalists to pitching, building relationships, monitoring mentions, and measuring results. All plans are paid and available upon request.

Prices vary based on the level of access to tools like Media Database & Pitching, Media Monitoring & Alerts, and Onboarding & Customer Support in each plan.

⚙️ What’s inside?

While the platform is paid, you can still sign up for a free account as a PR pro or journalist.

The free account doesn’t include Muck Rack tools, but it lets you take a virtual tour of the platform with mini-demo lessons showcasing its workflows.

The lessons include:

• “Discover & Pitch” — discover relevant media contacts and secure media coverage within Muck Rack.

• “Monitor the Media” — find coverage, configure Alerts, and enable our Slack integration.

• “Report on success”— track brand mentions, compile coverage, compare Share of Voice and socialize impact.

As for exact software solutions, you may check out tooling options for:

🏅 PR Teams:

• Leverage an AI-powered media database to find the most relevant outlets and contacts.
• Build dynamic, up-to-date media lists tailored to your needs.
• Monitor brand mentions with real-time alerts and media tracking.
• Keep tabs on coverage from over 35,000 publications.
• Utilize hyper-personalized pitching, follow-ups, and scheduled dispatch for better outreach.
• Gain detailed PR reports, including coverage, trend analysis, and performance indicators.
• Use AI for enhanced media relations: recommended journalists, topic-based search, word clouds.
• Speed up press release and pitch drafting with PressPal.ai in seconds.

✍️ Journalists:

• Create an up-to-date archive of your work for editors, employers, and global audiences.
• Tailor your portfolio to highlight key coverage areas and preferences.
• Stay ahead with trending topics, media, and experts, including through Source of Sources partnership.

A similar directory is available for Podcasts, offering contact details, key metrics, and descriptions for hundreds of thousands of shows, along with creator profiles and contact info.

And, in honor of their dedication to supporting journalists with free resources and tools, Muck Rack proudly offers:

🎓 Muck Rack Academy — regsiter and explore curated short courses and webinars on a variety of topics — even with a free account!

🔔 Muck Rack Daily — get a daily dose of journalism, written by pros and sent right to your inbox — for free!

📝 Global Media Outlet Ranking — keep tabs on the hottest media outlets of the month across all kinds of topics!

📊 Trending Stories — stay on top of the latest buzz around the media!

🔑 Topic trending —  check how often a topic has popped up in the media over time, with the number of outlets covering it shown accordingly.

Let's track how frequently the topic "War in Ukraine" has been covered in the media since February 2022 and how its popularity has evolved up to today.

From the graph you can see that "War in Ukraine" was mentioned in 264,165 articles in March 2022, but media coverage has since dropped to 86,786 articles by November 2024. Over the entire period, it was covered in a total of 4,823,038 articles.

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

For a complete eco-system in real-time media monitoring, Muck Rack delivers. With one of the best media databases, finding the perfect PR contacts is effortless. Trend tracking tools make content discovery instant, while all your findings are easily organized in custom media lists and analytical reports.

On the downside, Muck Rack can be pricey, especially for smaller businesses or professionals with limited PR budgets. While it excels in media monitoring and contact management, it falls short on advanced outreach automation compared to other PR tools. Additionally, though it covers global outlets, its primary focus is U.S.-based media, which may limit its value for international PR campaigns.

7. Help a B2B Writer

Founded in 2020 by Elise Dopson, the platform offered B2B writers (especially freelancers) the resources, community, and guidance they need to level up their skills and grow their businesses.

In December 2022, Superpath, a content marketing company, acquired Help a B2B Writer, expanding its services to B2B writers and enhancing its expertise in content strategy and freelancing.

Here’s how they describe themselves now:

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

The platform describes its target audience as "Writers" and "Sources," meaning it’s for everyone from B2B freelancers to businesses looking to strengthen their content strategy with talented writers.

Can writers be sources and sources be writers? Absolutely! The platform offers plenty of opportunities for both!

💰 Help a B2B Writer pricing

Another platform that's completely free — why not take advantage of it?

⚙️ What’s inside?

The rules are simple:

Option #1.

Sources sign up and select the areas they’re experts in, like SEO, design, marketing, etc.

Once you confirm your email, you’ll receive a message with a list of industries — click on the ones where you can offer your expertise.

After selecting your area of expertise, you’ll be redirected to a thank-you message letting the platform know what you're up to.

Option #2.

Writers submit a source request and check off the expertise they need from their source.

Here, you’ll find a standard form to fill out with your request summary, deadlines, publishing URL, etc.

To make your request more precise, you'll also need to select the areas your potential pitchers should specialize in.

Now, you can hit submit and await for approval.

If all goes well, your inbox will receive pitches like these. If you like them, the pitcher’s contact details will be included in the email, often with LinkedIn profiles for quick messaging.

As an extra option, you can sign up for daily email notifications to catch the new requests as soon as they pop up!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

It’s free and customized to the expertise you need, which is awesome! But since it’s free, you might face some competition with other writers and sources going after the same opportunities.

Also, if you're into getting pitches directly on the platform, email pitching can feel a bit more overwhelming since it needs constant attention.

