Use Bridgy Fed to Connect Mastodon and Bluesky
The great Twitter exodus of 2022 is still happening. It’s just a little… broken. Many experienced Twitter users have switched to Bluesky. Lots of tech-savvy people still hang out on Mastodon (at least I do ).
In theory, these are two decentralized services, but users of one service cannot communicate with users of the other. In any case, this was not possible before Bridgy Fed . This is a beta service that allows Bluesky and Fediverse-compatible apps like Mastodon to interact. I tested this with a friend and it works – we now see each other’s posts, like each other’s posts and even talk to each other.
Let’s go back a little. Mastodon is part of Fediverse, a set of services that connect using the same protocol. Threads, another place where many Twitter users have found their way, is starting to connect to the Fediverse ; WordPress blogs can also connect. This all points to a future where people can use any social network they like and follow people who prefer to use another, but with one problem: Bluesky, although decentralized, is not part of that network.
This is where Bridgy Fed comes in. With this service, individual users of any service can choose to “link” their accounts. I tested this with my friend and Lifehacker alum Eric Ravenscraft, who hangs out on Bluesky more than I do. It worked well.
Create a bridge account
Setting up the bridge couldn’t be easier: you just need to sign up for an account.
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Mastodon and other Fediverse users need to find and follow the
@bsky.brid.gyaccount (it’s easiest to just search for it – note that some instances of Mastodon may block the bridge). -
Bluesky users need to follow the account @ap.brid.gy .
That’s all! Bridgy Fed will create an account for you that users of the other service can follow. Now you can find your account on another service and share it with your friends.
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If you are a Fediverse user, your new Bluesky account will be
@[user].[instance].ap.brid.gy. For example, my Mastodon account @ [email protected] becomes @jhpot.mastodon.social.ap.brid.gy on Bluesky. -
If you are a Bluesky user, your new Fediverse account will be
@[handle]@bsky.brid.gy. For example, Eric Bluesky’s account @lordravenscraft.bsky.social can be found at@ [email protected].
This is a little more complicated than I’d like – it would be great if the service sent you a private message letting you know where your new “bridge” profile is. However, I was able to find my new Bluesky profile pretty quickly. And I was also able to chat with Eric. This is what interaction with Mastodon looks like for me:
And here’s what it looked like in Bluesky for Eric:
Replies appeared in mentions as usual, as did likes. If all you want is to be able to organically interact with someone who is using a different network, this works well.
However, there are a few hangups. This only works if both people connect their accounts. This means I don’t see comments from Bluesky users unless they are bridged and it works both ways. Several Mastodon users responded to my conversation with Eric, and Eric was unable to see those responses. This makes sense: only comments from users connected via the bridge are transmitted. This may lead to an asymmetrical dialogue, but the voluntary nature of the bridge service makes this inevitable.
And there are other freezes. First, Bluesky has a 300 character limit on posts, while Fediverse doesn’t have a hard limit. Result: some posts have been cut. I could go on – this is far from an ideal solution. You can and should read the documentation to find out more. However, for now it’s a way for people who aren’t in the same decentralized social ecosystem to connect with each other, and I love it. I will definitely ask friends I want to chat with on Bluesky to “link” their accounts.