Open Source Twitter Alternatives

    As a social network infamous for its strict character limits on posts and feeds that update in real-time, Twitter has grown into one of the most ubiquitous social networks and websites on the entire Internet, used as a source for communication and news alike.

    It’s easy to see why, considering its easy to use and understand user interface and availability on the most popular platforms. Its popularization of hashtags and trends make you feel like you're participating in a global conversation.

    It's hard to match the platform availability that Twitter has, but it's been met with criticism on its policies in regard to what can and cannot be discussed. There are alternatives to Twitter that highlight free speech, as well as those that are decentralized in order to ensure impartiality and total user control.

    The list of alternatives was last updated Mar 2, 2021

    • A social network that champions free speech, individual liberty and the free flow of information online.
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 148 alternatives to Gab

      Warning

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

      • Freemium • Open Source
      • Online
      • Android
      • Self-Hosted
      GAB does not censor free speech, but instead allows users to mute users/ content themselves. Superior to corporate censorship.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 69 users agree and 35 don't

      bernieshowalter Free. No commercials. No shadow banning or censorship of Views.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 61 users agree and 27 don't

      No corporate censorship. As Big Tech®™? censors and deplatforms more users for the tiniest of infractions, Gab will grow. It has its issues (UI needs improvement, needs a “media” tab like Twitter has). I’ve had my account for two years. Not a single lockout, suspension, or forced deletion of my posts. I’m done with Twitter.
      Positive comment over 2 years ago 35 users agree and 14 don't

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      3 of 18
    • Mastodon is a decentralized microblogging engine. FEATURES - Free and open-source. - Decentralized, no worries about a single company controlling your communications.
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 96 alternatives to Mastodon
      • Free • Open Source
      • Online
      • Self-Hosted
      • Cloudron
      Decentralized social media app that doesn't collect private data, has no advertisements and uses free and open source software. Censorship free due to ability to host your own instances. No recommendation algorithms that contribute to online radicalization. Optimizable and extendable for individual needs due to being open source.
      Positive comment almost 2 years ago 13 users agree and 2 don't

      mrmbl It's very much like Twitter with a character limit of 500, except there's not *one* website you have to trust, but you can choose the mastodon server ("instance") that you trust and they are linked, so you can follow people from other instances. The instances all have their own rules, so you can pick a place with as few or many rules as you are comfortable with.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 18 users agree and 5 don't

      Mastodon takes the good stuff of Twitter, adds in good moderation, and is decentralized and hate-free. If you just want to share your life or thoughts, this is the place. The 500 character limit is also very helpful, as well as instances for certain communities and common interests.
      Positive comment about 3 years ago 13 users agree and 3 don't

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      3 of 24


    • We are a free and open-source platform to launch your digital brand, social network and mobile app. We are also a social network ourselves.
      Most users think this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 144 alternatives to Minds
      • Freemium • Open Source
      • Online
      • Android
      • iPhone
      • Android Tablet
      • iPad
      samclark It'a FB, Twitter and youtube rolled into one.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 8 users agree and 1 doesn't

      MindMunition I can do everything on Minds I can do on Twitter with no censorship!
      Positive comment about 4 years ago 14 users agree and 3 don't

      stefandekkers Minds is a good alternative to Twitter because it doesn't have the baggage that comes with Twitter's many moderation issues. Minds has a much better transparant policy in which the things you post are actually visible to other people. Minds is hands down the best one-on-one alternative to Twitter's functions without the amateurish censoring of dissenting opinion.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 11 users agree and 3 don't

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      3 of 10
    • Diaspora is a federated social networking service, designed to be a more privacy-aware alternative to Facebook .
      Some users think this is a great alternative to Twitter, some don't.
      View 125 alternatives to Diaspora
      • Free • Open Source
      • Linux
      • Online
      • BSD
      • Self-Hosted
      • Ruby
      velnemed Diaspora is a Facebook alternative, it's not Twitter-like
      Negative comment over 3 years ago 23 users agree and 4 don't

