Ethical Alternatives & Resources
Tools, services and organisations that do less harm than the default choice, in 43 categories. We’re re-checking every entry against our checklist, one category at a time.
Social media
Social networks, forums and photo sharing with no ads and no company selling your attention, mostly on open protocols. For ethical social media, we look at who runs it and how it’s paid for, chronological feeds, and how easily you can take your posts and followers with you.
Our top pick is Mastodon: run by a non-profit, ad-free and open source, with a chronological feed across 7,360 independent servers; moderation varies from server to server. For photos, Pixelfed is ad-free and open source on the same network, though it leans on one lead developer.
Our guide to Facebook alternatives matches them to what you use Facebook for.
How we choose: we check every network against the 6 principles in our manifesto, from who owns it to its staying power. Last checked on 13 October 2026.
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Ente Photos
End-to-end encrypted photo storage with shared family albums, 10 GB free, open source
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Loops
Ad-free, federated short-video app from Pixelfed's developer, still in beta
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Lemmy
Federated, donation-funded discussion forums in the style of Reddit, no ads or tracking
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Bluesky
Open-protocol public network with 44 million users and no ads; says it won't train AI on posts
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Hylo
Free, open-source space for local and purpose-driven groups, with no ads or algorithm
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Mobilizon
Federated, nonprofit tool for public events and community groups, run from France
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mltshp
Image-sharing community owned by a Massachusetts nonprofit, posting from $3 a year
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Factr
A social network built for organising and sharing knowledge
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Flarum
Free, open-source forum software built by volunteers; you need your own host
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MyBB
Volunteer-run, open-source forum software with regular security updates; self-hosted
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Movim
Open-source social network and chat on the XMPP standard, funded by its users
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Hubzilla
Federated platform for community sites with groups, files and calendars, run by an association
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Hyphanet (was Freenet)
Volunteer-run peer-to-peer network for censorship-resistant sites and forums
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Discourse
Open-source forum software, free to self-host, with a free hosted plan and Pro at $100 a month
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Micro.blog
Ad-free, chronological microblogging with your own domain, from $5 a month
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Pixelfed
Ad-free, open-source photo sharing on the fediverse with chronological feeds
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Diaspora
The original decentralised Facebook alternative, volunteer-run and still updated
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Friendica
Facebook-style federated network with no company behind it; talks to Mastodon
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Mastodon
Nonprofit-run, ad-free network of 7,360 independent servers with chronological feeds
