A beginner’s guide to Mastodon, the open source Twitter alternative

Unless if you’re truly successful the cognize astir nascent platforms, you astir apt didn’t cognize what Mastodon was until Elon Musk bought Twitter and renamed it X. In the archetypal aftermath of the acquisition, arsenic users fretted implicit what direction Twitter would take, millions of users hopped implicit to Mastodon, a chap microblogging site. As clip went on, users would besides effort retired Bluesky, oregon Instagram’s Threads app — but due to the fact that Mastodon was founded successful 2016, it had years to make its ain individuality arsenic much than conscionable an alternate Twitter.

What is Mastodon?

Mastodon was founded successful 2016 by German bundle developer Eugen Rochko. Unlike Twitter, Facebook, Reddit oregon immoderate different fashionable societal media site, Mastodon is simply a nonprofit, meaning that, ideally, its extremity is to payment the public, alternatively than shareholders.

Mastodon mightiness look similar a Twitter clone astatine archetypal glance, but the underlying strategy down the microblogging level is acold much complex. The work is decentralized (no, not successful a blockchain way), describing itself arsenic a “federated web which operates successful a akin mode to email.”

When you archetypal make your account, you take a server — akin to however you take to unfastened an email relationship connected Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo oregon wherever — which generates your profile’s address. So, for example, if you motion up for Mastodon via the clime justness server, past your code volition beryllium @[your username]@climatejustice.social. But nary substance which server you motion up with, you volition beryllium capable to pass with users from immoderate different server, conscionable similar however Gmail users email Hotmail users and vice versa. However, immoderate servers mightiness person blocked different servers (perhaps if it’s an unsavory group), which would mean you can’t pass with anyone from the blocked server.

The Mastodon lingo

Mastodon users mostly notation to idiosyncratic communities arsenic “instances” oregon servers. These Mastodon servers tin beryllium tally by individuals, groups oregon organizations that each person their ain acceptable of rules regarding however users tin motion up, arsenic good arsenic their ain moderation policies. Some servers fto anyone join, portion others are invite-only oregon necessitate support by an admin. For example, a server for nonrecreational scientists asks applicants to see a nexus to their probe to show that they are, indeed, professionals.

Choosing which server to registry your relationship with mightiness look stressful, but it’s imaginable to determination your relationship later, truthful don’t worry. Plus, you tin travel radical careless of which server they’re on.

You whitethorn besides perceive Mastodon described arsenic portion of the “Fediverse,” oregon an interconnected web of assorted societal media services. You cognize however having a Twitter relationship doesn’t mean you tin usage that relationship connected Instagram? Through the Fediverse, your azygous Mastodon relationship besides grants you entree to different decentralized societal networks, if that interests you.

You whitethorn ocassionally spot Mastodon’s equivalent of tweets being referred to arsenic “toots,” but this is fading retired of favour (since it’s benignant of silly!). Many radical are conscionable calling them “posts” these days, but “toot” is often recovered referenced successful older third-party clients.

Mastodon supports a fig of Twitter conventions similar replies, retweets, favorites, bookmarks and hashtags. For a while, Mastodon made an intentional choice not to marque a quote tweet-like feature, since it tin promote dogpiling criticism, but the level relented and rolled retired that diagnostic successful 2025.

In addition, Mastodon lists enactment somewhat otherwise from Twitter arsenic you tin lone adhd radical to a database if you’re already pursuing them. And Direct messages connected Mastodon are conscionable @username posts, not backstage messages coming to a DM inbox — conscionable retrieve to alteration the visibility settings if you privation that connection to enactment betwixt the 2 of you.

Image Credits: Fediverse (opens successful a caller window)Image Credits:Fediverse (opens successful a caller window)

What does it mean that Mastodon is unfastened source?

Anyone tin download, modify and instal Mastodon connected their ain server — plus, the developers of the level don’t ain the copyright.

That doesn’t mean that you tin drawback Mastodon’s codification without acknowledging the source, though. Former President Donald Trump’s societal media platform, Truth Social, initially launched with Mastodon code and passed it disconnected arsenic if it were archetypal software. Mastodon did not instrumentality kindly to that.

How bash you make a Mastodon account?

When you get connected the Mastodon website, you tin click a fastener called “create account,” which directs you to a leafage listing servers to take from. You tin filter these by assorted factors, similar region, language, topic, sign-up velocity and more. There, find a server that piques your involvement and articulation — if it’s a server that requires you to beryllium approved, you mightiness request to hold a bit. From there, you tin commencement uncovering radical to follow, careless of whether they’re registered via your aforesaid server.

In effort to minimize disorder connected caller users picking a server, Mastodon made changes amid the “Twitter exodus” truthful that it would easier to make an account. Now, erstwhile you spell to motion up, it volition springiness an casual enactment to make an relationship connected mastodon.social alternatively of choosing a server.

How bash you determine which Mastodon server to join?

Mastodon’s website has helpful resources — but it’s inactive a spot overwhelming and challenging to find a location basal that aligns with your interests. Ask friends who are already connected Mastodon if they person suggestions! Or conscionable articulation determination random, due to the fact that you tin ever change your server affiliation later erstwhile you get into the plaything of things.

Can you speech to radical connected different Mastodon servers too your own?

Yes, you tin travel radical extracurricular of your section server and reply to their posts. However, erstwhile you privation to travel idiosyncratic connected a antithetic server, you person to participate their username successful the hunt container connected your server to find them first, past travel them. You can’t conscionable spell to their illustration and click the travel fastener arsenic you would connected Twitter.

What’s the quality betwixt the Home, Local and Federated timelines?

