Now you can watch Bluesky's explosive user growth in real time

More people have been flocking to Bluesky lately, with many likely joining as an alternative to Elon Musk's X. One week after the US presidential election, Bluesky snagged more than 1 million new members, a company spokesperson told The New York Times on Tuesday.  

The user count keeps growing. According to the newest stats, it has shot up to more than 16.7 million since Tuesday, up from 9 million in early September and 12 million around mid-October. You can even watch the numbers climb in real time.

Also: How to get started using Bluesky Social: Everything you need to know

On the mobile front, Bluesky's iOS app is currently at the top of the charts among all free apps in Apple's App Store. As Number 1, it's ahead of other popular free apps like Threads, ChatGPT, Google, TikTok, and Instagram.

At the same time, X has watched its numbers dwindle. This past April, the Musk-owned platform had around 611 million users, according to stats from Statista and other sources. At last count in September, that number had dropped to 586 million. The decline has been especially felt in the US and UK, according to The Financial Times, as spotted by Social Media Today. But even in the EU, the number of X users fell by 5% over the first half of 2024.

In contrast, Bluesky has enjoyed steady and sometimes sudden growth in its audience since its launch around two years ago. This past February, the user count surged by more than 800,000 after the network removed its invite-only requirement. Last month, the audience jumped by half a million in just one day. But that was just after X activated a new feature to let blocked accounts still see posts from the person who had blocked them.

That brings us to the present day. Why another sudden exodus of users from X to Bluesky? There are a few likely reasons.

Also: How to migrate from X to Bluesky without losing your followers

There are the usual complaints about X's increased toxicity and polarization, probably more keenly felt during the run-up to this year's US presidential election. As people with different political and social beliefs have duked it out on X, others caught in the crossfire have likely left for safer ground.

Bluesky has "become a refuge for people who want to have the kind of social media experience that Twitter used to provide, but without all the far-right activism, the misinformation, the hate speech, the bots and everything else," media scholar Axel Bruns said, according to The Guardian. "The more liberal kind of Twitter community has really now escaped from there and seems to have moved en masse to Bluesky."

Even many of those remaining on X are unhappy with it. A YouGov survey from this past August found that 42% of those who use X daily have a negative view of it. 

This year Musk regularly displayed his ardent support of Trump. The X owner even ran into controversy when he started doling out millions of dollars to alleged swing voters. Though a judge ruled the action legal, Musk's payouts still raised concerns among many.

And now that the election is over and Trump the victor, Musk seems destined to play a role in the new administration. And that has some X and Bluesky users worried.

Also: How to manage Bluesky, Mastodon, and Threads all from one free app

"I am still on X but after January, when X could be owned by a de facto member of the Trump administration, its functions as a Trump propaganda outlet and far-right radicalization machine could be accelerated," said Ruth Ben-Ghiat, an historian and New York University professor, according to The Guardian.

Responding to reports that Musk planned to spend election night with Trump, Bluesky posted on its own X account that "I can guarantee that no bluesky team members will be sitting with a presidential candidate tonight and giving them direct access to control what you see online."

Also: 7 things to know about Bluesky before you join - and why you should

Even without X's drawbacks, Bluesky continues to innovate, another factor likely drawing in new people. In recent months, Bluesky has added such features as video attachments, direct messages, the ability to pin a post, and customizable fonts. On tap for the near future is a subscription option with higher-quality video uploads and profile customizations. However, the company promises that Bluesky will always be free to use.