Mastodon, an emerging competitor to platforms like X and Threads, is exploring a new way to generate funds: in-app donations. The organization unveiled plans to introduce banners within its Android and iOS apps, encouraging users to contribute financially.
Initially, these prompts will appear only on Mastodon’s own servers, Mastodon.social and Mastodon.online. Importantly, users can easily dismiss these prompts, which will only target accounts that have been active for at least four weeks. Mastodon assures its community that these reminders won’t be overly persistent.
This strategy has proven effective for other nonprofits. For instance, the Wikimedia Foundation secures most of its funding from individual donors, facilitated by banners on Wikipedia. Although Mastodon’s user base of 8.1 million registered accounts and under 1 million monthly active users is smaller, these banners could simplify the donation process, encouraging users to support the platform.
Mastodon plans to expand this initiative to its website and potentially roll it out to all other Mastodon instances. This expansion would enable individual server administrators to receive direct support from their users, aiding in their operations.
As a decentralized social media platform, Mastodon uniquely navigates financial sustainability. Unlike ad-supported giants such as Meta, Mastodon has depended mainly on user donations via Patreon, alongside contributions from open source-focused funds. In 2023, the platform raised €545,000, marking a 65% year-on-year increase. However, its Patreon donor base decreased by nearly 23% to 7,400, prompting a shift towards more robust fundraising methods amidst growing competition from Meta and new players like Bluesky.
Mastodon emphasized in a blog post, “We recognize that collecting money can be complex. We are committed to collaborating with our community to ensure that we secure the future of a more ethical and independent social web.”
