diff --git a/src/app/api/search/route.ts b/src/app/api/search/route.ts
index e47c6ae..987a27e 100644
--- a/src/app/api/search/route.ts
+++ b/src/app/api/search/route.ts
@@ -52,6 +52,7 @@ export async function GET(request: Request) {
       label: searchParams.get("label"),
       sort: searchParams.get("sort"),
       linkedPr: searchParams.get("linkedPr"),
+      hacktoberfest: searchParams.get("hacktoberfest"),
       page,
     });
 
diff --git a/src/features/issues/components/issue-card.tsx b/src/features/issues/components/issue-card.tsx
index 7f81f08..c291f41 100644
--- a/src/features/issues/components/issue-card.tsx
+++ b/src/features/issues/components/issue-card.tsx
@@ -25,6 +25,13 @@ export function IssueCard({ issue }: { issue: Issue }) {
             {issue.repo}
           </a>
           <div className="flex flex-wrap items-center gap-2">
+            {issue.hacktoberfest ? (
+              <Badge className="border-sky-500/20 bg-sky-500/10 text-sky-700 dark:text-sky-400">
+                {issue.hacktoberfestSource === "repo-topic"
+                  ? "Hacktoberfest repo"
+                  : "Hacktoberfest label"}
+              </Badge>
+            ) : null}
             {issue.qualityScore >= 70 ? (
               <Badge className="bg-emerald-500/10 text-emerald-700 dark:text-emerald-400 border-emerald-500/20">
                 {issue.qualityScore} quality
diff --git a/src/features/issues/components/issue-finder.tsx b/src/features/issues/components/issue-finder.tsx
index a7bd96e..61d682a 100644
--- a/src/features/issues/components/issue-finder.tsx
+++ b/src/features/issues/components/issue-finder.tsx
@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ import { IssueCard } from "@/features/issues/components/issue-card";
 import { LoadingResults } from "@/features/issues/components/loading-results";
 import { Metric } from "@/features/issues/components/metric";
 import {
+  HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS,
   LABEL_OPTIONS,
   LINKED_PR_OPTIONS,
   SORT_OPTIONS,
@@ -38,6 +39,7 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
   const [label, setLabel] = useState("help-wanted");
   const [sort, setSort] = useState("updated");
   const [linkedPr, setLinkedPr] = useState("any");
+  const [hacktoberfest, setHacktoberfest] = useState("any");
   const [data, setData] = useState<SearchResponse | null>(null);
   const [issues, setIssues] = useState<Issue[]>([]);
   const [page, setPage] = useState(1);
@@ -59,6 +61,12 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
     () => SORT_OPTIONS.find((item) => item.value === sort) ?? SORT_OPTIONS[0],
     [sort],
   );
+  const selectedHacktoberfest = useMemo(
+    () =>
+      HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS.find((item) => item.value === hacktoberfest) ??
+      HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS[0],
+    [hacktoberfest],
+  );
 
   const hasMore = useMemo(() => {
     if (!data) return false;
@@ -84,6 +92,7 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
       label,
       sort,
       linkedPr,
+      hacktoberfest,
     });
 
     try {
@@ -122,6 +131,7 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
       label,
       sort,
       linkedPr,
+      hacktoberfest,
       page: String(nextPage),
     });
 
@@ -176,7 +186,7 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
 
             <form
               onSubmit={searchIssues}
-              className="grid min-w-0 gap-3 rounded-lg border bg-card p-3 shadow-sm sm:grid-cols-2 xl:grid-cols-[1.3fr_1.1fr_1fr_1.1fr_auto]"
+              className="grid min-w-0 gap-3 rounded-lg border bg-card p-3 shadow-sm sm:grid-cols-2 xl:grid-cols-[1.3fr_1.1fr_1fr_1.1fr_1.1fr_auto]"
             >
               <div className="relative min-w-0">
                 <Search className="pointer-events-none absolute left-3 top-1/2 h-4 w-4 -translate-y-1/2 text-muted-foreground" />
@@ -228,6 +238,19 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
                 </SelectContent>
               </Select>
 
