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As many users seek alternatives to X, rival social network Mastodon says that its official app downloads are up 47% on iOS.
Mastodon founder Eugen Rochko says downloads on Android are also up 17%, while total monthly sign-ups rose approximately 27% to 90,000.
The open-source X rival functions much like its competitor, the site formerly known as Twitter, on the outside. However, unlike the centralized Twitter, Mastodon consists of thousands of different social networks, which are integrated into a web it calls the "fediverse."
“We may not be the biggest by numbers yet, but Mastodon (and the fediverse) has proven itself to be an effective and reliable communications platform over the course of the last 8 years and does not depend on venture capital to survive,” says Rochko.
A record number of X users closed down their accounts the day after Election Day in the US. Internet traffic analyzer Similarweb says 115,000 US-based web visitors deactivated their X accounts on Nov. 6, the biggest one-day drop since Elon Musk took over the platform in October 2022. Musk has been a vocal supporter of President-elect Donald Trump, and allowed the reinstatement of the accounts of highly controversial right-wing figures.
Users seeking greener pastures aren’t just trying out Mastodon; all the major X alternatives are reporting more sign-ups than ever before. Bluesky claims it had 1 million sign-ups in one day during the week following the election. An app put together by Bluesky shows its user base is now at almost 18 million, up from 9 million in September.
Not to be outdone, Instagram Head Adam Mosseri recently claimed that Meta-owed Threads had more than 15 million signups in November, and has had days with over one million sign-ups every month for the past three months.