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Most anti-shopping tools try to block the urge. FakeHaul feeds it instead. It's a full fake store with made-up products, lightning deals that reset at midnight, coupon stacking, "only 6 left" badges, checkout, tracking updates, even an unboxing for a package that doesn't exist. Every order totals $0.00. When you're done, you get a receipt showing how much money you kept. FoodNeverComes did this for takeout. Turns out the fun was never the stuff arriving.
Hey everyone, maker here.
This started as a joke about Temu. I wanted to parody the fake urgency, the "88K+ sold" badges, the countdown timers, all the machinery that makes you buy a vegetable chopper at 1am. So I built a store where the machinery is real and the products aren't. You can browse, stack coupons, check out, get tracking updates, and unbox a package that never existed. The total is $0.00 every time. At the end you get a receipt for the money you kept.
The part I didn't expect: a few early testers told me they open it when they feel like impulse buying, click around for ten minutes, and the urge passes. I have no idea if that generalizes. I'm not claiming it's therapy, and honestly I can see the argument that rehearsing the ritual could make the habit worse for some people. Curious what you all think it actually is.
No accounts, no ads, no money involved anywhere. It runs on spite and my hosting bill.
Two questions for you: what fake product should I add next, and did anyone actually feel the checkout dopamine even knowing it's fake? That second one is the whole experiment.
Launch-day update: I’m here all day and replying to everything. The question I care about most is whether FakeHaul reduces an impulse, or simply rehearses it. Brutal answers welcome!
the unboxing moment is such a clever move, basically completing the whole ritual without the buyer's remorse part. love how it borrows that dopamine loop from the real thing and flips it on its head.
Love the concept, especially the unboxing bit, that sounds delightful. One thing I'd love is a "streak" or savings history view so you can see how many fake carts you've abandoned this month and your running total of money saved, kind of like a Duolingo for impulse control. Would make the "receipt at the end" feel even more satisfying.
The midnight flash deals and "only 6 left" badges hooked me for a whole hour. Loved seeing the receipt total at the end, oddly satisfying way to break the shopping itch.
The "lightning deals that reset at midnight" detail is chef's kiss, turning the dopamine hit into the actual product instead of pretending to remove it. And the final receipt showing what you kept reframes the whole thing as a savings tool without ever lecturing.
Love the concept, especially the receipt at the end showing your savings. One thing I'd love to see is a weekly summary email that tallies up how much you "saved" across all your fake hauls, almost like a report card for resisting real shopping. Would make the wins feel even more concrete over time.
honestly the fake tracking updates and unboxing experience are such a clever touch, basically completing the whole ritual without the spend. really well executed concept.
About FakeHaul on Product Hunt
“Haul everything. Pay nothing. Nothing ships.”
FakeHaul was submitted on Product Hunt and earned 12 upvotes and 13 comments, placing #159 on the daily leaderboard. Most anti-shopping tools try to block the urge. FakeHaul feeds it instead. It's a full fake store with made-up products, lightning deals that reset at midnight, coupon stacking, "only 6 left" badges, checkout, tracking updates, even an unboxing for a package that doesn't exist. Every order totals $0.00. When you're done, you get a receipt showing how much money you kept. FoodNeverComes did this for takeout. Turns out the fun was never the stuff arriving.
FakeHaul was featured in Funny (11.4k followers), E-Commerce (41.7k followers) and Personal Finance (2.9k followers) on Product Hunt. Together, these topics include over 25.2k products, making this a competitive space to launch in.
Who hunted FakeHaul?
FakeHaul was hunted by Jack Yang. A “hunter” on Product Hunt is the community member who submits a product to the platform — uploading the images, the link, and tagging the makers behind it. Hunters typically write the first comment explaining why a product is worth attention, and their followers are notified the moment they post. Around 79% of featured launches on Product Hunt are self-hunted by their makers, but a well-known hunter still acts as a signal of quality to the rest of the community. See the full all-time top hunters leaderboard to discover who is shaping the Product Hunt ecosystem.
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Jack Yang