Last year I updated my having a great first PyCon post to note that Mastodon would likely be more popular than Twitter at PyCon.
My guess was correct.
During PyCon US 2024, Mastodon overtook Twitter for the most posts on the #PyConUS hashtag.
In the fall of 2024, Bluesky really took off. It currently seems like Bluesky is now a bit more popular than Mastodon for Python posts in general… but that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be the most popular social media network during the conference.
This year I’m guessing that Mastodon will still be the most popular network for #PyConUS posts, though I wouldn’t be very surprised if Bluesky took the lead instead.
What do the social networks think?
I decided to pose this question to the various social networks via a poll. I made sure to share these polls using both the #Python and #PyConUS hashtags for visibility’s sake.
The results?
- LinkedIn poll: LinkedIn isn’t sure whether Twitter is the new Twitter
- Twitter poll Twitter (mostly) knows that Bluesky is the new Twitter
- Bluesky poll Bluesky knows the really nerdy tech folks hang out on Mastodon
- Mastodon poll Mastodon loves itself above all else
In other words, LinkedIn leans more toward Bluesky being the leader than Mastodon, Twitter leans toward Bluesky, but Bluesky and Mastodon both lean toward Mastodon being the leader during PyCon.
I didn’t mention Threads or other platforms because they didn’t seem like real contenders given where the most active PyCon-attending Python-posting folks seem to hang out in 2025.
The actual results
Here are the actual results of the polls.
Bluesky
Mastodon
We’re still fragmented
Unfortunately, regardless of which network is the leader this year during PyCon US, we’re still going to be much more fragmented than we used to be. Twitter was the clear leader years ago and it very clearly isn’t anymore… at least not for PyCon US conference chatter.
I’ll be checking Mastodon and Bluesky and will post on at least Mastodon and possibly also Bluesky. I hope that other folks will also use one of these 2 social networks to organize dinners and gatherings! 🤞
Feel free to follow me on Mastodon and Bluesky during the conference.
Also let me know if you’d like to join my PyCon US starter pack on Bluesky. Lists on Mastodon require following and I prefer not to follow everyone I meet at PyCon so, unfortunately, I probably won’t have a Mastodon equivalent of this. 😢
I recommend checking the #PyConUS hashtag on both networks as well.
Note that you can subscribe to hashtags on Mastodon which is pretty neat!
See you at PyCon!
If this will be your first PyCon US, I recommend signing up for both Mastodon and Bluesky and checking the #PyConUS hashtag during the conference.
Also, be sure to see my post on having a great first PyCon and see this additional tips.
