Twitter Competitors: Which Platform Will Dethrone X?

If you use Twitter, now X, it often feels like the platform’s existence is on a knife’s edge. Several users don’t like the changes introduced by the new leadership. Also, it feels like the social media network is heading in the wrong direction. For instance, X is experimenting with charging new users who join the platform in the Philippines and New Zealand $1. The aim is to make it expensive for fake accounts and bots to become a part of X’s user base. As a result, people are trying to find Twitter competitors. They want a similar experience to X but without the chaos.

Well, it may come as a surprise, but several platforms are attempting to take on Twitter. Some have similar features like X, while others are taking a different approach. If you’re in the same boat, wondering which platform is worth your time, you’ve come to the right place. In this article, you’ll learn about six alternatives to Twitter and which is the best.

Who Are Twitter’s Competitors?

Every move X takes these days seems to push its core user base away from the platform. First, it was the complete overhaul of Twitter’s legacy verification system. In place of active, authentic, and notable characteristics came Twitter Blue, now X Premium, where users pay for verification. The initial plan was to charge $19.99, but the leadership changed tracks after significant backlash.

Another unpopular move was introducing rate limits on how many tweets users can view per day. It went down to 10,000 from an unlimited amount for verified accounts. For new and unverified users, it is 500 tweets per day.

Also, rebranding the iconic Twitter to X and tweets to posts didn’t resonate well with several users. With every misstep, this social media network drives several people away to other platforms.

Who are Twitter’s competitors, you ask? Well, find out everything about Twitter alternatives in the sections below.

Threads

Suppose there’s one platform that has the potential to be a real Twitter competitor: it’s none other than Threads. Launched by Meta on July 6, 2023, this social network was all over the news. As users needed an Instagram account to join the new platform, it attracted over 20 million users within 12 hours.

Threads does look like a copy of X, as the two social media networks have similar user interfaces. Although Twitter is different from other social media platforms, this replica by Meta wants to be a microblogging website. The icons also look the same for likes, replies, reposts, and shares.

Below, you’ll find some of the key differentiators between these social networks:

• The major difference is that Meta’s new social media platform wants to stay clear of politics. Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, made this statement. However, he later clarified that users can talk about politics, but the platform won’t promote it.
  
• The Twitter clone allows you to include up to 500 characters per thread, the network’s name for a post. You can create another thread if you want to go beyond this limit. In other words, it is similar to X’s threads.
  
• While X allows you to attach four images per post, it’s ten photos per thread on Meta’s new social app.
  
• Another key differentiator is the lack of ads on the new social media platform. This is because Mark Zuckerberg feels it’s too early to introduce advertisements. Once the platform becomes stable and has hundreds of millions of active users, this will no longer be the case.
  
• Threads wants to be a part of the ActivityPub protocol, a decentralized network for social media platforms.

Mastodon

Available since October 2016, Mastodon is one of the older competitors to Twitter. The platform uses ActivityPub protocol to power it, making it an interoperable social networking platform. Now, there are a lot of similarities when you compare it to X. For starters, people on the Twitter alternative can follow other users on the platform.

Similarly, hashtags allow the social media network to categorize and organize all user content. Hashtags are an excellent feature, allowing you to find anything on the platform. There is a timeline on this X alternative to see the latest posts from other users.

However, there are also considerable differences when you take a closer look:

• Users have almost complete control over their experience on the platform. They can choose who can see their toots; yes, that’s what this network calls its posts. You can decide whether you only want people you tag, only your followers, or everyone to see your content.
  
  Unlike Twitter, people who use the platform are the ones who manage the servers. No one entity has complete control over this social media network.
  
• You never have to worry about coming across promotions or advertisements on this platform. Mastodon is also against this for now, which means you only get to see what’s popular among users.
  
• When you compare the alternative to Twitter with X, you can see the stark differences in content moderation. Well, the community, which goes by the title Instance, is in charge of setting and enforcing the rules.

Due to this reason, the rules vary significantly, depending on which instance you join on the platform.

Bluesky

Launched by Twitter’s former CEO, Jack Dorsey, Bluesky, according to Statista, registered more than 10 million users. One month after Elon Musk became X’s CEO, this alternative to Twitter saw a 300% increase in its user base. 

It’s time to take a look at its key features to understand why this is an alternative to X:

• Currently, it is an invite-only social media network. In other words, another user has to send you an invite if you want to join the platform. This is similar to when Gmail was first available to the public. The email platform, like Bluesky, was an invite-only network.
  
• A post can be 300 characters long on this platform, along with links and images. However, this social network doesn’t allow you to include GIFs and videos. Also, there is no direct message feature to communicate with other users.
  
• This social network is free to use and doesn’t have any ads. The network was looking for financial alternatives to be a sustainable platform.
  

In July, the platform informed users about the ability to buy custom domains, thanks to its partnership with Namecheap. The platform also raised funds during the seed round.

• Unlike Twitter, which has an algorithmic feed, this X competitor has multiple algorithms. You can subscribe to numerous custom feeds to view various content. In a way, it is similar to Twitter Lists.
  
• Bluesky is also working on AT Protocol, another decentralized network. If it succeeds, you can take your social media account and followers to any platform. However, this will only happen if other developers use the same protocol.

