Nearly 20 million people have joined Bluesky, a social network that gives you fine-grained control over what you see and who you interact with. I think it is the future of social media, says Chris Sto

The social network Bluesky has been growing at a rapid rate ever since the US presidential election concluded. And now it shows no signs of anything but continued expansion. Bluesky is currently No. 1 on the free app section of the US iPhone App Store,

The new user count just kept accelerating from there. According to the latest stats, the X alternative has shot up to more than 19 million users, up from 9 million in early September and 12 million around mid-October. You can watch the numbers continue to climb in real time here.

Over the past week, Bluesky’s growth has exploded, more than doubling to 15 million-plus users as people seek alternatives to X, Facebook and Threads. It has rocketed to the top of Apple’s and Google’s app stores as the most downloaded free app. Its ascent has been so rapid that the company has been forced to grow up practically overnight.

Bluesky and Facebook may share the same industry, but their origins could hardly be more different. Facebook, launched by Mark Zuckerberg in 2004, began rather humbly as a networking site for college students but evolved over the next decade into the global phenomenon we know today.

While it remains small compared to established online spaces such as X, it has emerged as an alternative for those looking for a different mood.

As social media users flock to Bluesky for a Twitter/X alternative, find out more about how you can create a perfectly Broadway-themed algorithm. Find out how to create an account, which Broadway stars to follow on Bluesky,