# Early access

Early access is a pre-release stage in which a limited group, often the first people on a product's waitlist, can use the product before it is generally available. The group gets a head start, and the founder gets feedback, word of mouth or an early commitment in return.

Canonical page: https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/early-access. Updated 2026-10-15.

## How early access works

You choose a group, let them in before everyone else, and learn from how they use the product. The product may still be rough, and the people in the group know that. In return for the head start they give feedback, tell their friends, or sometimes pay early.

The common ways to choose who gets in first:

- **Line order.** The earliest signups, or the top of a points-ranked line.
- **Referrals.** Early access as one of your [milestone rewards](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/milestone-rewards).
- **Fit.** People whose answers to a signup question match your target customer.
- **By hand.** People you know, investors, or anyone who asked well.

## Early access, beta and soft launch

Early access answers "who gets in first?" A [beta launch](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/beta-launch) answers "does it work?", and a [soft launch](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/soft-launch) answers "is it ready for more people?" The soft launch page sets the three side by side. In practice, one early access round is often also a private beta, and a series of rounds is a soft launch.

## Invite codes

Most early access runs on invite codes or links. Two kinds are common:

| | Personal code | Shared code |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Who can use it | One person | Anyone who has it |
| How many times | Once | Many times, up to a limit if you set one |
| Good for | Controlled rounds from a waitlist | A community, a partner or an event |
| Risk | Little, if it is tied to the person's address | It spreads further than you meant |

Personal codes that expire after a couple of weeks also tell you who is still interested, and free up places for the next person in line.

## Opening the doors in rounds

1. Invite a small first group and watch what happens.
2. Remind people who were invited but haven't joined.
3. Ask the people who joined what they think, and fix what they find.
4. Invite the next group, a little larger, and repeat.
5. Tell everyone still waiting that the doors are opening and when their turn is likely.

## Early access in LaunchList

[Early access invites](https://getlaunchlist.com/features/early-access) let you invite one person from their record, select a group on Signups, such as everyone who matches a filter or a segment, or let LaunchList pick the next people in line: subscribed people still on the waitlist, the ones with the most referrals first, then in the order they signed up. Each person gets a code of their own that works once and only with the address it was sent to. Personal codes expire after 14 days unless you set a different window, or none.

The invite email links to the person's status page, where the code waits beside Claim access. Claim access takes them to your signup page with the code attached, or your product checks the code with one call to the [API](https://getlaunchlist.com/features/api-webhooks). They then move to Joined. Your Invites list follows every code from sent to used and tells you when an invite email did not arrive, the ready-made invite reminder follows up with anyone who hasn't joined, and Analytics shows how each batch did.

Further reading: [how to convert your waitlist to paying customers](https://getlaunchlist.com/blog/convert-waitlist-to-paying-customers).

## Frequently asked questions

### Is early access the same as a beta?

They overlap but stress different things. A beta is about testing a product that isn't finished. Early access is about getting in before everyone else, often as a reward. The same release can be both.

### How do you give waitlist members early access?

Pick who goes first, by place in line, by referral count, by answers to a signup question, or by hand, and send each of them a personal invite. A code or link per person keeps access to the people you chose and shows you who actually got in.

### Should early access be a reward for referrals?

It is one of the best rewards a waitlist can offer, because it costs nothing and attracts people who want the product. Keep some places for people chosen for fit, such as your target customers, so the first group is not only your most social members.

### What is an early access invite code?

A code that lets one person past the waitlist and into the product. A personal code works for one person once, which stops it being shared around. A shared code, such as one for a community, lets many people in with the same code.

## Related terms

- [Beta launch](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/beta-launch.md)
- [Soft launch](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/soft-launch.md)
- [Milestone rewards](https://getlaunchlist.com/glossary/milestone-rewards.md)