Are you ditching the Bluesky X? These tips will make the migration easier

“Bluesky has juice.”

The phrase seems to be coming up a lot as people flock to the X-verse, with Elon Musk’s role in elevating Donald Trump back to the White House as a starting point. Bluesky says a million accounts have joined the network since last week, bringing the total to about 15 million users.

Bluesky is notable in part because it is built on an open framework called the AT Protocol, which allows for decentralized networks that are not owned by a single company. But it’s also the most obvious X-like of all text-driven social media feeds—with more topics than Threads, and easier to jump into than Mastodon. (Despite the localization, currently the only network you can easily join is Bluesky’s, which helps get started.) Oddly enough, Bluesky’s vibe right now also feels a bit like late aughts X (back when it was still called Twitter)—it’s weird and weird, but it’s also fun and welcoming as more people enter.

But like any social network where you are starting from scratch, it can be difficult to get started and avoid the problem of a wasteful feed in the beginning. Here are some tips that may help:

Check out other Starter Packs

The Starter pack is one of Bluesky’s smartest features, allowing anyone to create a list of other people to follow. You can even track an entire package with one click (like, say, this package for tech media people) quickly solving the problem of having an empty server.

Although Bluesky doesn’t offer a central way to browse premium packages, you’ll find a searchable list of them on the third-party Bluesky Directory website.

Get your X next to Bluesky

Sky Follower Bridge is a free Chrome Web Store extension that helps you get your X followers on Bluesky. It works by scanning everyone’s names on X’s followers or following pages, then looking for Bluesky names that match.

Matching is not perfect, so clicking the “Follow All” button may result in random people in your feed. But you can also scan the list of matches and follow those you are sure are the same person.

Follow other feeds

Bluesky offers more control over what you see than any other X mode. The main “Following” feed is a chronological list of posts from the accounts you follow, while the “Discover” and “Popular with Friends” feeds deliver content from outside your following list.

But if you go to Bluesky’s Feeds section, you’ll find all kinds of additional feeds to add. There’s a “News” feed with posts from verified publications, a “Mutuals” feed for posts from people you follow, a “Gram” feed that’s just pictures, and a “Quiet Posters” feed that filters your loudest noise. he follows.

The feeds you add will appear under the “Feeds” section of the Bluesky sidebar menu. You can also “Pin” a feed to make it appear at the top of the Bluesky home page.

Adjust your main feed

Bluesky’s main “Next” feed doesn’t have to be chronological. If you go to Settings > Follow Feed Preferences, there’s an option to “Show Posts From My Feed,” which will mix in occasional posts from the feed you’ve saved above.

You can also hide replies, reposts, and quote posts from this menu.

Find more people to follow

Bluesky’s search tab isn’t just about searching. It also includes a list of suggested accounts to follow based on your activity. The more accounts you follow that match your interests, the better these recommendations will be.

Note the rating lists

Much to Jack Dorsey’s surprise, Bluesky offers powerful moderation tools to keep unwanted posts and people out of your timeline.

Most notably, users can create customizable control lists, which can mute or block an entire group of accounts with a single click. Want to ban accounts that promote AI-generated content or delete other creators’ content without credit? Find a blacklist, hit the “Subscribe” button—yes, this is controversial—then block or mute.

One caveat: Blocking on Bluesky is public information, and you can use the ClearSky website to see who is blocking who (including you). If you want creativity, silence people instead.

Control your speech

When posting to Bluesky, press the “Anyone can share” button to reveal some useful settings. You can disable quote posts, disable replies, or limit replies to your following or accounts you specify.

Bluesky also offers additional anti-poisoning tools after shipping. Click the “…” button on any reply to your post to hide it from yourself or everyone else. You can also hit “…” when someone sends you a quote and choose “unquote” to prevent their followers from seeing what you wrote.

Shut up

Go to Settings > Moderation > Mute words and tags, and you can hide posts from your timeline if they contain certain keywords.

Limit your notifications

Bluesky’s notification filters are still very limited, but you can at least click the gear icon and check “Enable priority notifications,” which limits alerts to replies and quotes from the accounts you follow. Bluesky says it will add better character controls in the future.

Create all threads

If Bluesky’s 300 character limit feels overwhelming, just click the + button at the bottom of the post box. This allows you to add more posts below the original, so you can post the whole thread at once.

Add a separate text reminder

Under Settings > Accessibility, consider turning on “Require other text before sending.” That way you won’t forget to add photo captions for people with visual impairments.

Try another app or two

Bluesky’s mobile apps and website are fine, but power users may want to check out third-party Bluesky clients instead.

Deck.blue, for example, offers a multi-column layout that closely resembles Tweetdeck (now known as iX Pro), allowing you to set up different bird’s-eye views of feeds, mentions, lists, and search terms. And unlike X Pro, it’s free (although you can support the project through Patreon). Meanwhile, FastCo editor Harry McCracken suggests Openvibe, which lets you browse Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads in one app.

Note that these apps require logging in with your Bluesky credentials. Instead of giving them your actual password, go to Settings > App Passwords and create a one-time password for each app. These are one-time passwords that you can revoke at any time, keeping your true Bluesky password safe.

A few caveats

Before you get started with Bluesky, you should also be aware of some limitations:

• The list is difficult to create, requiring you to look at each account individually and click through several menu layers to add one person. (In comparison, the process of creating a starter pack is very simple, with a list of accounts to check and a search box to filter them.)
• There is no way to create a private List for your personal use.
• Private accounts are not possible on Bluesky, and you cannot limit posts to only your followers.
• More granular notification filters should allow you to filter likes and reposts.
• Bluesky’s grand promise of alliance has yet to fully materialize (except for early access to moderation). At least for now, there’s no real amount of escape if Bluesky becomes X again.

Last but not least: If you pass by Bluesky, say hello.