Indigo brings together the open social web into one app

Are you trying to get rid of social media owned by billionaires but don’t know where to start? A new app called Indigo is launching today to allow users to explore the open social web across multiple services, all under one roof.

Decentralized social media is having a moment, as more people realize they want control over their algorithms, feeds, moderation options, and other aspects of participating in online communities. However, there are multiple paths to choose from. Users can choose the decentralized servers that make up the Mastodon social network, built on the older ActivityPub protocol (now also used by Meta’s Threads), or they can join the newer social network Bluesky, which runs on the AT protocol.

Indigo does not force people to choose. Instead, the app brings separate social networks together into one seamless experience, with a unified timeline that syncs across devices and a composer that allows users to post to both services simultaneously.

The app is built by Soapbox Software – the same team that developed the Croissant cross-publishing tool, which provides an easy way to publish to Mastodon, Bluesky, and Threads from a single interface. Indigo co-founder Ben McCarthy, who has also developed Obscura and other apps, noted to TechCrunch that the new app was built on the team’s previous experience with Croissant, while adding new features that make it a great standalone app for users of both open social networks.

When using Indigo, you can distinguish Bluesky posts from Mastodon in your timeline: Bluesky profiles are highlighted in blue, while Mastodon profiles are highlighted in purple.

The app also includes other tools and features, including options that allow users to automatically scroll to the top when new posts arrive, hide NSFW content, mute users or keywords, filter the responses you see, enable dark mode, and more.

Additionally, you can access all of your custom feeds and lists across both social networks through the app’s “More” menu, track your notifications across both services, and search across Bluesky and Mastodon using Indigo’s global search.

The ability to publish and sync schedules across devices and track trends across networks requires a paid subscription of $4.99 per month or $34.99 per year. (There’s also a one-time purchase option of $119.99 for those dedicated to the open social web.) Currently, Indigo works across iPhone, iPad, and Mac.