+              <Select value={hacktoberfest} onValueChange={setHacktoberfest}>
+                <SelectTrigger className="h-11 w-full" size="lg" aria-label="Hacktoberfest filter">
+                  <SelectValue>{selectedHacktoberfest.label}</SelectValue>
+                </SelectTrigger>
+                <SelectContent>
+                  {HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS.map((option) => (
+                    <SelectItem key={option.value} value={option.value}>
+                      {option.label}
+                    </SelectItem>
+                  ))}
+                </SelectContent>
+              </Select>
+
               <Button
                 type="submit"
                 className="h-11 w-full gap-2 sm:col-span-2 xl:col-span-1"
@@ -251,6 +274,7 @@ export function IssueFinder() {
               <Metric label="Label" value={selectedLabel.label} />
               <Metric label="Sort" value={sort === "created" ? "newest" : sort} />
               <Metric label="Linked PR" value={selectedLinkedPr.label.replace("Linked PR: ", "")} />
+              <Metric label="Hacktoberfest" value={selectedHacktoberfest.label} />
               <Metric label="Ranked" value={data ? compactNumber(data.candidateCount) : "-"} />
               <Metric label="Matches" value={data ? compactNumber(data.totalCount) : "-"} />
               <Metric
diff --git a/src/features/issues/data/search-options.ts b/src/features/issues/data/search-options.ts
index 62b27ab..9400009 100644
--- a/src/features/issues/data/search-options.ts
+++ b/src/features/issues/data/search-options.ts
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-import { Bug, Code2, FileText, Sparkles, Tags, Users } from "lucide-react";
+import { Bug, CalendarDays, Code2, FileText, Sparkles, Tags, Users } from "lucide-react";
 
 export const LABEL_OPTIONS = [
   { value: "help-wanted", label: "help wanted", icon: Tags },
   { value: "good-first-issue", label: "good first issue", icon: Sparkles },
   { value: "up-for-grabs", label: "up-for-grabs", icon: Users },
   { value: "first-timers-only", label: "first-timers-only", icon: Code2 },
+  { value: "hacktoberfest", label: "hacktoberfest", icon: CalendarDays },
   { value: "bug", label: "bug", icon: Bug },
   { value: "documentation", label: "documentation", icon: FileText },
 ];
@@ -24,6 +25,7 @@ export const GITHUB_LABELS: Record<string, string> = {
   "good first issue": "good first issue",
   "up-for-grabs": "up-for-grabs",
   "first-timers-only": "first-timers-only",
+  hacktoberfest: "hacktoberfest",
   bug: "bug",
   documentation: "documentation",
 };
@@ -69,3 +71,12 @@ export const LINKED_PR_OPTIONS = [
 export const LINKED_PR_FILTERS = new Set(
   LINKED_PR_OPTIONS.map((option) => option.value),
 );
+
+export const HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS = [
+  { value: "any", label: "All issues" },
+  { value: "only", label: "Hacktoberfest ready" },
+];
+
+export const HACKTOBERFEST_FILTERS = new Set(
+  HACKTOBERFEST_OPTIONS.map((option) => option.value),
+);
diff --git a/src/features/issues/server/github-search.ts b/src/features/issues/server/github-search.ts
index a2d0e59..05901d6 100644
--- a/src/features/issues/server/github-search.ts
+++ b/src/features/issues/server/github-search.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 import {
   GITHUB_LABELS,
   GITHUB_SORTS,
+  HACKTOBERFEST_FILTERS,
   LINKED_PR_FILTERS,
   LANGUAGE_ALIASES,
 } from "@/features/issues/data/search-options";
@@ -102,7 +103,28 @@ function countLinkedPullRequests(events: GitHubTimelineEvent[]) {
   return linkedPullRequests.size;
 }
 
-function scoreIssue(issue: GitHubIssue, repo?: GitHubRepo, helpStatus?: IssueStatus) {
+function getHacktoberfestSource(issue: GitHubIssue, repo?: GitHubRepo) {
+  const hasRepoTopic = repo?.topics?.some(
+    (topic) => normalize(topic) === "hacktoberfest",
+  );
+
+  if (hasRepoTopic) {
+    return "repo-topic" as const;
+  }
+
+  const hasIssueLabel = issue.labels.some((label) =>
+    normalize(label.name).includes("hacktoberfest"),
+  );
+
+  return hasIssueLabel ? ("issue-label" as const) : null;
+}
+
+function scoreIssue(
+  issue: GitHubIssue,
+  repo?: GitHubRepo,
+  helpStatus?: IssueStatus,
+  hacktoberfestReady = false,
+) {
   const ageDays =
     (Date.now() - new Date(issue.updated_at).getTime()) / (1000 * 60 * 60 * 24);
   const recencyScore = Math.max(0, 35 - ageDays * 1.5);
@@ -110,8 +132,16 @@ function scoreIssue(issue: GitHubIssue, repo?: GitHubRepo, helpStatus?: IssueSta
   const labelScore = Math.min(20, issue.labels.length * 4);
   const commentScore = Math.max(0, 15 - issue.comments * 1.5);
   const assignmentScore = issue.assignee || issue.assignees?.length ? 0 : 5;
-
-  let score = Math.round(recencyScore + starScore + labelScore + commentScore + assignmentScore);
+  const hacktoberfestScore = hacktoberfestReady ? 8 : 0;
+
+  let score = Math.round(
+    recencyScore +
+      starScore +
+      labelScore +
+      commentScore +
+      assignmentScore +
+      hacktoberfestScore,
+  );
 
