Instead of Instagram, try one of these 11.
Every alternative is lined up against Instagram on what people actually switch for: price, open source, self-hosting, offline use and platforms. Instagram sits in the first row, so you can see what you give up.
Alternative
Price
Open source
Self-host
Offline
Platforms
Likes
InstagramWhat you have now
Photo and video sharing from Meta.
PriceFree
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web · iOS · Android
Mastodon#1
Decentralised microblogging across federated servers.
PriceFree
Open sourceYes
Self-hostYes
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web · iOS · Android
LikesVisit ↗
Threads#2
Meta’s text-first network tied to Instagram.
PriceFree
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web · iOS · Android
LikesVisit ↗
Privacy-friendly federated social network you can self-host.
PriceFree
Open sourceYes
Self-hostYes
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web
LikesVisit ↗
Flickr#4
Photo sharing and storage with a real community.
PriceFreemium
pro $9/mo
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web · iOS · Android
LikesVisit ↗
Decentralised, ad-free photo sharing.
PriceFree
Open sourceYes
Self-hostYes
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web · iOS · Android
LikesVisit ↗
DeviantArt#6
Online art and photo sharing community for creatives.
PriceFreemium
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflinePartial
Platforms
Web · Android · iOS
LikesVisit ↗
500px#7
Photo portfolio and sharing community for photographers.
PriceFreemium
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflinePartial
Platforms
Web · Win · Android · iOS
LikesVisit ↗
Snapchat#8
Ephemeral photo and video messaging app.
PriceFreemium
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflinePartial
Platforms
Web · Win · Android · iOS
LikesVisit ↗
Loops by Pixelfed#9
Fediverse app for sharing short looping video clips.
PriceFree
Open sourceYes
Self-hostNo
OfflinePartial
Platforms
Web · Android
LikesVisit ↗
diVine#10
Six-second looping video app reviving the Vine format.
PriceFree
Open sourceYes
Self-hostNo
OfflineNo
Platforms
Web
LikesVisit ↗
BeReal#11
Once-a-day authentic photo sharing with friends.
PriceFree
Open sourceNo
Self-hostNo
OfflineYes
Platforms
Android · iOS
LikesVisit ↗
How to read this. “Yes” means fully supported by the maker. “Partial” means it works with caveats. Likes reflect community popularity; vendors can’t pay for them or for placement. Our pick, marked in lime, is the option we would point most people leaving Instagram to first. How we compare.
Instagram alternatives at a glance
Instagram is a free social app. We compared 11 alternatives: 5 are open source, 7 are completely free, 3 can be self-hosted and 1 works fully offline. The most popular is Mastodon, with 940 likes, while our pick is Pixelfed.