Illustration: The Verge
Tags — basically hashtags with a twist — are now rolling out globally on Threads, Instagram head Adam Mosseri announced on Thursday.
Tags work a little differently than hashtags do on platforms like Instagram and X (formerly Twitter). When composing a Threads post, you start a tag by tapping the # symbol and then typing out your topic. But instead of being limited to just one word, you can type out a whole phrase (with spaces!) and add special characters, according to Mosseri. However, you can only make one tag per post.
The purpose of tags on Threads is the same as a hashtag, though. “If you share on Threads, [tags are] a great way to help connect with people who are interested in the topics you’re talking about,” Mosseri says. “And for everyone, it’s a great way to help dive deeper into your interests.”
I like Meta’s implementation here, even the single-tag limit, as it seems like a smart way to prevent annoying hashtag spam. That said, we’ll have to wait and see if users actually adopt the tags so that they can become a useful way to find conversations about a topic. (I’m hoping there will be some tags about The Game Awards when I cover that event tonight.)
Meta first started testing tags with users in Australia in November.