   if (helpStatus === "claimed") {
     score = Math.max(0, score - 25);
@@ -158,17 +188,22 @@ export async function searchGitHubIssues({
   label: rawLabel,
   sort: rawSort,
   linkedPr: rawLinkedPr,
+  hacktoberfest: rawHacktoberfest,
   page = 1,
 }: {
   tech: string;
   label: string | null;
   sort: string | null;
   linkedPr: string | null;
+  hacktoberfest?: string | null;
   page?: number;
 }): Promise<SearchResponse> {
   const label = GITHUB_LABELS[normalize(rawLabel)] ?? "help wanted";
   const sort = GITHUB_SORTS.has(rawSort ?? "") ? rawSort! : "updated";
   const linkedPr = LINKED_PR_FILTERS.has(rawLinkedPr ?? "") ? rawLinkedPr! : "any";
+  const hacktoberfest = HACKTOBERFEST_FILTERS.has(rawHacktoberfest ?? "")
+    ? rawHacktoberfest!
+    : "any";
   const queryParts = [
     "is:issue",
     "is:open",
@@ -200,7 +235,8 @@ export async function searchGitHubIssues({
   const totalCount = searchResults[0]?.data.total_count ?? 0;
   const rateLimitRemaining = searchResults.at(-1)?.rateLimitRemaining ?? null;
   const candidateIssues = dedupeIssues(searchResults.flatMap((result) => result.data.items));
-  const repoNames = token
+  const shouldFetchRepos = Boolean(token) || hacktoberfest === "only";
+  const repoNames = shouldFetchRepos
     ? Array.from(
         new Set(candidateIssues.map((item) => getRepoFullName(item.repository_url))),
       )
@@ -273,6 +309,7 @@ export async function searchGitHubIssues({
       if (assigned) {
         helpStatus = "claimed";
       }
+      const hacktoberfestSource = getHacktoberfestSource(issue, repo);
 
       return {
         id: issue.html_url,
@@ -287,10 +324,12 @@ export async function searchGitHubIssues({
         createdAt: issue.created_at,
         assigned,
         linkedPrCount: null,
+        hacktoberfest: Boolean(hacktoberfestSource),
+        hacktoberfestSource,
         helpStatus,
-        qualityScore: scoreIssue(issue, repo, helpStatus),
+        qualityScore: scoreIssue(issue, repo, helpStatus, Boolean(hacktoberfestSource)),
       };
-    }),
+    }).filter((issue) => hacktoberfest !== "only" || issue.hacktoberfest),
   );
   const start = (page - 1) * PAGE_SIZE;
   const selectedIssues = rankedIssues.slice(start, start + PAGE_SIZE);
diff --git a/src/features/issues/types/search.ts b/src/features/issues/types/search.ts
index 1787dd1..cbe4340 100644
--- a/src/features/issues/types/search.ts
+++ b/src/features/issues/types/search.ts
@@ -18,6 +18,8 @@ export type Issue = {
   createdAt: string;
   assigned: boolean;
   linkedPrCount: number | null;
+  hacktoberfest: boolean;
+  hacktoberfestSource: "repo-topic" | "issue-label" | null;
   qualityScore: number;
   helpStatus?: IssueStatus;
 };
@@ -61,6 +63,7 @@ export type GitHubRepo = {
   html_url: string;
   stargazers_count: number;
   archived: boolean;
+  topics?: string[];
 };
 
 export type GitHubTimelineEvent = {
diff --git a/tests/app/api/search/route.test.ts b/tests/app/api/search/route.test.ts
index 4bceae3..799fcc8 100644
--- a/tests/app/api/search/route.test.ts
+++ b/tests/app/api/search/route.test.ts
@@ -40,7 +40,7 @@ describe("GET /api/search", () => {
 
     const response = await GET(
       new Request(
-        "http://localhost/api/search?tech=React&label=good-first-issue&sort=created&linkedPr=yes",
+        "http://localhost/api/search?tech=React&label=good-first-issue&sort=created&linkedPr=yes&hacktoberfest=only",
       ),
     );
 
