About Mastodon
Mastodon is a free, open source social network made of many independent servers that can talk to one another. People join a server that fits their interests or rules, and still follow and message people on other servers.
What it does
You get a home feed of the accounts you follow, shown in the order they posted. There are no ads or recommendation algorithm in the default feed. Posts can include images, video, audio, polls and content warnings, and creators can add descriptions for accessibility. Each server sets its own moderation rules and is run by its own operator.
Key features
- Chronological home feed with no ads
- Follow people across any Mastodon server
- Polls, content warnings and image descriptions
- Each server sets its own rules
- Host your own server or join an existing one
Who it's for
Communities that want their own space with local rules, creators who want an audience without algorithmic feeds, and people who want to run their own social server.
Pricing and good to know
Mastodon is free and open source under the AGPL-3.0 license, and you can join a public server at no cost. Individual servers may have their own rules, and some ask for donations to cover hosting. Because servers are independent, your experience depends partly on the server you choose.
Highlights
- Chronological home feed with no ads
- Follow people across any Mastodon server
- Polls, content warnings and image descriptions
- Each server sets its own rules
- Host your own server or join one