Post News App

The main reason why people go to X is to get the latest news on every topic. However, as Twitter has a minimal content moderation staff, the platform has to fight a constant battle with misinformation. Also, the network faces an uphill battle in this space, as anyone can verify themselves by paying the subscription fee. As a result, the market became ripe for another alternative to Twitter. Enter the Post News App, a platform where you can get news.

This social media network is relatively new compared to other sites on this list. You can think of this platform as an all-in-one news platform. As there are several publishers on this network, you can follow their profiles to read the latest news worldwide. 

How is Post News different from X? Given below are various fundamental differences between both platforms:

• Post News was an invite-only platform. However, it changed this requirement, and now anyone can join the network. When you complete the sign-up process, you get 50 points. You need to spend these points to read news from certain publishers, while others don’t charge you anything.
  
  For example, if you want to go through a post from Reuters, it is free. However, if you read a news article from The Independent, it is one point.
  

You can go through the post on the platform or visit the news channel’s website. Also, you can buy more once you run out of promo credits. Currently, it’s $4.20 for 300 points.

• The platform keeps itself afloat through the sale of points. This is why there are no ads or subscriptions on this network. Also, you can send tips to publishers by visiting their profiles.
  
• There are no character limits on Post News, which is why publishers post complete articles.

T2 Social

Gabor Cselle and Sarah Oh, former X employees, are the founders of T2 Social. This social media platform rebranded itself to Pebble on September 15, 2023. This network is the answer if you’re looking for a carbon copy of X without the chaos and toxicity. The user interface feels familiar as it throws you into the website’s feed.

It also has a For You feed, like X, where the algorithm serves the content. However, this isn’t the default option; you can change it anytime. It uses the following factors to determine what should appear in your feed:

• Whether you’re following the author?
• Is the post’s language the same as what you’re using on your browser?
• What are your interests? You need to share this while signing up.
• How recent is the post in comparison to other content on the platform?

Twitter’s algorithm shows you a mix of tweets from people you follow and other accounts. On Pebble, there is a lot of importance on whether you are following the publisher. Here is how Pebble is one of the many Twitter alternatives in the market:

• You need an invitation to join the platform. However, you can connect your X account, and the platform will check your eligibility. If you meet their requirements, you can join this network.
  
• The platform supports only posts that are 280 characters long. You can include photos in your post and engage with other users. However, if you want to post, you must complete your profile.
  
• There is an AI feed where you get ideas for posts and replies. It uses the information from your bio and how you interact with other users to suggest content.

Spill

The last competitor for Twitter in this list is Spill. Like several other social media platforms here, this one is also from former X employees Alphonzo Terrell and DeVaris Brown. They want this to be a safe space for people of color and marginalized communities.

Although other platforms are available on most devices, you can download Spill only on the Apple App Store. It is in the beta phase, which means it will come to other operating systems. If you want to join, you need an invitation code. You can also message the brand and ask them for additional codes.

The main differences between the Twitter competitor and X are as follows:

• There is an emphasis on visual content, so you’ll find posts with GIFs, videos, and images. Text-heavy posts take a step back on this platform.
  
• Spill wants to be a haven for people of color and create a safe environment. People from marginalized communities can express their opinions without fearing backlash or discrimination. It understands the nuances of different cultures to ensure content moderation is fair.
  
• You can earn as a creator on this platform as it uses blockchain technology to track viral posts. In other words, the trendsetter gets recognition for putting in the effort to create viral content. This, in theory, should prevent people from stealing content from other users.

What Is the Best Twitter Alternative?

You want to know what is the best Twitter alternative given how many competitors to X exist on the internet. Well, this is hard to answer as it is challenging to break into the world of social media. Platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Reddit, YouTube, Snapchat, Pinterest, and TikTok have hundreds of millions if not billions of users.

The new social media networks have to compete against these giants. Also, they have to provide users with several solid reasons to switch over. This isn’t easy, given how using well-established names has become second nature. For instance, if you want to publish a video, you’ll likely think of YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

However, the closest true competitor to Twitter is none other than Threads by Instagram. It only took the X alternative five days to hit 100 million sign-ups. It looked like Meta’s new social app was ready to take on X by surprise.

However, within 15 days after its launch, the app’s traffic dropped by 75%. Why? For starters, the new social media network didn’t have all the features like X. Although it was a breath of fresh air compared to Twitter, it struggled to gain traction in the long run.

Will things remain the same in the near future? It’s hard to say, given the uncertainty around Twitter. Sure, every misstep by X is a win for its alternatives, but it is only a short-term victory. 

Remember, while Elon Musk did buy Twitter for $44 billion, all of it wasn’t his money. He borrowed from several lenders, which means there are multiple private stakeholders. As these investors want Twitter to be profitable, seeing how things pan out will be interesting.

X Can Still Win Against Twitter Competitors

Despite having several problems along the way, you shouldn’t be quick to rule out X. The platform has 368 million users who are active every month. This is comparable to the entire population in the United States. It won’t be in hot water if it can correct its course and make the right decisions.

In the meantime, you should still be careful about what you say on X, formerly Twitter. Although there are several Twitter competitors, employers still keep tabs on X. If there is any controversial or sensitive content on your public profile, the best solution is to delete it. Although Twitter doesn’t have a bulk-delete tweets option, TweetDelete does. With this tool, you never have to worry about future employers unearthing tweets they may not like. Use its custom filters to find and remove anything questionable from your profile. Use TweetDelete today to ensure your X account is employment-friendly!