💎 Bonus: Ask Help a B2B Writer! 💎

In this interview piece, we got the chance to chat with the Co-founder and CEO of Superpath Jimmy Daly, who’s currently behind Help a B2B Writer, about the benefits of using the platform.

🎤”Considering HARO's impending closure, what steps is Help a B2B Writer taking to attract users from HARO, and do you anticipate any challenges in converting its audience?”

We’ve been developing an API to make our writer requests easily available to both power users and SaaS tools that aggregate these queries. We’re also working on a reputation management feature that will incentivize sources to send the best possible responses. We plan to stay free and are thinking through a paid plan with added features. More to come on that!

We’re all B2B and we’ve seen some HARO folks coming to us looking for consumer topics. I think we’ll need to update our messaging to clarify the niche approach and also improve our onboarding to make sure our users have everything they need to be successful.

🎤”What specific features or advantages does Help a B2B Writer have over its competitors, particularly those targeting journalists and PR professionals looking for a HARO alternative?”

We are all B2B, all the time. This is what sets HaB2BW apart and helps us attract the right creators and sources.

🎤”Given the frustration many users have with irrelevant or excessive queries on platforms like HARO, what steps is Help a B2B Writer taking to ensure a higher quality of match-making that justifies its users’ time?”

Reputation management! We’re building a rating system so that writers can rate responses. Those responses will feed into a reputation management system platforms users.

🎤Ask an expert!

”What’s your favourite HARO alternative?”

I’ve used Help a B2B Writer to build links for Dock since I joined the company. It’s part of a strategy that’s brought us from a DR of 40 to 70 in only 2 years. I use it for a few reasons:

• Because it’s B2B only, most of the sites looking for contributions are highly relevant to our business, making the links we get more valuable.
•  A really high percentage of my contributions get used. I’d say around 40%.

8. NinjaOutreach

NinjaOutreach is a go-to platform for finding and connecting with influencers, bloggers, and potential partners to propel link-building, content promotion, and growth strategies. Launched in 2014, it's become a favorite alternative to HARO  for SEO and influencer marketing pros willing to take their performance to the next level.

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

Basically, anyone ready to grow their online presence and build strong connections, including:

💰 NinjaOutreach pricing

NinjaOutreach gives you a 7-day FREE trial of all its paid plans. Pricing ranges from $149 to $499/month, depending on the features you need — check them out!

⚙️ What’s inside?

Signing up is simple, but you’ll need to pick a pricing plan upfront — even though you’ll start with a free trial.

Since NinjaOutreach focuses on email campaigns, the first step is connecting the email address you'll use for outreach.

Next, you can start exploring the Search Tools.

These include:

🛠️ Instagram Influencers — here, you can search for influencers by username, keywords, hashtags, and more. For a more refined search, use filters to narrow down by follower count, location, engagement, gender, profile type, and more.

🛠️ Websites & Blog Search — if you’re after link-building opportunities, you can find relevant websites and blogs by searching for site names, top-level domains, social followers, website domain authority, social shares, backlinks, Moz Rank, and more.

🛠️ Tiktok Influencers — quickly find TikTok influencers by searching with usernames, keywords, or hashtags. For a more precise search, use filters to sort by fan count or engagement rate.

🛠️ YouTube Influencers — same search bar here, though you can refine your results with filters like location, email, subscriber count, or engagement rate.

🛠️ Email Finder — for future email outreach campaigns, grow your lead base with fresh emails by searching for influencers’ first and last names, their website domains, or the companies they work for. Save these leads to custom email lists for easy access.

Once you’ve got your leads, it’s time to craft the perfect outreach message! Head to the “Templates” section for prompts and ready-to-use options you can tweak — or create your own from scratch!

Now, automate your outreach to multiple leads at once with the Campaigns Builder. Set up your message, timing, and more to ensure you reach out at the perfect moment or follow up without missing any connections!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

NinjaOutreach is a super functional platform for those who want to excel in influencer marketing and link-building. It combines advanced search, pitch crafting, automated outreach, and a massive database with built-in CRM for storing your relevant data — all in one place.

On the downside, the interface can feel overwhelming for beginners, and its email deliverability tools sometimes might not prevent bulk campaigns from landing in spam. Plus, the pricing isn’t exactly beginner-friendly.

9. ProfNet

Founded in 1992 as part of PR Newswire, a global press release distribution service, ProfNet was designed to connect businesses, organizations, and PR professionals with media outlets. In 2016, PR Newswire was acquired by Cision (including ProfNet) and now serves journalists seeking expert sources and experts looking for publicity.

Here’s how ProfNet sums up what using it is all about:

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

The platform breaks it down into general categories of audiences who’ll benefit, like:

Of course, these categories also include PR pros, agency reps, SEO experts, marketers, solo entrepreneurs, and the list goes on!

💰ProfNet pricing

Good news for content creators and journalists! The platform is totally free for them. But if you want to sign up as an expert, you'll need a subscription. This gives you access to regular queries from journalists and alerts about new opportunities to share your expertise.

