The Best Facebook AlternativesTop Social Networks and other similar apps like Facebook

Facebook is described as 'Connect with friends and family, share photos and videos, organize events, and join groups on a cross-platform social network offering messaging, live streaming, and more' and is a leading Social Network in the social & communications category. There are more than 100 alternatives to Facebook for a variety of platforms, including Web-based, Android, Self-Hosted, iPhone and Android Tablet apps. The best Facebook alternative is Diaspora, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Facebook are Minds, Mastodon, Gab and VK.

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Facebook alternatives are mainly Social Networks but may also be Microblogs or Photo Sharing Apps.  Filter by these or use the filter bar below if you want a narrower list of alternatives or looking for a specific functionality of Facebook.
Facebook iconFacebook
  996
  • ...

Connect with friends and family, share photos and videos, organize events, and join groups on a cross-platform social network offering messaging, live streaming, and more.

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Facebook alternatives page was last updated Nov 9, 2024
  1. Diaspora icon
     431 likes

    Diaspora is a federated social networking service, designed to be a more privacy-aware alternative to Facebook . Share what you want, with whom you want.

    121 Diaspora alternatives
    Diaspora screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • BSD
    • Self-Hosted
    • Ruby

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Decentralized
    2.  Federated
    3.  No Tracking
    4.  Encrypted Connection
    5.  Ad-free
    6.  Distributed
    7. ActivityPub icon  Support for ActivityPub
    8.  Support for MarkDown
    9.  Fediverse
    10.  Self-hosted
    Diaspora iconFacebook Icon

    Diaspora VS Facebook

    Is Diaspora a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Diaspora as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    Comment summary: Diaspora is praised for its privacy features, decentralization, and open-source approach, allowing users to control their data and avoid ads. It is noted for its focus on security, freedom, and non-censorship compared to Facebook. While some users highlight its self-hosting and flexible functionalities, others miss Facebook's collaboration features, suggesting Diaspora isn't a complete Facebook alternative. Overall, Diaspora appeals to privacy-conscious users but remains smaller in scale.
    Yrdael

    So many possibilities are available. Respectful. Nice and clear. Can be self-hosted.

    Top positive commentDec 10, 2016
    7
    Guest

    group/collaboration function is absent. not a developer, so im sure i do not understand the difficulties in making this happen. but im pretty sure this is the nr 1 reason diaspora is NOT an fb alternative.

    Top negative commentOct 1, 2019
    6
    markswiderski

    I have less privacy concerns with Diaspora than I have when using FB

    Positive commentOct 18, 2019
    1
    Show more comments
    3 of 12 comments
    Facebook Icon
    Diaspora icon
    • Most users think Diaspora is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Diaspora is the most popular Web-based & Self-Hosted alternative to Facebook.

    • Diaspora is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Facebook.

    • Diaspora is Free and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Diaspora is Decentralized and Privacy focusedFacebook is not according to our users
  2. Mastodon icon
     501 likes

    Decentralized and federated social platform with no ads, focusing on personal interaction, and offering 500 character posts, custom emojis, content warnings, and robust moderation tools.

    127 Mastodon alternatives
    Screenshot of the Mastodon web interface

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Self-Hosted
    • F-Droid
    • Cloudron

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Decentralized
    2.  Federated
    3.  Ad-free
    4.  Fediverse
    5. ActivityPub icon  Support for ActivityPub
    6.  Dark Mode
    7.  No Censorship
    8.  Two-factor Authentication
    9.  No Tracking
    10.  Support for @mentions
    11.  Multiple Account support
    12.  Self Destructing Messages
    Mastodon iconFacebook Icon

    Mastodon VS Facebook

    Is Mastodon a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Mastodon as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    Comment summary: Mastodon is praised for being decentralized, open-source, and non-commercial, offering freedom and privacy without ads. Users appreciate its ability to curate following and block unwanted content. However, some view it as more similar to Twitter rather than Facebook, noting it lacks Facebook's extensive functionality. Mastodon is lauded for being federated and supporting OStatus and ActivityPub, yet its smaller user base means it has room for growth.
    Goldmaster

    No ads, no rubbish and just better than Facebook threads

    Top positive commentSep 16, 2024
    1
    loziniak

    Mastodon is more like Twitter.

    Top negative commentJan 24, 2020
    10
    tibi97427

    Mastodon is more an alternative to Twitter than Facebook

    Negative commentDec 5, 2020
    5
    Show more comments
    3 of 13 comments
    Facebook Icon
    Mastodon icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Mastodon is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Mastodon is the most popular Android, iPhone & iPad alternative to Facebook.

