Is the grass greener on the opposite facet? We’re unsure, however the sky is most actually bluer. It’s been over two years since Elon Musk bought Twitter, now X, main individuals to arrange store on different platforms. Mastodon, Submit, Pebble (two of which have already shuttered operations) and Spill have been introduced as potential replacements, however few except for Meta’s Threads have achieved the pace of progress Bluesky has reached.
As of February 2025, Bluesky has surpassed 30 million customers. Its progress stems from a number of coverage adjustments at X, together with a closely criticized change to the block function and permitting third get together corporations to prepare their AI on customers’ posts, which helped the app soar to the prime of the U.S. App Retailer. Bluesky additionally noticed a giant enhance following the outcomes of the 2024 U.S. presidential election (which additionally contributed to an X exodus by Taylor Swift followers). However whereas the quantity is promising, the expansion has slowed — and the community has loads of catching as much as do to compete with Threads’ 275 million month-to-month energetic customers.
Beneath, we’ve compiled the solutions to a number of the most typical questions customers have about Bluesky. And should you’ve made the change, you may comply with TechCrunch right here in addition to our staff with our Starter Pack.
What’s Bluesky?
Bluesky is a decentralized social app conceptualized by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and developed in parallel with Twitter. The social community has a Twitter-like person interface with algorithmic selection, a federated design and community-specific moderation.
Bluesky is utilizing an open supply framework constructed in-house, the AT Protocol, that means individuals exterior of the corporate have transparency into how it’s constructed and what’s being developed.
Dorsey launched the Bluesky undertaking again in 2019 whereas he was nonetheless Twitter CEO. On the time, he mentioned Twitter can be funding a “small independent team of up to five open source architects, engineers, and designers,” charged with constructing a decentralized normal for social media, with the unique objective that Twitter would undertake this normal itself. However that was earlier than Elon Musk purchased the platform, so Bluesky is totally divorced from X.
As of Could 2024, Dorsey is not on Bluesky’s board. Bluesky is now an impartial public profit company led by CEO Jay Graber.
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How do you utilize Bluesky?
Upon signing up, customers can create a deal with which is then represented as @username.bsky.social in addition to a show identify that seems extra distinguished in daring textual content. For those who’re so inclined, you may flip a website identify that you just personal into your username — so, for instance, I’m recognized on Bluesky as @amanda.omg.lol.
The app itself capabilities very like X, the place you may click on a plus button to create a publish of 256 characters, which may additionally embrace photographs. Posts themselves will be replied to, retweeted, favored and, from a three-dot menu, reported, shared through the iOS Share Sheet to different apps, or copied as textual content.
You’ll be able to seek for and comply with different people, then view their updates in your “Home” timeline. Beforehand, the Bluesky app would function in style posts in a “What’s Hot” feed. That feed has since been changed with an algorithmic and personalised “Discover” feed that includes extra than simply trending content material.
For brand new customers, Bluesky launched a “Starter Pack” function, which creates a curated record of individuals and customized feeds to comply with to be able to discover fascinating content material proper out of the gate. You will discover TechCrunch’s Starter Pack proper right here.
Person profiles include the identical type of options you’d anticipate: a profile pic, background, bio, metrics and the way many individuals they’re following. Profile feeds are divided into two sections, like X: posts and posts & replies. In January 2025, Bluesky additionally added a brand new video tab to person profiles.
There may be additionally a “Discover” tab within the backside heart of the app’s navigation, which provides extra “who to follow” strategies and a operating feed of not too long ago posted Bluesky updates. In January 2025, Bluesky additionally launched a vertical video feed to compete with TikTok.
We’ve additionally put collectively a useful information on learn how to use Bluesky right here.
Who’s on Bluesky?
By the start of July 2023, when Instagram’s Threads launched, Bluesky topped 1,000,000 downloads throughout iOS and Android. Notable figures like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Mark Cuban, Quinta Brunson, Dril, Bizarre Al Yankovic, Guillermo del Toro, Barbra Streisand, and Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva have migrated to Bluesky.
Bluesky can be house to information organizations like Bloomberg, The Washington Submit, and naturally, TechCrunch! Since August 2024, Bluesky can be now permitting heads of state to enroll and be a part of the platform for the primary time.
In 2025, some distinguished U.S. political figures arrange accounts on the platform, like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. By Could of that yr, Bluesky started verifying “notable” customers with blue checkmarks, much like how the blue test used to function on Twitter.
Does Bluesky work similar to X?
In some ways, sure. When it first began, Bluesky was far more pared down and didn’t even have DMs, however this key function has since been carried out, even with emoji reactions. However DMs on Bluesky are at the moment restricted to one-to-one messages, not group messages. Bluesky has additionally mentioned it’s all in favour of implementing one thing much like X’s Neighborhood Notes function. Moreover, X doesn’t use a decentralized protocol like ActivityPub or AT. Bluesky has additionally been testing a Trending Subjects function and creating its personal picture sharing app known as Flashes, which is anticipated to be launched in beta quickly.
