What are the best Usenet indexers? The best Usenet indexers are NZBgeek, DrunkenSlug, and NZBFinder. These premium search engines catalog the millions of posts uploaded to Usenet, allowing you to easily search for posts and articles and download the required NZB files to your newsreader.
If you want to download binary files from the network, you cannot do it without a search engine. Because the network is completely decentralized, there is no built-in master directory of files.
Instead, third-party services called indexers scan the millions of articles posted every day. They organize these messy text posts into clean, searchable databases.
Whether you are looking to automate your media server with Sonarr or just want to manually download a few files, finding the right indexer is critical. Here are the nine best Usenet indexers available today.
| Indexer | Access | Retention | Free Tier | Entry Price | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NZBgeek | Open (3-day trial) | ~500K NZBs, curated | 15 NZBs / 3 days | VIG membership | Overall reliability and API automation |
| DrunkenSlug | Invite-only | 3,000+ days | 5 NZBs/day, 100 API/day | €5/yr | Rare posts and high-quality articles |
| NZBFinder | Open registration | 3,600+ days | 5 NZBs, 25 API calls | €10/yr | High-quality posts without needing an invite |
| Easynews | Open signup | 6,400+ days | N/A (data-capped web UI) | Classic, 20GB/mo | Beginners who want a simple web search |
| NzbPlanet | Invite-only | 2,500 days (paid) | 10 NZBs/day, 0 API | £10/yr | Automation and large database searches |
| Usenet-Crawler | Open registration | ~2,700-3,900 days (unofficial) | ~27 API calls/day (real-world) | Free (VIP via promo) | Beginners who want a no-invite entry point |
| DogNZB | Invite-only | 4,800+ days (claimed) | 50 NZBs, 50 API calls | $20/yr | Watchlist automation and remote queue management |
| NinjaCentral | Fluctuates (open/invite/closed) | 500 days | 20 API, 5 grabs/day | ~€11 / 2 yrs | Finding rare or obscure archival content |
| NZB.su | Open registration | ~2,000 days | 5 grabs/day, 0 API | $9 / 180 days | A low-cost secondary indexer for automation stacks |
Usenet Indexer vs. Usenet Provider: What’s the Difference?
If you landed here searching for “Usenet indexers” and expected a piece of software like Newznab, this guide covers something different. Newznab is open-source code that site operators use to build an indexer — it isn’t a service you sign up for directly, and neither is a GitHub list of indexer links.
A Usenet provider sells you the actual connection to Usenet’s servers and the bandwidth to download binary files. An indexer is a separate, third-party search engine that scans those servers and tells you where specific files live, producing the .nzb file your newsreader needs to grab them. Most setups need both: a provider for the connection, and an indexer to find what to download. Easynews is the one entry on this list that bundles both roles into a single account.
Why You Need a Premium Indexer
While there are free search engines available (like Binsearch), they are often flooded with spam, password-protected files, and malware.
Premium indexers solve this problem. They actively filter out spam, verify file integrity, and provide clean .nzb files. Furthermore, premium indexers offer API integration. This allows automation software like Radarr and Sonarr to automatically search the indexer and send files directly to your newsreader without you ever lifting a finger.
If you run more than one indexer at once, most automation stacks route them through a manager like Prowlarr or a search aggregator like NZBHydra2 rather than adding each one to Sonarr and Radarr individually. See our NZBHydra2 vs Prowlarr comparison to see which fits your setup, or our Prowlarr setup guide if you already know which one you want.
Note: An indexer only helps you find files. To actually download them, you must have an active subscription to one of the best Usenet providers.
How We Evaluate Usenet Indexers
Every indexer on this list is cross-checked against three sources: the provider’s own published pricing and access terms, independent community reports (primarily r/usenet and each indexer’s own support forum) for real-world API and download limits, and direct compatibility checks against the automation stack most data hoarders actually run — Sonarr, Radarr, Prowlarr, and NZBHydra2. Each entry links to a full standalone review covering exact retention figures, current pricing, and setup steps. We last verified pricing and access terms across this list in September 2026.
Where an indexer’s advertised limits and its real-world, community-reported limits diverge — as they sometimes do — we note that explicitly rather than repeating the marketing figure at face value.
The 9 Best Usenet Indexers
1. NZBgeek (Best Overall Indexer)
NZBgeek is widely considered the most reliable and community-driven indexer on the internet. It operates as a forum-based community, meaning fake files and spam are quickly reported and removed by users.
It offers excellent API integration for automation software and has an incredibly high retention rate for finding older files. While it is a paid service, it is highly affordable and even offers a lifetime subscription option.
- Type: Premium (Paid)
- Access: Open registration, 3-day free trial (15 NZBs)
- Index: ~500,000 NZBs, member-curated, updates roughly every 10 minutes
- Best For: Overall reliability and API automation.
2. DrunkenSlug (Best for Rare Content)
DrunkenSlug is a legendary indexer in the data hoarding community. It is known for having one of the cleanest, most accurate databases, particularly for older and harder-to-find media.
The only downside to DrunkenSlug is that it is an invite-only platform. Registration only opens a few times a year, meaning you have to keep a close eye on community forums to secure an account. Read our full DrunkenSlug review for a closer look at its retention and Sonarr integration, or see how it stacks up directly in our DrunkenSlug vs NZBGeek comparison.