    • Mastodon is Free and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Mastodon is Decentralized and Privacy focusedFacebook is not according to our users
  3. Minds icon
     322 likes

    An open-source platform for decentralized social networking. Users can monetize posts through ads or monthly support, engaging in various features such as Blogs, Videos, and secure private chats. Minds supports free speech and facilitates sharing across networks and exploring global trends.

    124 Minds alternatives
    Minds.com homepage

    License model

    • FreemiumOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • iPad

    Properties

    1.  Free Speech
    2.  Security-focused
    3.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Decentralized
    2.  Encrypted Chat
    3.  No Censorship
    4.  Monetization
    5.  Gamification
    6.  Podcast Hosting
    7.  Tokenization
    8.  Secure Chat
    9.  Share screenshots
    Minds iconFacebook Icon

    Minds VS Facebook

    Is Minds a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Minds as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    Comment summary: Minds is praised for its open-source nature, freedom of speech, and lack of censorship, providing a refreshing alternative to Facebook. Users appreciate Minds' features for content creators, community engagement, and privacy. However, some note issues with premium content access and annoying notifications. Overall, Minds offers a platform with greater transparency and user involvement, appealing to those seeking a less restricted social media experience.
    Guest

    Open source, transparent and does not push any particular ideology.

    Top positive commentMar 19, 2017
    18
    David Saylor

    they charge money to see posts that were posted by premium members.. they have none of the features that Facebook has.. literally the only thing it has at this point in time, is a main feed wall to share posts, that's it.

    Top negative commentMar 30, 2022
    0
    Yousif Adel

    Minds keeps sending messages to join groups or discover pages etc. It cannot be disabled and its annoying.

    Negative commentMar 18, 2024
    0
    Show more comments
    3 of 37 comments
    Facebook Icon
    Minds icon
    • Almost everyone thinks Minds is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Minds is the most popular Android Tablet alternative to Facebook.

    • Minds is Freemium and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Minds is Decentralized, Security-focused and Privacy focusedFacebook is not according to our users
  4. Gab icon
     254 likes

    Gab Social is an open source and fully decentralized social network powered by the Gab Platform. It is the new social network of Gab.com. This change was made to further Gab's commitment to its users trust and privacy online.

    118 Gab alternatives
    Gab screenshot 1

    License model

    • FreemiumOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android

    Properties

    1.  Free Speech
    2.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Ad-free
    2.  Community-based
    3.  Live topics
    4.  Bypass Censorship
    5.  Decentralized
    6.  No registration required
    7.  Fediverse
    8.  Two-factor Authentication
    9.  Dark Mode
    10.  Content creators
    11.  Word filtering
    12.  Information aggregator
    Warning

    Gab is less moderated compared to other social networks and could be offensive to some people

    Gab iconFacebook Icon

    Gab VS Facebook

    Is Gab a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Gab as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    Comment summary: Gab is praised for its commitment to free speech and minimal censorship, offering features like user-controlled content and no data harvesting. However, its design resembles Twitter more than Facebook, which some users find unsuitable as a direct replacement for Facebook. Additional highlights include no ads, optional feed control, and the ability to broadcast live with GabTV.
    Yousif Adel

    This platform has extremely MINIMAL Censorship on posts. Which allows for freedom of speech.

    Top positive commentMar 21, 2024
    1
    bird

    Without dabbing into politics and stuff, the architecture of Gab is more like Twitter than Facebook.

    Top negative commentJul 10, 2019
    8
    Guest

    Great communities. Free speech. Ability to mute other users.

    Positive commentAug 23, 2021
    0
    Show more comments
    3 of 20 comments
    Facebook Icon
    Gab icon
    • Most users think Gab is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Gab is Freemium and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Gab is Privacy focused and DecentralizedFacebook is not according to our users
  5. VK icon
     161 likes

    VK (originally VKontakte) is a largest social network service from Europe. Available in many languages and highly popular particularly among Russian-speaking users around the world, especially in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Moldova, Belarus, and Israel.

    95 VK alternatives
    VK screenshot 1
    VK screenshot 2
    +4
    VK screenshot 3

    License model

    • FreeProprietary

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • Android Tablet
    • HUAWEI AppGallery
    • Windows Phone
    • iPad
    • Kindle Fire

    VK Features

    1.  Dark Mode
    2.  Social feed
    3.  Music Library
    VK iconFacebook Icon

    VK VS Facebook

    Is VK a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about VK as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    Guest

    Not just an advanced messaging service, Downloads can be put into folders (Pictures etc). also a music upload/download player and marketplace.

