Short answers for the product. For the full FAQ layout, see the FAQ page on the main site. For prices and limits, use Pricing and Plans and limits.
Getting started
What is Needle for?
Search across communities your plan allows, prioritize by sentiment and intent, and use Auto Search so your brand gets scheduled passes from the setup you save. Use Manual search when you want a fresh custom query for a single run. Use Trending Problems for category-level demand. Needle Directory is where you list your product in Needle's public catalog - separate from Search.
What can I try before I subscribe?
Homepage preview (no account), then onboarding and a one-time welcome scan (7-day snapshot on Auto Search). Manual search and recurring Auto Search need a trial or paid plan. Free utilities: Tools hub. Plans: Pricing.
Search, brands, and platforms
How is this different from checking Reddit (and every other site) manually?
One workflow searches the platforms your plan includes, ranks threads for sentiment and intent, and can run Auto Search on a timer - instead of opening each community in a separate tab.
Manual Search, Auto Search, and digests
Manual search is on-demand and counts toward plan limits. Auto Search uses your brand's saved setup in Settings, runs on a schedule, and does not use manual quota. Optional digest alerts notify you when there are new Auto matches - channels depend on plan (Pricing).
Which sources does Search use?
Depends on plan. See Plans and limits and Pricing.
Competitor mentions
Save competitors for your brand in Settings; Needle can flag when those names show up in a post on supported results.
Privacy and billing
Is my data private?
We work with public posts for discovery. Your workspace data is not sold for ads. Details: Privacy policy.
Plans and cancellation
No forever-free Search tier. Compare Solo, Growth, and Scale on Pricing. Cancel from account settings (period end or immediate). See Terms and Refund Policy for billing details.