Your Home timeline shows you posts from radical that you follow, akin to Twitter. The Local timeline shows posts from each users successful your server, portion the Federated timeline shows you each nationalist posts from users that radical successful your server follow. (Hint: You tin crook connected “Slow Mode” successful Preferences –> Appearance to fell timeline updates down a click if things are coming astatine you excessively fast!)

What is Mastodon’s moderation policy?

Individual server admins acceptable their ain moderation policies, truthful you should work the argumentation connected the server you take to guarantee it matches up with your values.

What are the drawbacks of Mastodon erstwhile compared with Twitter/X?

Mastodon’s idiosyncratic basal is simply a fraction of a percent of the size of Twitter’s idiosyncratic base. It’s besides acold little intuitive to navigate, since it hasn’t been designed for a monolithic planetary assemblage similar Twitter. That could alteration successful clip arsenic much developers articulation the task successful the aftermath of the Twitter takeover.

What are the benefits of Mastodon compared with Twitter/X?

Well, for 1 thing, Mastodon is not owned by Elon Musk… however, it’s going to beryllium hard successful the near-term for Mastodon to replicate the aforesaid “watercooler of the world” vibe that Twitter was defined by. Some users mightiness similar Mastodon to X, though, arsenic it’s much customizable by nature. Unlike X, idiosyncratic communities person antithetic contented guidelines, which supply a assortment of antithetic idiosyncratic experiences. And portion the idiosyncratic basal connected Mastodon is smaller, this tin pb to much idiosyncratic and nonstop conversations, astatine times, compared with tweeting into the void, truthful to speak.

Is Mastodon safer than Twitter?

Mastodon is what you marque of it. Due to its decentralized nature, if you are looking for a much controlled online experience, you tin articulation a server with stricter guardrails against harassment. Some Mastodon features are besides built with mitigating harassment successful mind. For example, you tin lone hunt by hashtag, not by words that look successful a toot. So if you privation your station to beryllium discoverable, you tin tag it — if you’d alternatively bounds the audience, nary 1 tin find your tweet astir the Red Sox by simply searching “red sox” if you haven’t tagged it.

However, a text-based hunt tin aboveground the posts you’ve written, favorited, boosted oregon person been mentioned in, which tin beryllium useful.

Can I station images and video?

As noted above, Mastodon supports galore Twitter conventions, but its enactment for media is much limited. Where Twitter supports a assortment of media and different information appended to tweets, including its audio-only societal “Spaces,” positive photos, video, GIFs, polls, precise determination and experimental “Status” tags, Mastodon simply supports images, videos, audio and polls.

You can adhd up to 4 images to a post, up to 8 megabytes successful size. Video and audio tin beryllium immoderate length, but with a record size bounds of 40 megabytes.

Can I station privately to friends?

Mastodon offers the quality to acceptable your post’s privateness astatine the clip of writing. Posts tin beryllium acceptable to beryllium nationalist to beryllium disposable by all; unlisted to marque them nationalist but opted retired of find features; lone disposable to your followers; oregon lone disposable to those users you’ve mentioned.

Can I get verified connected Mastodon?

No. There’s nary cosmopolitan verification strategy similar connected Twitter. Some servers whitethorn vet their idiosyncratic sign-ups and you tin self-verify, successful a way, by adding links to your Mastodon illustration that person a circumstantial property (rel=”me”) successful bid to beryllium you are who you accidental you are.

Some servers are having amusive with the thought of verification successful a less-than-official fashion. For example, the mstdn.social server lets you adhd blue-and-white checkmarks and different emoji to your show sanction if you’d like, which marque you look verified, adjacent though these don’t mean anything. (Sort of similar Twitter’s new verification system! But for free!)

Image Credits: @stux@mstdn.social (opens successful a caller window)Image Credits:mastodon.social/@stux (opens successful a caller window)

Is Mastodon present to stay?

As of summertime 2025, Mastodon has nether 1 cardinal monthly progressive users, and astir 10 cardinal registered users — this is to say, Mastodon is overmuch smaller than X which had an estimated 132 cardinal regular progressive users. Still, not each societal networks are created equal, and you mightiness find that you similar tooting astir TTRPGs successful a dedicated server, arsenic opposed to tweeting into a realm of madness. Or, you mightiness find that this decentralized strategy is confusing, and you’ll conscionable thrust retired the Muskening connected X, oregon power to Bluesky, Threads, oregon thing other entirely. Choose your ain adventure!

I’m not definite I privation to permission X. Can I cross-post from X to Mastodon?

Yes, this is imaginable by mode of third-party tools. These necessitate you to authorize your relationship with Twitter and Mastodon and acceptable up parameters. We’ve had occurrence with Moa Party, which allows you to get circumstantial arsenic to which tweets oregon retweets are cross-posted. But different tools are available, including Mastodon Twitter Crossposter, which is besides disposable present connected GitHub.

Can I find my Twitter friends connected Mastodon?

Yes, this is besides imaginable with third-party tools. We’ve seen galore Mastodon users trying retired tools similar Fedifinder, Twitodon and Debirdify, for example.

Does Mastodon enactment with Bluesky and Threads?

It’s a nary for Bluesky — not unless Bluesky chooses to follow the ActivityPub protocol Mastodon uses. But Bluesky is not readying to integrate with ActivityPub, having decided to physique its own networking protocol. There is immoderate skepticism among the developer and unfastened root assemblage astir whether oregon not Bluesky’s determination to spell its ain mode is truly astir its ain protocol’s advantages oregon if it’s much astir producing a spec it could yet control.

Threads, however, supports ActivityPub. Users connected Threads tin take to stock their posts with different Activity Pub servers, including Mastodon.