Using altHUB? Download Your NZBs With UsenetServer at 70% Off!
altHUB is an NZB indexer from South Africa, and you can try it free before you pay anything. The paid plan has cost about $10 a year for a long time. That makes it one of the cheapest indexers around. It makes a good second indexer, but it only finds the NZB files. To download anything you also need a Usenet provider, and we use UsenetServer, which is 70% off for our readers with 3 free months.
What Is altHUB?
altHUB is a Usenet NZB indexer. It started in 2012 as nMatrix.co.za and switched to the altHUB name in 2015. Like most indexers, it runs on Newznab. It pulls posts from a set of alt.binaries newsgroups and sorts them automatically, so you can search them in one place. You’ll find it at althub.co.za, not althub.com, which is an unrelated company. If you’re new to all this, our guide to what Usenet is explains how the pieces fit together.
altHUB Price, Free Trial and Lifetime Deals
New accounts start on a short free trial, usually about two weeks, with a limited number of downloads and API calls. After that you need a paid plan to keep using it with your apps. Paid members get unlimited NZB downloads and unlimited API calls, as long as they don’t hammer the API.
You can pay for more than one year at once. However, the current prices only show up in their portal once you’re logged in, so check there before you pay.
Is There an altHUB Lifetime Plan?
Sometimes. The site runs holiday deals, and lately those have been lifetime memberships. For example, for Black Friday 2025 it offered lifetime access for US$20. So if you’re not in a hurry, it’s worth waiting for the next sale.
Easynews is our top choice among the NZB search options. It’s an all-in-one service with unlimited high-speed Usenet access and its own Usenet search, so you don’t need an indexer or a newsreader. Just log in, type what you want into the search bar and hit enter.
Other features:
- 6,604+ days of retention
- Retention that grows every day
- Fast and accurate results
- Easy to use, fully customizable search interface
- No NZBs, indexers, or newsreaders needed
- Works on any device (mobile and desktop)
It also saves you the cost of paying for NZB indexers, since you get unlimited Usenet search with your Easynews account.
Exclusively through Usenet.com: Get 80% Off Easynews + 3 FREE Months on the Yearly Plan – Includes a 30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
How to Register for altHUB
Registration is usually open, so you don’t need an invite. Right now their home page has a Register button. If signups are ever paused, you’ll need an invite from a member. Our guide on how to get an indexer invite has tips.
altHUB Login Problems
Logging in trips a lot of people up, because the site no longer accepts email addresses. You have to log in with your username instead. Also, if your account seems to have vanished, it may be from the May 2024 data loss. A broken backup lost accounts for people who signed up between 11 April and 6 May 2024. altHUB owned up to it publicly, restored paid upgrades and gave affected yearly members a lifetime account. If that’s you, contact them through their help site.
What Is the altHUB Website Address?
The website is althub.co.za. There’s also an althub.com, but that’s a different company with nothing to do with Usenet, so make sure you’ve got the .co.za one. For your apps, the API address is different from the website, and we cover that below.
Using altHUB With Sonarr, Radarr and SABnzbd
Most people use an indexer through their apps, not the website. altHUB works with SABnzbd, Sonarr, NZBGet, NZBVortex, NZB360, SickBeard, CouchPotato and HeadPhones, and there are setup guides on their help site. Radarr works too, since it uses the same Newznab setup as Sonarr. You’ll need a paid plan for the API. Also, set your apps to check no more than once every 10 minutes. Hitting the API too often can get your IP banned for a while. Our SABnzbd review shows how the download side is set up.
Adding altHUB to Prowlarr or NZBHydra2
If you use Prowlarr, altHUB is already in its list of indexers. Search for it, paste in the API key from your altHUB profile, then click Test. If the test fails, set the URL to https://api.althub.co.za and the API path to /api. That’s the fix a lot of Prowlarr users found when the built-in address didn’t connect. In NZBHydra2, add it as a Newznab indexer with the same address and your API key.
Searching on the Website
If you’d rather pick downloads by hand, the website works like any search engine. Type what you want, and you’ll see the matching posts. You can narrow it to one category, browse the latest posts in a category, or tick several results and download them as a single NZB.
Privacy and Reliability
According to their FAQ, the site only needs a username, doesn’t track IP addresses and doesn’t use third-party tracking tools. They also say they’d tell you if a court asked for your information. The site doesn’t index adult content either.
Reliability is fine, but not perfect. The site has gone offline now and then, which is why there’s a status page. The 2024 data loss also shows backups haven’t always worked. In addition, a small indexer won’t find everything a bigger one does. That’s why we’d use it as a second indexer rather than your only one.
How an Indexer Fits Into Your Usenet Setup
It helps to know where altHUB fits, because it’s only one part of the setup.
- altHUB finds the post you want and gives you an NZB file.
- Your newsreader, like SABnzbd, opens that NZB file.
