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9 best Twitter alternatives
Since Elon Musk acquired Twitter, people are turning to alternatives -- such as Mastodon and WT.Social -- for business connections, news and industry information.
X, formerly known as Twitter, has been dominating headlines since 2022 with numerous stories about its loss of advertisers; personnel changes; and accusations of fake posts, fake accounts and perceived right-leaning bias. And this controversy has prompted people to explore other social media platforms.
Musk fired top executives and changed the platform's verification process with X Premium, leading to the creation of fake accounts instead of their intended prevention. In November 2022, a user opened a fake Eli Lilly account with the blue check mark and tweeted insulin shots were now free, which did not check out.
As people continue to watch and see what happens to X, there are other reliable ways to get news -- including checking reliable news websites such as the Associated Press, BBC, CBS, CNN and Reuters. People can also enable an RSS feed on news websites by clicking on the RSS icon to receive the latest news, or download an RSS reader such as Feedly to choose updates from selected sources.
To create connections, users are looking for other ways to promote their businesses on social media. Some social media platforms have a reputation as being biased -- such as Parler, Gab and Truth Social -- and don't monitor users' posted information, attributing it to free speech. However, there are other social media options to create business connections and reach new consumers.
1. Bluesky
Bluesky is similar to X, as users can share photo updates and short texts or reply and share other people’s posts.
Bluesky is different from other social media apps because it is a decentralized system, which means people can build their own communities and apps within it. Each user is assigned their own domain name with their handles -- a system implemented to prevent phishing and other forms of cyberattacks. There is no individual to create rules for the entire social media platform.
Previously available by invitation only, Bluesky became open to everyone Feb. 6, 2024. After the November 2024 U.S. election, the number of Bluesky users skyrocketed, and as of Nov. 19, there are more than 20 million users, according to Bluesky’s user count.
2. CounterSocial
CounterSocial is a news network that prides itself on having no ads, trolls, fake news or abuse on their platform. This social media platform is not available everywhere, as it is blocked in countries such as China, Iran and Russia.
CounterSocial offers news, livestreaming and the ability to create communities. Users determine the content on CounterSocial, as they can create columns on its user interface to sort posts by topics, hashtags and accounts. On top of being able to share, like and comment on posts, users can video chat with others via the app.
3. Discord
Discord might not look like X, as it is not a single server, but this platform can help users create social and professional circles to enable conversations and stay up to date on the latest news. Discord started as a method for people to talk while playing video games and has expanded to more topic areas.
There are no public spaces on Discord, but there are topic-based servers and channels for members to join and communicate. People can share music and text, as well as participate in video or voice calls within these servers. Channels are divided into voice or text rooms for communication. Discord servers can be public or private, requiring registered users to have an invitation link to join.
4. LinkedIn
LinkedIn is known for being a professional networking site, but the platform has added new social media features in the past couple of years, including streaming and a news feed.
While the platform mostly seeks to help users search and apply for job openings as well as develop new job skills through programs such as LinkedIn Learning, they can also post videos, links, updates and pictures much like they can on X. Unlike X, however, LinkedIn has much stricter guidelines for what can and cannot be posted, as it is designed to connect professionals and jobseekers.
After LinkedIn had a problem with fake accounts, Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in 2016 and worked to delete them through AI and machine-learning monitoring. LinkedIn employees also manually review profiles to remove fake accounts, according to a report by the company.
5. Mastodon
Mastodon, much like Bluesky, is a decentralized platform, though unlike Bluesky, there are no ads because Mastodon is not owned by one company, making its money through crowdfunding. Mastodon's platform lets users create and host their own communities through open source software and links together multiple servers, which can also be considered their own social networks. Each group governs its own server.
Similar to Discord, users search for servers that have people with similar interests. Users can share information from the server to help others find their server if they are not a part of it. Users can also change the server they belong to if they find a better match.
6. Threads
Meta’s Threads app -- released July 6, 2023 -- offers similar features to X. Users are required to have an Instagram account, and those usernames will transfer to Threads. Users can follow accounts and like, reply, direct message and share posts.
Threads posts can be shown to anyone, followers or by tagging someone with an "@" mention. This conversation app lets Instagram users follow the same accounts on Threads but gives more options for communicating. Unfortunately this app has fallen victim to bots and engagement bait, but it is still useful for reaching large audiences and the ability to share media carousels.
Unlike X, which encourages paid verification, Threads is a completely free app.
7. Reddit
Reddit might not be a new alternative, but it offers a large collection of forums on various topics. These small community forums are known as subreddits and can be used to share and comment. Subreddits cover a variety of topics including hobbies, entertainment, health, news and business.
Registered users can also vote on comments to help them gain or lose momentum. Anyone can read the information on Reddit, but to comment, interact or create a subreddit, they need to register.
Reddit has a front page dividing content into different tabs. The default tab is called Hot, which shows the submissions with the highest scores -- determined by registered users' upvotes and downvotes. Users can upvote -- or press the up arrow -- if they think a post positively contributes to the community. Users can also select the down arrow on posts they find irrelevant and unhelpful.
Registered users can see the Best tab, which also features the most-upvoted posts from subreddits. Reddit also factors in the user's viewed subreddits to make it more personalized for those who register on the site. The front page also features submissions based on algorithms.
Other tabs include Rising for new posts with mass upvotes; and Controversial, which determines what posts have conflicting opinions based on the relative number of downvotes and upvotes.
8. TikTok
TikTok now offers more than posting short-form videos. Along with the addition of long-form content up to 10 minutes long, users can now post text-only content by selecting text from the three post options of photo, video and text on the camera page.
Users have taken advantage of text post sharing to express their creativity such as sharing poems, recipes, thoughts or other written content. Users can also tag a location and enable comments to interact with other users.
Users can also add stickers, background colors and sound to customize content. They can tag other accounts in the text posts and add hashtags to create trending posts.
Similar to other TikTok posts, users can save text drafts and store them to post later or delete them.
9. Tumblr
Tumblr, much like Reddit, is not new to the social media world, but is still a relevant platform with more than 135 million active users.
Tumblr tracks trending topics like X by using blogs to share information, with a Staff Picks section to highlight topics. Tumblr features microblogging and hybrid blogging for short posts, and most posts contain more visual content than words. Users can leave notes on a post, similar to comments. People can also like, share and repost content on Tumblr.
There is advertising on Tumblr; however, users can pay a monthly or yearly fee to go ad-free. There are additional features such as premium designs and custom domains also available for a fee.
