Bluesky threads
A thread is a run of posts, each a reply to the last. It is how a longer thought lives on Bluesky, and its first post does most of the work.
How threads work on Bluesky
A Bluesky post is 300 characters. A thread is a post followed by replies from the same account, each replying to the one before, and Bluesky's app shows them together as one conversation. In the Following feed the first post appears as a post; the rest are replies, which most people's feed settings fold away. So the first post is what nearly everyone sees, and it decides whether anyone taps through to the rest.
Search and custom feeds find a thread by its first post too. A tag on part six of a thread puts part six, on its own, into a feed, where it makes no sense.
Writing one that reads well
- Open with the whole point. The first post should stand alone: a person who reads only that should still have got something. "Seven things I learned pricing commissions" is a hook; "A thread." is not.
- One idea per post. Each part should be a thing someone could quote by itself. If a part holds two ideas, it is two parts.
- End each part on something that makes the next one worth a tap. Not a cliffhanger every time; a question, a "but", a number.
- Keep parts short of the limit. A part at 299 characters has no room for the count to shift when a link is shortened or a mention resolves. Around 280 is comfortable.
- Put the tags and the link on the first post. That is the one that gets found and the one that gets reposted.
- Close with something to do. The last post is where the readers who stayed are most engaged; ask the question, point at the pinned post, name the link.
Threads and reply settings
Bluesky lets you choose who can reply to a post: everyone, nobody, people you follow, people mentioned, or a list. The setting is made on the first post and governs the whole thread. A thread meant as a conversation wants everyone; a thread that is an announcement can close replies and take quotes instead. Updrift's Planner sets it per post, or by default per account.
Scheduling a thread with Updrift
Bluesky's app cannot schedule a post, let alone a thread. The Planner can, and it takes the splitting off you:
- Write the whole thing in the composer as one piece of text.
- Put a line holding only --- where one post should end and the next begin. Text over 300 characters with no marks is packed paragraph by paragraph and then sentence by sentence instead, but your own marks read better.
- Keep each part under about 280 characters. A part that is still too long is packed the same way.
- End with a line of only hashtags. The Planner moves that line to the first post, where Bluesky search and feeds find the thread. Keep the first post short enough that the hook and the tags fit with room to spare.
- Check the preview: each part is shown as it will go out, with the label the account's default gives it if it carries an image.
- Set the time, or let the Planner pick one of the account's best hours. The parts go out together, each a reply to the last.
The Planner keeps at least 45 minutes between an account's own posts, so a thread gets clear air before and after it, and two threads never land on top of each other. The Planner comes with Duo, £7 a month for two accounts, 7 days free.
Reading how a thread did
Bluesky reports likes, reposts and replies per post, so a thread's figures are spread across its parts. Updrift treats a thread as one post: the parts belong to the first one, which is the one people react to and repost, and the whole is set against the account's usual post like any other. In the What works report, threads are a format of their own, so you can see whether threads beat your usual more often than single posts do. For many accounts they do; for some they do not, and it is worth knowing which you are.
When not to thread
A thread of two is a post that was too long. Trim it, or make the second part a reply you add when someone asks. A thread is for a thing that genuinely has parts: a list, a story, a how-to, an argument with steps. Readers on Bluesky are generous with threads that earn their length and quick to mute the ones that do not.
Questions
How long can a Bluesky post be?
300 characters, counted as Bluesky counts them. Links and mentions count towards it. Anything longer has to become a thread.
Where do hashtags go in a thread?
On the first post. Bluesky search and custom feeds find a thread by its first post, so a tag line at the end reaches nobody. Updrift's Planner moves a closing line of hashtags to the first post for you.
Can I schedule a thread on Bluesky?
Not in Bluesky's own app. Updrift's Planner takes text longer than a post, splits it where you mark, and posts the parts as one thread at the time you set.
Try the Planner free for 7 days.
A card to start, charged on day 8 unless you cancel, from £4 a month. Your stats are free either way.