3 Liberating Decentralized Alternatives For Reddit

Reddit is a news aggregator & community discussion platform. It has gained mass popularity and wide adoption in the last decade. It continues to be the favorite online discussion platform for most people.

However, there are some downsides to Reddit. A few are listed below.

• Centralized Server: Reddit's content is stored on a central server. They have total control over the data. The user does not have any privacy. Reddit can moderate content in any way.
• Censorship: There are cases in Reddit where communities discussing Reddit Alternatives are banned. This platform is so protective that many posts are removed. This thwarts free of speech.
• Advertisements: Reddit can show you promoted Ads based on your browsing behavior. These Ads can interfere with and hinder a seamless browsing experience. Thus, Advertisements can act as a disturbance.
• API Changes: Reddit recently made a few changes to its API (Application Programming Interface). It changed the method and technicalities related to API access, which is set to harm third-party users using Reddit API services for business purposes.

Are you tired of companies like Reddit holding so much power?

There is a need for a Reddit Alternative, especially a decentralized one. A decentralized alternative to Reddit provides a solution to all the above challenges. The solutions are listed below.

• Decentralized Server
• Censorship Resistant
• No Advertisements

I have discussed 3 decentralized alternatives to Reddit, which liberates from the clutches of centralized systems.

Let’s get the ball rolling.

Aether

Aether is a decentralized Reddit alternative that offers both an online and a desktop version. It follows the decentralized ethos with a democratic governance model. The platform does not govern the users; instead, the users govern themselves.

This innovative Reddit alternative was founded by Burak Nehbit and Benedict Lau. In a recent move, Burak Nehbit accepted a job at Google. However, he claims to manage the Aether application outside his job hours.

There are no censorship issues, as one can frequently experience on Reddit. The data is not stored in a centralized server. Instead, the content is stored on different nodes on different computers. In short, there is no one central server like Reddit.

Although censorship-resistant, it has a BlockList feature to remove content that is not required by law. Individual users can talk to BlockList and remove content based on voting.

People feel the BlockList feature hinders freedom of expression. Lau, the founder, says people can fork this open-source project and create their own version of the application if they feel the platform does not support freedom of thought.

The content is ephemeral in Aether. As in SnapChat, content eventually disappears from the application. Lau says users can take a backup.

Let’s move on to discuss the next alternative, Lemmy.

Lemmy

Before discussing the next alternative, you should be aware of Fediverse. Fediverse is a collection of many social networks that can communicate with each other. It is a portmanteau of the words ‘Federated’ and ‘Universe’, meaning ‘Federated Universe’.

Lemmy is yet another decentralized alternative to Reddit. Like Reddit, it is a news aggregator and community discussion platform. Lemmy is also a decentralized forum for the Fediverse, which means it can communicate with other social platforms belonging to the Fediverse. Kbin is another Reddit alternative, which we will discuss in the next section. Just because Lemmy and Kbin belong to the Fediverse, they can communicate with each other.

Lemmy supports the hosting of many Lemmy instances or servers. LemmyML and LemmyWorld are widely recognized Lemmy instances, but there are many others. You can find all Lemmy instances on this page.

Lemmy is an open-source software created with the Rust Programming Language. Any developer can fork the code stub and create their own version of Lemmy.

Lemmy is created under an AGPL License. AGPL means GNU Affero General Public License. AGPL is a free & copy-left license designed to ensure software community cooperation.

This platform is very similar to Reddit in terms of features and operations. One can subscribe to forums and participate in community discussions. One can upvote or downvote any post. Any post has a title, body, URL, and NSFW (not safe for work) marker. Lemmy shows trending communities, which is another important feature.

Lemmy mobile apps are available for both iOS & Android systems. The availability of mobile apps is another reason for the increased user base. The Web App is also responsive and mobile-friendly.

Moving to the next alternative, Kbin.

Minds

Now, let’s talk about another interesting decentralized alternative: Minds.

If you’re like me and you feel that Big Tech platforms have way too much control over what you can say, share, and see, then Minds might just be what you’re looking for. 

Minds was founded by Bill Ottman and John Ottman (no relation, funnily enough) back in 2015. Their goal was clear: create a space where users, not corporations, have the power. 

Unlike Reddit or Twitter, where your posts could get shadow-banned or pushed down the algorithm rabbit hole without your knowing, Minds works on a much more transparent system. You literally earn rewards for your activity! Every post, like, share, and comment can earn you Minds Tokens, which you can then use to boost your content or even support other creators you love.

One thing I really appreciate about Minds is that it’s open-source. If you don’t like something? Fork it. Change it. Build your version. No locked doors, no mystery black-box algorithms.

Privacy-wise, Minds goes hard - your personal data isn’t mined and sold like on traditional platforms.

Of course, Minds isn’t perfect. The design can sometimes feel a little less polished compared to the ultra-slick interfaces we’re used to. And yes, because it’s decentralized and open, you might occasionally come across content you wouldn't normally find on mainstream, heavily moderated platforms. But personally, I think a little roughness is a small price to pay for freedom and control.

If you’re tired of feeling like a product instead of a person on social media, Minds is definitely worth checking out.

Alright, let’s wrap up with some final thoughts.

Final Thoughts

With these Decentralized Reddit Alternatives, you are well on your way to a democratic governance model. No longer do you need to put up with censorship issues—these alternatives are censorship resistant. You no longer need to tolerate Privacy issues—these alternatives are privacy-focused. These alternatives are highly acclaimed among Web3 communities.

You can start using these alternatives and share your feedback with us. This will help us to improve the blog content. You can also suggest your choice of Decentralized Reddit Alternative. This will allow us to consider adding your suggestion to this listicle. You can reach us at [email protected]

Looking for a secure, privacy-first tool beyond socials? Try BlockSurvey today and take control of your data!