Bluesky claims it's outperforming X and Threads in driving publisher engagement
Bluesky claims it is driving more engagement and traffic to publishers than rival platforms X and Threads. In a recent post, the company shared data and testimonials from major publishers like The Boston Globe and The Guardian.
What the publishers are saying about Bluesky
Matt Karolian of The Boston Globe highlighted the platform's impact, stating, "Traffic from Bluesky to @bostonglobe.com is already 3x that of Threads, and we are seeing 4.5x the conversions to paying digital subscribers." Similarly, Dave Earley of The Guardian reported, “Traffic from Bluesky to @theguardian.com is significantly higher—at least 2x that of Threads.”
Bluesky also shared a screenshot from Kevin Rothrock of The New York Times. In his post on the platform's performance, Rothrock wrote, “Engagement on Bluesky compared to X is nuts. Despite a vastly smaller user base, the stats are undeniable. Musk has trashed the platform [X], and users are not locked in.” Marc Elias from Democracy Docket also, “Traffic from Bluesky to @democracydocket.com is surging, while X is falling and Threads remains largely dormant.”
The trend extends beyond news publishers. Patak, an open-source web developer, shared that despite having only 6% of their X follower count on Bluesky, their Vite 6.0 announcement achieved half the reposts and a third of the likes. Most of the engagement, they noted, came from open-source maintainers active on Bluesky.
The platform has seen a surge in user growth, adding over 7 million new users since the U.S. presidential elections. Bluesky says its success lies in user interaction, despite having a significantly smaller audience compared to its competitors.
Bluesky credits its open-link promotion policy and active user engagement for the surge.
According to one of the company representatives, “We want Bluesky to be a great home for journalists, publishers, and creators. Unlike other platforms, we don’t de-promote your links. Post all the links you want — Bluesky is a lobby to the open web.”
Bluesky claims it will remain ad-free as it explores alternative revenue models, unlike X and Threads. The company says its focus is on enhancing user experience rather than monetizing through advertisements.