Finding hackathons
Saved searches and alerts
Save a filtered view of the database, come back to it in one click, and get emailed when new hackathons match it.
A saved search stores the filters you set on /database or /judge-opportunities so you can reopen them in one click. Turn on alerts for it and HackathonRadar emails you when a new hackathon matches.
Saving and opening searches is free. Alerts need Dev Pro, apart from the free city watch described below.
Save a search
Filter the page
On /database or /judge-opportunities, type a search, pick filters or choose a preset view. The Save search button only appears once the page is actually filtered, and only when you are signed in.Click Save search
A dialog called Save this search asks for a name, for example "AI hackathons in London".Save
You land on the new saved search at/saved-searches/{id}. It also appears under Saved searches in the sidebar.
The search keeps every filter and sort on the page, but not the page number.
A new saved search starts Paused, with email selected, so nothing is sent until you switch it on.
Open, edit, rename and delete
/saved-searches opens the saved search you viewed most recently. If you have none, it shows No saved searches yet with links to browse hackathons or judging opportunities.
On a saved search, click its name in the breadcrumb to open a menu of all your saved searches, each with Open, Rename and Delete.
To change the filters, edit them on the page as normal. Two buttons appear:
| Button | What it does |
|---|---|
| Update saved search | Saves the current filters onto the search |
| Discard changes | Goes back to the filters the search was saved with |
On the free plan a saved search shows the same 7-day window as the database. If it matches events further out, the page tells you how many and links to /pricing.
Turn on alerts
Alerts are managed at /settings/saved-searches, labeled Saved Search Notifications in the settings menu. The Get notifications button on any saved search takes you there (it says Customize notifications once alerts are on). On the free plan the button says Notify me and opens an upgrade dialog instead.
Each saved search is a row with a switch and an Active or Paused badge. Flip the switch to start or stop alerts. If you switch a search on with no channel selected, email is turned on for you so the alert has somewhere to go.
Click a row to choose its channels:
| Channel | Plan | Where it goes |
|---|---|---|
| Dev Pro | Your account email | |
| Slack | Enterprise | A Slack incoming webhook URL |
| Discord | Enterprise | A Discord channel webhook URL |
| Custom webhook | Enterprise | Your own HTTPS endpoint, sent a JSON POST |
Click Save changes to keep your choices, or Delete view to remove the search. Webhook URLs must start with https://.
What an alert email looks like
An alert emails you when a hackathon that matches the search is newly listed on HackathonRadar. Each email is titled, for example, 3 new hackathons matched "AI hackathons in London", and lists each match with its dates, location and prize pool. You only get an email when there is something new, and you never get the same event twice from one search.
Alerts match on the format, category, country and student-only filters of the search.
If you downgrade from a paid plan, paid alerts stop sending. If a search is Active but every channel is off, nothing is sent, and HackathonRadar emails you a weekly reminder with a link to turn a channel on. That reminder follows the New hackathon alerts switch on /settings/notifications.
Free city watch
The city pages under Collections have a watch button, for example Watch London. It creates a saved search called "Hackathons in London" that is already on and sends by email. This is the one alert that works on the free plan. Free accounts hear about an event once it is within 7 days of starting, the same window the free plan sees everywhere else. On a paid plan you hear about it as soon as it is listed.
On the free plan you cannot open the alert settings page, but you can delete a city watch from the saved search menu.
Judge alerts
Save a search from /judge-opportunities to get judge alerts. They are set up the same way as other alerts and only include events with a known way to reach the organizer. See Alerts and organizer contacts for how judges use them.
Saved searches over the API and MCP
- MCP. The
list_saved_searchestool on the MCP server lists your saved searches and their alert settings. It needs a paid plan. - REST API. With an API key you can list and create saved views. See Saved views and reports. A view created over the API starts active, with email on.
Troubleshooting
- Alerts are on but nothing arrives. Check the row is Active and has a channel badge (Email, Slack, Discord or Webhook). If your filters are narrow, there may simply be no new events yet.
- You want to stop an alert. Flip its switch to Paused at /settings/saved-searches, or delete the search. The switches on /settings/notifications do not pause saved search alerts.