Overview

The Hacker News MCP Server allows you to retrieve specific items directly using their unique identifiers. Every story, comment, poll, and job posting on Hacker News has a numeric ID that can be used to fetch that exact item. This is particularly useful when you know exactly what content you want to access, need to follow up on a specific discussion, or want to retrieve items referenced elsewhere.

Understanding Hacker News Item IDs

Each piece of content on Hacker News—whether it's a story submission, comment, poll, or job listing—receives a unique numeric identifier when it's created. These IDs are sequential and permanent, meaning once an item is assigned an ID, it remains accessible through that identifier indefinitely. You'll find these IDs in Hacker News URLs (for example, https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12345678) or embedded in data returned from other queries.

How to Query Items by ID

To retrieve a specific item, simply request it from your AI assistant using natural language and include the item ID. For example, you might ask "Get Hacker News item 12345678" or "Show me the details for item ID 12345678." The server will fetch that specific item and return all available information about it.

The response includes comprehensive details depending on the item type:

• Stories and Submissions: Title, URL, author, score, submission time, and number of comments
• Comments: Comment text, author, timestamp, score, and parent item reference
• Polls: Question text, poll options, and voting information
• Jobs: Job title, description, and posting details

When to Use ID-Based Queries

Querying by ID is most valuable in several scenarios:

Following Specific Discussions: When you want to check back on a particular story or comment thread you've previously encountered, using its ID ensures you get exactly that item rather than searching through feeds.

Deep-Linking from External Sources: If you've bookmarked items, found references in other articles, or received recommendations that include specific item IDs, direct querying provides immediate access.

Building on Previous Queries: When exploring comment threads, each comment contains references to its parent and children. Using these IDs lets you navigate the conversation tree precisely.

Research and Analysis: When conducting systematic research, item IDs allow you to create reproducible queries and maintain consistent references to specific content across your work.

Tips for Effective Usage

Item IDs are always numeric and typically seven to eight digits long for recent content. If you're unsure about an ID, you can extract it from a Hacker News URL or from data returned by other queries like top stories or user profiles. Remember that deleted or dead items may return limited information or indicate their removed status, which is normal behavior for content moderation on the platform.