In October 2024, Elon Musk introduced that X’s block function would work in a different way than it has up to now. The brand new block performance permits customers you’ve gotten blocked to view your posts and your profile, however not the flexibility to work together together with your posts. Some customers imagine this replace to be a security concern, resulting in an inflow in Bluesky sign-ups as its block function is extra conventional.
In one other transfer that separates Bluesky from X, the social community mentioned it has “no intention” of utilizing person content material to coach generative AI instruments as X carried out a brand new phrases of service that permits the platform to prepare AI fashions on public posts. However that doesn’t cease third events from doing so.
Whereas Bluesky was initially kicked off as a undertaking convened by Jack Dorsey in 2019 when he was CEO of Twitter, the social app has been an impartial firm since its inception in 2021.
Is Bluesky free?
Sure, and it’s now open to the general public.
How does Bluesky earn a living?
Bluesky’s objective is to seek out one other means to maintain its community exterior of promoting with paid providers, so it could stay free to finish customers. On July 5, 2023, Bluesky introduced extra seed spherical funding and a paid service that gives customized domains for finish customers who wish to have a novel area as their deal with on the service. Bluesky has additionally emphasised that it doesn’t wish to “require selling user data for ads” to be able to monetize its platform.
In November 2024, Bluesky introduced it raised a $15 million Collection A spherical and is creating a subscription service for premium options. Bluesky, nonetheless, famous its subscription mannequin won’t comply with within the footsteps of X’s “pay to win” premium choices. Customers have noticed mockups teasing the subscription function, dubbed Bluesky+, which might embrace options like increased high quality video uploads and profile customizations.
In December 2024, Peter Wang introduced a $1 million fund, dubbed Skyseed, that can provide grants to these constructing on Bluesky’s open supply AT Protocol.
Is Bluesky decentralized?
Sure. Bluesky’s staff is creating the decentralized AT Protocol, which Bluesky was constructed atop. In its beta part, customers can solely be a part of the bsky.social community, however Bluesky plans to be federated, that means that limitless individually operated communities can exist throughout the open supply community. So, if a developer exterior of Bluesky constructed their very own new social app utilizing the AT Protocol, Bluesky customers might bounce over to the brand new app and port over their current followers, deal with and knowledge.
“You’ll always have the freedom to choose (and to exit) instead of being held to the whims of private companies or black box algorithms. And wherever you go, your friends and relationships will be there too,” a Bluesky weblog publish defined.
What’s the AT Protocol?
Bluesky’s AT Protocol is a decentralized community that builders can use to construct social apps. The social app Bluesky is constructed on the AT Protocol, which was created by the corporate Bluesky (sure, the naming conventions listed here are a bit complicated).
The ATProto neighborhood is working to rebuild a lot of what was once Net 2.0, an earlier model of the social net that included social media web sites, blogs, wikis, video- and photo-sharing websites, and different collaborative and hosted providers. This time round, the apps are being constructed on open know-how, not siloed into centralized providers that are typically operated by tech giants.
This open structure provides customers and builders as a lot energy because the creators of the protocol.
Centralized tech platforms like Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and Reddit can even domesticate these sorts of developer communities by providing builders entry to their APIs. Nevertheless, that API entry will be revoked on the discretion of these corporations, leaving its developer neighborhood helpless and its customers dissatisfied. This occurred at Reddit in 2023. It was a complete mess.
What third-party apps are constructed on the AT Protocol?
Many builders are constructing consumer-facing apps on Bluesky or its underlying AT Protocol. These apps are constructed on open know-how, versus being siloed inside huge tech’s centralized, opaque possession.
Some social apps embrace Flashes, a photograph viewing shopper; Spark, a TikTok-like app; and Skylight Social, which is backed by Mark Cuban.
Take a look at our extra complete record at varied apps constructed inside this ecosystem, together with cross-posting apps, music apps, feed builders, and livestreamers.
Is Bluesky safe?
In October 2023, Bluesky added e-mail verification as half of a bigger effort to enhance account safety and authentication on the community. The addition is a vital step ahead by way of making Bluesky extra aggressive with bigger networks like X, which have extra strong safety controls. In December 2023, Bluesky allowed customers to choose out of a change that will expose their posts to the general public net following backlash from customers.
Is Bluesky customizable?
Sure. In Could 2023, Bluesky launched customized algorithms, which it calls “custom feeds.” Customized feeds enable customers to subscribe to a number of completely different algorithms that showcase completely different sorts of posts a person could wish to see. You’ll be able to pin customized feeds that can present up on the prime of your timeline as completely different tabs to choose from. The feeds you pin, or save, are situated underneath the “My Feeds” menu within the app’s sidebar.