Expert membership pricing is customized based on your organization’s type, user count, and expertise category. Pricing is tailored and negotiated after you contact the platform via a dedicated form.

If you have any more questions about using the platform as an expert, feel free to reach out to their team.

⚙️ What’s inside?

Basically, if you are an expert, you can figure out the details through negotiation with the platform.

For journalists you can start submitting queries and getting pitch alerts right upon registering.

Next, you'll be asked to sign up and provide details like your job title, organization type, coverage area, country of residence, and a link to the resource where you'd like experts to be featured.

After registering, you'll be redirected to the PR Newswire website, where you'll find a quick link to log into ProfNet and submit your query. The process is pretty standard, just like any other platform.

You'll also receive a standard confirmation message.

In your private ProfNet inbox, you can track the status of your request and, once approved, wait for pitches to arrive.

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

It’s a great option for journalists and content creators of all kinds, especially since it’s FREE. Plus, the separate fee for experts shows the platform takes the vetting process seriously, so only quality sources are accepted. The downside is that the registration and billing process for experts can be a bit slow.

ProfNet is a great platform! Its standout feature is a curated network of industry professionals willing to share their insights. Whether you’re aiming to establish yourself as a thought leader or provide expert commentary, ProfNet offers a space for valuable connections and collaboration.

10. OnePitch

Launched in 2017, the platform  was made to make pitching easier and faster for both journalists and PR pros.

Its philosophy is simple: instead of blasting out generic pitches, send a single, tailored one that fits a journalist’s needs perfectly. Such focus on personalization makes the platform one of solid HARO alternatives these days.

🎁 Who will benefit from this HARO alternative?

As OnePitch puts it, it’s “a simplified PR solution for teams of all sizes.” So whether you're a solo entrepreneur, a content creator, or part of a big marketing or PR team, it’s got something for everyone.

💰 OnePitch pricing

The platform is all about giving everyone a fair shot, with a motto that says it all:

They really mean it — monthly access to all their tools, like Journalist Recommendations, Article Search, Custom Media Lists, Email Tracking, Reports, and Pitch Checklists, is just $50.

However, before committing to anything, you’ll be granted with a generous 30-days FREE trial!

⚙️ What’s inside?

OnePitch offers a bunch of features to make your pitching process effortless, including:

All these awesome features will be waiting for you on your dashboard as soon as you create a free 30-day account.

To get started, head over to the "Search" tab, where you can find a journalist by name or filter by their article topic using the "Article" filter.

To take your search further and find experts alike, go to the "Similar Journalists" tab and use the extra search filters.

Save journalists you want to pitch to later in curated lists under the “Lists” tab, complete with their contact emails.

Whenever you send pitches to your curated list, all your outreach emails will be neatly stored in the “Emails” tab.

Once you're all set to create your first pitch, head over to the "Pitches" tab and create a new one.

The pitch creation process is super simple with an easy-to-use builder that lets you add the subject and a summary of your pitch.

Once your pitch is ready, you can fine-tune it in the builder and select experts from the suggested contact list below to send it out. It’s that easy!

✅ Pros & Cons 🚫

The biggest advantage of the platform is its super personalized approach to pitching, with a huge database, smart suggestions, and full automation for creating and sending out pitches.

Plus, the pricing is pretty reasonable given access to all the tools on one platform. And the 30-day free trial is just the cherry on top!

The only downside is that the database of publications is more US-focused, so it might be less helpful if you're working outside the US.

Bonus! Twitter (X) “Requests”

We all know Twitter as a news hub, but lately, it’s turned into a personal opinion space for just about everyone.

For those seeking fresh insights straight from the source, it’s become a place to fish for thoughts. I mean, we’re all keeping an eye on John Mueller’s tweets for any SEO nuggets, right? 😁

But all that endless scrolling for tweets can waste hours of your life. Recently, a Twitter account called JournoRequest popped up, sharing journalist requests for sources. Now, sources come to you simply by adding a special hashtag to mark that you need help.

These hashtags can vary, including:

See how it´s done!

Why not give it a go? It’s FREE and super effective!

🎤Ask an expert!

”What’s your favourite HARO alternative?”

I’ve found that the #journorequest hashtag on X (formerly Twitter) is the best option as for now — offering a lot of queries, direct interactions with editors and journalists, and plenty of networking opportunities. For link-building and PR outreach, #journorequest on X is my top choice.

Final Words

Whew, it’s been quite the journey, but totally worth it! The disappearance of HARO isn’t all doom and gloom — there are plenty of great HARO alternatives out there, whether you’re focused on PR or link-building through outreach.

You decide! From free options like Source of Sources, Twitter "requests," Help a B2B Writer, ProfNet, and SourceBottle for literally any audience, to all-in-one outreach platforms like Much Rack and JustReach Out for bigger enterprises and PR agencies.

Solo entrepreneurs on a budget can opt for Qwoted, Featured, or OnePitch for managing  their outreach, while those focused on influencer marketing will love NinjaOutreach.

But if you're still having trouble building relevant backlinks, ask Editorial Link. We know the best ways!