      Diaspora makes great use of hashtags, and has a large user base with many established instances. It also allows a person to have an account there but connect across other platforms like GNUSocial, Friendica and Hubzilla
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 3 users agree

      clacke_ Diaspora is a network, not a single service. You can run your own service ("pod"), and still follow users from other pods in the network, and like and comment on their posts.
      Positive comment almost 2 years ago 4 users agree and 1 doesn't

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      3 of 4
    • Pixelfed is an image sharing platform with focus on Privacy, Safety and Security, an ethical alternative to centralized platforms like Instagram. Federated, Ad-Free, No algorithms, No 3rd party analytics or tracking. Can run on your own server.
      View 130 alternatives to PixelFed
    • GNU social is a continuation of the StatusNet project. It is social communication software for both public and private communications.
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 95 alternatives to GNU social

      Discontinued

      Git repo seems abandoned, last update was in 2017.

      • Free • Open Source
      • Self-Hosted
      godisinthewind It is very similar to twitter, but it is decentralized. In many instances the character count is higher which is nice.
      Positive comment almost 4 years ago 7 users agree and 2 don't

    • Distributed social network. With focus on decentralization, privacy, interoperability.
      Some users think this is a great alternative to Twitter, some don't.
      View 122 alternatives to Friendica
      • Free • Open Source
      • Linux
      • BSD
      • Self-Hosted
      • PHP
      clacke_ Friendica is part of the OStatus fediverse, the ActivityPub fediverse and the Diaspora Federation. Your service is only one out of many, and you can interact with users running Diaspora, SocialHome, Mastodon, Pleroma, PixelFed, PeerTube and other services, and like and comment on their content. If you don't like how your service is run, you can run your own and still be part of the same networks.
      Positive comment almost 2 years ago 1 users agree

      skyling Designed after the Facebook-style model, not microblogging
      Negative comment almost 2 years ago 2 users agree

    • Nitter is a free and open-source front-end mirror of Twitter, which allows you to consult Twitter, with a focus on privacy.
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 125 alternatives to Nitter
      • Free • Open Source
      • Online
      • Google Chrome
      • Firefox
      It's a good front-end alternative to Twitter, if you like privacy and such. It's not an alternative _service_ to Twitter, as it still connects to Twitter servers.
      Positive comment 9 months ago

    • Pleroma is a free, federated social networking server built on open protocols. It is compatible with GNU Social, Mastodon, and many other ActivityPub and OStatus implementations.
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 17 alternatives to Pleroma
      • Free • Open Source
      • Online
      • Self-Hosted
      clacke_ Pleroma is part of the OStatus fediverse and the ActivityPub fediverse. Your service is only one out of many, and you can interact with users running SocialHome, Mastodon, Pleroma, PixelFed, PeerTube and other services, and like and comment on their content. If you don't like how your service is run, you can run your own and still be part of the same networks.
      Positive comment almost 2 years ago 0 users agree and 1 doesn't

      ccesar Interface similar to Twitter, interacts with the Fediverse, better moderation tools than Mastodon.
      Positive comment over 2 years ago 0 users agree and 1 doesn't

    • A decentralized messaging and sharing app built on top of Secure Scuttlebutt (SSB).
      Almost everyone thinks this is a great alternative to Twitter.
      View 53 alternatives to Patchwork
      • Free • Open Source
      • Mac
      • Windows
      • Linux
      Patchwork is a decentralized messaging platform where your computer networks have the same topology as your social networks.
      Positive comment over 4 years ago 4 users agree

      ktorn Patchwork the p2p social network is actively used and growing fast. The "Patchwork" client is being replaced by newer clients, like patchwork-next.
      Positive comment about 4 years ago 1 users agree

      borysn89 this is a healthy community space
      Positive comment over 1 year ago