In March 2024, the corporate introduced “AT Protocol Grants,” a brand new program that can dole out small grants to builders to be able to foster progress and customization. One of many recipients, SkyFeed, is a customized instrument that lets anybody construct their very own feeds utilizing a graphical person interface.
Is Bluesky on iOS and Android?
Sure. Bluesky has rolled out to Android customers after it was initially launched to iOS customers. Customers can entry Bluesky on the internet right here.
How does Bluesky sort out misinformation?
After an October 2023 replace, the app will now warn customers of deceptive hyperlinks by flagging them. If hyperlinks shared in customers’ posts don’t match their textual content, the app will provide a “possibly misleading” warning to the person to alert them that the hyperlink could also be directing them someplace they don’t wish to go.
In December 2024, the Bluesky Security staff posted that the corporate up to date its impersonation coverage to be “more aggressive,” including that “impersonation and handle-squatting accounts will be removed.” The corporate mentioned it’s additionally exploring alternate options to its present area deal with verification course of.
Bluesky additionally added blue test verification in Could 2025, which makes it simpler for customers to confirm that notable figures are who they are saying they’re; not like X, Bluesky doesn’t enable customers to purchase this designation.
Has Bluesky had any controversies?
Bluesky has been embattled with moderation points since its first launch. The app has been accused of failing to guard its marginalized customers and failing to average racist content material. Following an issue in regards to the app permitting racial slurs in account handles, annoyed customers initiated a “posting strike,” the place they refused to interact with the platform till it established guardrails to flag slurs and different offensive phrases in usernames.
In December 2024, Bluesky additionally confronted criticism when author and podcast host Jesse Singal joined the platform. Singal has been cataloged by GLAAD’s Accountability Venture for his writings on transgender points and different issues. Bluesky customers have reported Singal’s account en masse, main the corporate to ban him, reinstate him, after which label his account illiberal by its moderation service.
As Bluesky has gotten extra in style, critics have complained that the tradition is disproportionately left-leaning, which might doubtlessly be a results of Bluesky’s progress as an alternative choice to X, which has develop into more and more right-wing.
These are broad generalizations that can range from person to person — Mark Cuban, for instance, complained that folks wouldn’t discuss to him in good religion about enterprise or AI — however the structure of Bluesky permits for customers to customise a extra personalised expertise.
What moderation options does Bluesky have?
In December 2023, Bluesky rolled out “more advanced automated tooling” designed to flag content material that violates its Neighborhood Tips that can then be reviewed by the app’s moderation staff. Bluesky has moderation options much like ones on X, together with person lists and moderation lists, and a function that lets customers restrict who can reply to posts. Nevertheless, some Bluesky customers are nonetheless advocating for the flexibility to set their accounts to non-public.
In March 2024, the corporate launched Ozone, a instrument that lets customers create and run their very own impartial moderation providers that can give customers “unprecedented control” over their social media expertise. In October 2024, Bluesky joined Instragram’s Threads app in an effort to court docket customers who had been annoyed by Meta’s moderation points.
In January 2025, Bluesky printed its 2024 moderation report that mentioned it noticed a 17x improve moderately studies following the speedy progress on the platform. The report additionally famous that the biggest variety of studies got here from customers reporting accounts or posts for harassment, trolling, or intolerance — a problem that’s plagued Bluesky because it’s grown. To satisfy the calls for attributable to this progress, Bluesky elevated its moderation staff to roughly 100 moderators and can proceed to rent.
Bluesky revamped its Neighborhood Tips in August 2025, with a number of the adjustments representing an effort by Bluesky to purposefully form its neighborhood and the habits of its customers.
What’s the distinction between Bluesky and Mastodon?
Although Bluesky’s structure is much like Mastodon’s, many customers have discovered Bluesky to be extra intuitive, whereas Mastodon can come off as inaccessible: Selecting which occasion to affix appears like an inconceivable process on Mastodon, and longtime customers are very defensive about their established posting norms, which may make becoming a member of the dialog intimidating. To stay aggressive, Mastodon not too long ago simplified its sign-up move, making mastodon.social the default server for brand new customers.
Nevertheless, the launch of federation will make it work extra equally to Mastodon in that customers can decide and select which servers to affix and transfer their accounts round at will.
Who owns Bluesky?
Although Jack Dorsey funded Bluesky, he isn’t concerned in day-to-day growth and not sits on the corporate’s board. The CEO of Bluesky is Jay Graber, who beforehand labored as a software program engineer for the cryptocurrency Zcash, then based an event-planning web site known as Taking place.
This story was initially printed in Could 2023 and is up to date frequently with new data.
