A Beginner’s Guide to Mastodon
Get a high-level overview of Mastodon: what it is and how it works. You’ll learn why it’s considered to be one of the best “X (Twitter) alternatives” and how to set up your own account.
Schedule Mastodon posts
To the fediverse and beyond
Mastodon is the fediverse platform to watch — and Buffer can help you make your mark there. Easily build your community on both decentralized and traditional platforms with Buffer’s flexible planning, posting, and analytics tools.
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Schedule your posts
Queue up and schedule your content in advance from a single, simple dashboard.
Crosspost to any platform
Share to X, LinkedIn, Threads, Bluesky, and broaden your audience beyond your immediate followers.
Save and organize ideas
Manage and organize all your content ideas in a single hub.
Enter the fediverse
Make your mark on decentralized social media with Mastodon.
Your ultimate Mastodon toolkit
Buffer isn’t just a post scheduler; it’s a complete toolkit designed to help you grow and engage your Mastodon community with ease.
Schedule
Take control of your posting schedule
Create now, share later. Set your content to be published for when your community is most engaged — without the need to manually publish when the time comes.
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Extend you reach beyond the server
Meet your community where they are. Craft your content once, then easily schedule and repurpose your Mastodon posts across X, Bluesky, LinkedIn, Threads and more, maximizing your content’s reach throughout the fediverse and beyond.
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A home for all your content
Save all your post ideas in Buffer’s Create space. Store ideas as inspiration strikes while on the go with the Buffer app, and organize your ideas with color-coded tags and a Kanban board.
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Welcome to the future of social media
Mastodon is one of the platforms ushering in a new era of social media — and that era is decentralized. In other words, no single company ‘owns’ your audience and your content. You do.
But what does that mean, exactly?
Learn more about decentralized social media
Mastodon and other decentralized platforms are built on open protocols that make them interoperable (read: able to talk to each other).
Mastodon, Threads, and more are part of an ecosystem called the fediverse [federated + universe] built on the same ActivityPub protocol. If users on, say, Threads, opt in, their content will be visible on Mastodon, and other networks like this. Their content and audience transcend the platform they originated on. Bluesky, another prominent decentralized platform, is built on a different open protocol, AT Protocol, which the company plans to federate, too, so other networks can be built atop it.
Buffer can help bridge the gaps between these two new, decentralized worlds. With Buffer’s tools, you have a central hub to manage all your decentralized social media accounts. This means more control, better organization, and seamless cross-posting to ensure your message reaches a wider audience. Your content, your audience, on the fediverse and beyond.
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Our best advice for Mastodon
Whether you’re starting a new account from scratch or looking to make an impact in the decentralized space, we’ve got you covered.
Making Sense of Decentralized Social Media (and What it Means for the Future)
A deep dive into the world of decentralized social media. Learn about the history of the phenomenon, the challenges these new platforms face, and what it all means for the future.
The Fediverse: A Beginner’s Guide to Decentralized Social Networks
This article will introduce you to the fediverse, key decentralized platforms, and some reasons to get started.
What people are saying
The Mastodon channel in Buffer allows my brand to connect with people on centralized and decentralized social platforms, giving me the most extensive social marketing reach possible.
FAQs
What is Mastodon?
What is Mastodon?
Mastodon is a decentralized, open-source, and community-led social network that allows users to set up servers to communicate and interact with each other. Unlike other popular social media platforms, Mastodon doesn’t have any ads or algorithms, its timeline is chronological, and it has extensive content moderation, making it a great choice for those seeking a more calm and considered social media experience.
With Mastodon, users can post, comment, follow, and connect with each other in real-time.
What is a toot?
What is a toot?
A toot is a post published on the Mastodon social media platform. Toots are similar to posts on X (Twitter), except that you have up to 500 characters to express yourself, as well as the ability to add GIFs, videos, and images.
How does Mastodon scheduling work?
How does Mastodon scheduling work?
With Buffer’s Mastodon scheduler, you can plan, collaborate, schedule, and publish content that drives meaningful engagement and growth for your brand. Some of our favorite features include:
- Customizable posting schedules
- Publishing capabilities for all sorts of media, including videos, images, and more
- A composer that allows you to craft a different message for each social network
- Crossposting capabilities, which allow you to easily share posts to Facebook, X (Twitter), Threads, LinkedIn, and more
- A Create Space that allows you to save your post ideas and come back to them later
- Tags to help you sort and organize your content by theme or category
- A browser extension to quickly share content from anywhere on the web
- A drafts and approval process to easily collaborate with your team
Just to name a few!
What types of Mastodon posts can I schedule with Buffer?
What types of Mastodon posts can I schedule with Buffer?
We currently support text (up to 500 characters), link preview, image, GIF, and video posts. You can spruce up your posts with links, hashtags, and mentions, too.
Can I schedule Mastodon posts to publish automatically?
Can I schedule Mastodon posts to publish automatically?
Yes, Buffer automatically publishes your Mastodon posts for the scheduled time you set.
How many posts can I schedule to Mastodon?
How many posts can I schedule to Mastodon?
With our free plan, you can schedule up to 10 posts at a time. Need more? All our paid plans let you schedule up to 2,000 posts, starting at $5 per month. There is no monthly, or yearly limit.
How do I start scheduling my Mastodon posts?
How do I start scheduling my Mastodon posts?
You can start scheduling your Mastodon posts by signing up to our free plan or trial our premium features free for 14 days. Once you’ve signed up, connect your Mastodon server, log into your Mastodon account, and then start scheduling to your profile immediately.
Is Buffer an AI tool?
Is Buffer an AI tool?
No. Like our other channels, Buffer’s AI assistant can be used to help suggest new ideas or your refine your posts. But it’s entirely optional. Your posts are not automatically generated, changed, or tweaked by the AI. The AI Assistant is a standalone feature — Buffer is not an AI tool, and all our core features (posting, scheduling, planning, and more) aren’t AI-powered. You can learn more about how AI Assistant works.