    Top positive commentAug 1, 2019
    3
    grinapo

    Why anyone would like to use one of the the Russian government's most valuable asset is beyond me.

    Top negative commentNov 9, 2024
    0
    Guest

    Because it has tiny bit more respect to privacy than FaceBook.

    Positive commentJun 29, 2019
    -6
    Show more comments
    3 of 7 comments
    Facebook Icon
    VK icon
    • Most users think VK is a great Facebook alternative.

    • VK is Free and ProprietaryFacebook is also Free and Proprietary
  6. Friendica icon
     139 likes

    Friendica is a distributed social network application. Which allow users to connect with others via their own Friendica server, but may also fully integrate contacts from other platforms including Twitter, diaspora*, Pump.io and StatusNet into their 'newsfeed'.

    118 Friendica alternatives
    Logo

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Linux
    • Android
    • BSD
    • Self-Hosted
    • F-Droid
    • PHP

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Federated
    2.  Decentralized
    3. ActivityPub icon  Support for ActivityPub
    4.  Ad-free
    5. Diaspora icon  Diaspora integration
    6.  No Tracking
    7.  Support for @mentions
    8.  Commodity hosting support
    9. X icon  X Integration
    10.  Team Messaging
    11.  Community events
    12.  Rsvp
    Friendica iconFacebook Icon

    Friendica VS Facebook

    Is Friendica a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Friendica as an Alternative to Facebook
     
       
    arndtadler

    It's independent, feature rich and decentralized.

    Top positive commentJul 11, 2018
    4
    remote man

    ActivityPub and open-source

    Positive commentJan 5, 2024
    1
    Guest

    "Facebook-like" in its operation and general feel, and is interoperable with other social networks as well.

    Positive commentDec 4, 2019
    3
    Show more comments
    3 of 6 comments
    Facebook Icon
    Friendica icon
    • Most users think Friendica is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Friendica is the most popular Linux alternative to Facebook.

    • Friendica is Free and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Friendica is Decentralized and Privacy focusedFacebook is not according to our users
  7. Hubzilla icon
     83 likes

    Hubzilla is a powerful platform for creating interconnected based websites featuring a decentralised identity, communications, and permissions framework built using common webserver technology. Hubzilla is very suitable for communities (of any size).

    71 Hubzilla alternatives
    Channel

    License model

    • FreeOpen Source

    Platforms

    • Online
    • Self-Hosted

    Properties

    1.  Privacy focused

    Features

    1.  Decentralized
    2. ActivityPub icon  Support for ActivityPub
    3.  Federated
    4.  Publishing
    5.  Calendar Integration
    6.  Ad-free
    7.  Wide API Support
    8.  OpenID Provider
    9.  Wiki
    10.  Distributed
    11.  Categories
    Hubzilla iconFacebook Icon

    Hubzilla VS Facebook

    Is Hubzilla a good alternative to Facebook?
     
    Comments about Hubzilla as an Alternative to Facebook
     
    themagician

    Feature for feature, Hubzilla is the best decentralized, open source competitor to Facebook.

    Compatibility with the Diaspora, OStatus (includes Mastodon), & ActivityPub (includes NextCloud) protocols allows it to communicate with nearly every other existing.

    I am happy that after he created Friendica, Mike Macgirvin & friends have continued to push forward by creating and developing Hubzilla.

    Positive commentMar 24, 2018
    4
    Net Nut

    Unlike a centralized platform like facebook you can talk to other federated platforms and with a Nomadic Identity you are never locked permanently to one server , yet you can communicate across to other platforms much in the way that email does. In addition to not being locked.. you never need to give out a new address, you keep in communication when you migrate to another server, plus there are many free servers to use, or you can launch your own instance.

    Positive commentNov 14, 2020
    1
    the_real_dvs1

    Every user can make private or public forums, a static webpage, an editable markdown based wiki, categorize posts and format them with BBCode. You choose what hub hosts your data, and you can clone your account on another hub to prevent distruption or data loss.

    Positive commentApr 3, 2018
    1
    Facebook Icon
    Hubzilla icon
    • Most users think Hubzilla is a great Facebook alternative.

    • Hubzilla is Free and Open SourceFacebook is Free and Proprietary
    • Hubzilla is Decentralized and Privacy focusedFacebook is not according to our users
7 of 154 Facebook alternatives