@@ -50,6 +50,7 @@ describe("GET /api/search", () => {
       label: "good-first-issue",
       sort: "created",
       linkedPr: "yes",
+      hacktoberfest: "only",
       page: 1,
     });
   });
diff --git a/tests/features/issues/lib/ranking.test.ts b/tests/features/issues/lib/ranking.test.ts
index fff3d2a..af491c8 100644
--- a/tests/features/issues/lib/ranking.test.ts
+++ b/tests/features/issues/lib/ranking.test.ts
@@ -16,6 +16,8 @@ function issue(overrides: Partial<Issue>): Issue {
     createdAt: "2026-06-19T10:00:00.000Z",
     assigned: false,
     linkedPrCount: 0,
+    hacktoberfest: false,
+    hacktoberfestSource: null,
     qualityScore: 50,
     helpStatus: "open",
     ...overrides,
diff --git a/tests/features/issues/server/github-search.test.ts b/tests/features/issues/server/github-search.test.ts
index a17a5b5..bef49c5 100644
--- a/tests/features/issues/server/github-search.test.ts
+++ b/tests/features/issues/server/github-search.test.ts
@@ -168,6 +168,88 @@ describe("searchGitHubIssues", () => {
     expect(searchUrl.searchParams.get("sort")).toBe("updated");
   });
 
+  it("filters Hacktoberfest-ready issues by repo topic or issue label", async () => {
+    const topicIssue = githubIssue({
+      html_url: "https://github.com/acme/hacktober/issues/1",
+      repository_url: "https://api.github.com/repos/acme/hacktober",
+      labels: [{ name: "help wanted" }],
+    });
+    const labelIssue = githubIssue({
+      html_url: "https://github.com/acme/labeled/issues/2",
+      repository_url: "https://api.github.com/repos/acme/labeled",
+      labels: [{ name: "help wanted" }, { name: "Hacktoberfest" }],
+    });
+    const plainIssue = githubIssue({
+      html_url: "https://github.com/acme/plain/issues/3",
+      repository_url: "https://api.github.com/repos/acme/plain",
+      labels: [{ name: "help wanted" }],
+    });
+    const fetchMock = vi.fn();
+    searchPageResponses([topicIssue, labelIssue, plainIssue], 3).forEach((response) => {
+      fetchMock.mockResolvedValueOnce(response);
+    });
+    fetchMock
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        jsonResponse({
+          full_name: "acme/hacktober",
+          html_url: "https://github.com/acme/hacktober",
+          stargazers_count: 100,
+          topics: ["hacktoberfest"],
+        }),
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        jsonResponse({
+          full_name: "acme/labeled",
+          html_url: "https://github.com/acme/labeled",
+          stargazers_count: 100,
+          topics: [],
+        }),
+      )
+      .mockResolvedValueOnce(
+        jsonResponse({
+          full_name: "acme/plain",
+          html_url: "https://github.com/acme/plain",
+          stargazers_count: 100,
+          topics: [],
+        }),
+      );
+
+    vi.stubGlobal("fetch", fetchMock);
+
+    const result = await searchGitHubIssues({
+      tech: "Java",
+      label: "help-wanted",
+      sort: "updated",
+      linkedPr: "any",
+      hacktoberfest: "only",
+    });
+
+    const searchUrl = new URL(fetchMock.mock.calls[0][0] as string);
+    expect(searchUrl.searchParams.get("q")).toBe(
+      'is:issue is:open archived:false language:Java label:"help wanted"',
+    );
+    expect(result.candidateCount).toBe(2);
+    expect(result.issues).toEqual(
+      expect.arrayContaining([
+        expect.objectContaining({
+          id: "https://github.com/acme/hacktober/issues/1",
+          hacktoberfest: true,
+          hacktoberfestSource: "repo-topic",
+        }),
+        expect.objectContaining({
+          id: "https://github.com/acme/labeled/issues/2",
+          hacktoberfest: true,
+          hacktoberfestSource: "issue-label",
+        }),
+      ]),
+    );
+    expect(result.issues).not.toEqual(
+      expect.arrayContaining([
+        expect.objectContaining({ id: "https://github.com/acme/plain/issues/3" }),
+      ]),
+    );
+  });
+
   it("returns the highest scored candidates on the first result page", async () => {
     const lowerScoreIssue = githubIssue({
       html_url: "https://github.com/acme/widgets/issues/1",