- Then your newsreader downloads the pieces from your Usenet provider.
- Finally, the newsreader puts the pieces back together into your file.
So the indexer alone can’t download anything, and a provider alone won’t always help you find things. You need both, unless you pick a provider with its own search.
altHUB vs NZBgeek vs DrunkenSlug
People often compare these three, and the big differences are price and how easy they are to join.
| Indexer | How you get in | Price |
|---|---|---|
| altHUB | Open registration, with a free trial | About $10 a year |
| NZBgeek | Open to everyone | $12 a year |
| DrunkenSlug | Open registration now and then, or an invite | Free, or €5 to €20 a year |
So altHUB is the easiest of the three to try, since you can start the free trial today. Lots of people use two of them together through NZBHydra2 or Prowlarr, so you don’t have to pick just one.
Who Should Use altHUB?
It’s a great pick if you want a cheap second indexer for Sonarr or Radarr, or if you’re new and want to try an indexer without an invite. It’s also handy for older posts, since it’s been indexing since 2012. But if you want one indexer that finds everything, pair it with a bigger one rather than using it alone.
Don’t Want an Indexer? Search Usenet Directly
You don’t need an indexer at all if your Usenet provider has its own search. Easynews lets you search and download right in your web browser, with previews, so there’s no NZB file to deal with. It’s $5.99 a month through our link, with 3 free months. UsenetServer includes Global Search, which searches every group and builds the NZB file for you. That’s also $5.99 a month with 3 free months. Our Easynews review and UsenetServer review explain how each search works.
altHUB Pros and Cons
Pros
- Cheap, at about $10 a year for the paid plan.
- A free trial, and usually no invite needed.
- Works with Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr and NZBHydra2.
- Good for older posts, since it has been indexing since 2012.
- Its FAQ says it doesn’t track IP addresses.
Cons
- It’s smaller, so it won’t find everything a big indexer does.
- It has had outages, and a data loss in 2024.
- Checking the API too often can get your IP banned for a while.
- You only see the prices once you’re logged in.
Is altHUB Worth It?
For the price, yes. It’s cheap and easy to use, and the free trial lets you see for yourself before you pay. It won’t replace a big indexer, but it makes a good backup. If you’re comparing, it’s worth knowing what NZBgeek costs, and our best NZB sites list has the rest.
You’ll Need a Usenet Provider Too
An indexer only finds the NZB files, because the downloading runs through a Usenet provider, which is a separate account. We recommend UsenetServer, and right now it’s 70% off for our readers with 3 free months on the yearly plan, which works out to $5.99 a month. Here are the three we’d pair with altHUB.
- UsenetServer: $5.99 a month for 12 months plus 3 free, with 55 connections, Global Search and a free VPN.
- Newshosting: $5.99 a month for 15 months, with 100 connections, a newsreader with search and a free VPN.
- Easynews: $5.99 a month for 15 months, with 60 connections and search in your web browser.
You can compare the rest on our best Usenet providers page, or read our Newshosting review.
altHUB FAQs
Is altHUB free?
You can try it free. New accounts start on a short trial, usually about two weeks, with a limited number of downloads and API calls. After that you need the paid plan to keep using it with your apps.
Do I need an invite?
Usually not. Registration is normally open, so you can sign up on the website. If signups are ever paused, you’d need an invite from a member.
How do I log in?
Use your username, not your email address, because the site stopped accepting email logins. If your account seems to be missing, see the login problems section above.
What is the altHUB API address?
For Sonarr, Radarr or Prowlarr, use https://api.althub.co.za with /api as the API path, plus the API key from your profile.
How much does it cost?
About $10 a year for the paid plan, and you can pay for more than one year at once. The exact prices show in their portal once you’re logged in.
Is there a lifetime deal?
Sometimes, around the holidays. For example, it offered lifetime access for US$20 on Black Friday 2025. Our Usenet Black Friday deals page is where we’ll post this year’s offers.
Is it safe to use?
altHUB only gives you NZB files, which are small text files that point to posts on Usenet. The download itself comes from your Usenet provider. So use a provider with SSL, keep your API key private, and don’t share your account.
What does altHUB index?
It pulls posts from a set of alt.binaries newsgroups and sorts them into categories automatically. It doesn’t index adult content, so if that’s what you’re after, you’ll need a different indexer.
Can I pay for more than one year?
Yes. You can pay for several years at once when you upgrade, which saves you renewing every year.
Is altHUB down?
If the site won’t load, give it a little while, because short outages happen. Their help site has a status page, and a second indexer keeps your apps going in the meantime. Also check your apps aren’t hitting the API too often, since that can look like an outage when your IP has been banned for a bit.
Can I use altHUB on my phone?
Yes, through an app that talks to your setup at home, like nzb360 on Android. You can also use the website in your phone’s browser.