- Type: Premium (Invite-Only)
- Retention: 3,000+ days across 50 newsgroups
- Free tier: 5 NZBs/day, 100 API hits/day
- Entry paid tier: €5/yr Lager (25 NZBs, 250 API hits)
- Best For: Rare posts and high-quality articles.
3. NZBFinder (Best Open Registration Indexer)
If you do not want to wait for an invite to DrunkenSlug, NZBFinder is the best alternative. It is an open-registration indexer that focuses heavily on high-quality video and audio posts.
NZBFinder is highly praised for its strict anti-spam filters. It offers a free tier with limited daily API hits, making it a great option to test before upgrading to a premium paid tier. Read our full NZBFinder review for the complete breakdown of its free tier limits.
- Type: Freemium (Open Registration)
- Retention: 3,600+ days
- Free tier: 5 NZBs, 25 API calls
- Entry paid tier: €10/yr Basic (unlimited NZBs, 5,000 API calls)
- Best For: High-quality posts and articles without needing an invite.
4. Easynews (Best All-in-One Alternative)
If dealing with third-party indexers, API keys, and newsreader software sounds too complicated, Easynews is the ultimate solution.
Easynews is a premium Usenet provider that has its own proprietary indexer built directly into a web browser interface. You simply log in, search for what you want, and click download. You do not need to hunt for NZB files or set up third-party software.
- Type: All-in-One Provider & Indexer
- Retention: 6,400+ days
- Data caps: 20GB/mo (Classic) up to 150GB/mo (Big Gig) via the web interface — unlimited via NNTP/newsreader setup
- Best For: Beginners who want a simple web search.
Ready to try it? Get Easynewsi and search Usenet from your browser without a separate indexer.
5. NzbPlanet
NzbPlanet is another highly popular, premium indexer that offers excellent API support. It has a massive database of posts and a very active user base.
Like NZBFinder, NzbPlanet offers a limited free tier, but you will need to upgrade to their VIP tier to unlock full API access for your automated media servers.
- Type: Freemium (Registration Required)
- Retention: 200 days free / 2,500 days paid
- Free tier: 10 NZBs/day, 0 API hits
- Entry paid tier: £10/yr VIP (unlimited NZBs, 5,000 API hits)
- Best For: Automation and large database searches.
6. Usenet-Crawler (Best for Open Registration)
Usenet-Crawler stays open to new users when most comparable indexers require an invite, and it connects cleanly with Sonarr and Radarr through a Newznab-compatible API.
It does have a documented history of downtime and unadvertised free-tier limits, so most data hoarders pair it with a second indexer for redundancy. Read our full Usenet-Crawler review for the details.
- Type: Free (Open Registration)
- Retention: ~2,700 days free / ~3,900 days VIP (community estimate, not officially published)
- Free tier: community reports put real-world API calls around 27/day, well below older published figures
- Note: documented history of extended downtime — pair with a backup indexer
- Best For: Beginners who want a no-invite entry point.
7. DogNZB (Best for Automation Features)
DogNZB crawls 400+ newsgroups with a 15-minute index refresh and stands out for its external watchlist sync and remote queue tools, which pair cleanly with SABnzbd, Sonarr, and Radarr.
Access is invite-only, though registration opens briefly from time to time. Read our full DogNZB review to see how to snag an invite.
- Type: Premium (Invite-Only)
- Retention: 4,800+ days claimed, across 400+ newsgroups
- Free tier: 50 NZBs, 50 API calls
- Entry paid tier: $20/yr VIP (unlimited + watchlist sync + remote queue)
- Best For: Watchlist automation and remote queue management.
8. NinjaCentral (Best for Rare Content)
NinjaCentral has a smaller footprint than the indexers above, but data hoarders consistently point to it for surfacing obscure or rare releases that larger indexers miss entirely.
Read our full NinjaCentral review for a breakdown of its donor tiers and API limits.
- Type: Freemium (Donor Tiers)
- Retention: 500 days (indexer catalog depth)
- Free tier: 20 API calls, 5 NZB grabs/day
- Entry paid tier: ~€11 for a 2-year entry donor tier
- Best For: Finding rare or obscure archival content.
9. NZB.su (Best for Budget Automation)
NZB.su is one of the longer-standing open-registration indexers, with a clean, minimal search interface and VIP pricing that starts at just $9 for 180 days.
Read our full NZB.su review to see how it holds up as a secondary indexer for Sonarr and Radarr.
- Type: Freemium (Open Registration)
- Retention: ~2,000 days across ~50 newsgroups
- Free tier: 5 NZB grabs/day, 0 API hits
- Entry paid tier: $9/180 days VIP (600 NZB grabs/day, 5,000 API hits)
- Best For: A low-cost secondary indexer for automation stacks.
A couple of smaller indexers worth knowing about beyond the nine above: see our AltHUB review and abNZB review for two lesser-known options some archivists run as secondary indexers.
How to Secure Your Downloads
When you download an NZB file from an indexer, your Internet Service Provider (ISP) can see that you visited the indexer’s website. However, the actual downloading of the large binary file happens through your Usenet provider.
To ensure your ISP cannot monitor the posts you are accessing, you must configure your newsreader to use SSL encryption.
For maximum privacy, you should also use a VPN when browsing indexers and accessing posts. You can read our complete guide on how to stay anonymous on Usenet to learn how to properly secure your connection.
More Usenet search guides