Moving Server

You may have initially created a user on an instance you are no longer interested in, or it was an Instance that was available when you started on Mastodon.

Fortunately, there is an easy feature to move instance and keep your followers.

Note Your old posts will not come with you. They remain where they are.

The process is:

  • Create a new user on the NEW instance
  • Tell your NEW instance username you OLD username
  • Let your OLD instance username know your NEW username

In this example, let's move @david007@mastodon.uk to @david007@mastodon.social

1. Create the new users on the new instance

2. Once completed goto Preferences, Account on the NEW account

Scroll down and look for 'Moving from a different account'

Click 'Create an account alias'

Enter the username of your OLD account on the OLD server. In our example, david007@mastodon.uk

Click 'Create Alias'

3. Now go to your OLD instance and login to your OLD account

Click Preferences, Account and scroll down to 'Move to a different account'

Click 'Configure it here'

Enter the NEW account name and the OLD account password. In our example, david007@mastodon.social and the password for david007@mastodon.uk

Click 'Move Followers'

This will move your followers on your OLD account to your NEW account. It will also add a note on your profile that your account is now the NEW username

The copying of the followers may take a few minutes to appear on your NEW account.

Got back to your NEW account and complete your Bio, and images etc as usual.

Info Your OLD account is not deleted. You can return to it later and remove the redirect if you wish.


Further Information

There is currently NO facility to move your posts between Mastodon servers.

Some other server types do support this. If you are moving to a Firefish server as your NEW server, it can import ALL of your followers, and Posts.

  • Last modified: 22 July 2023 20:06
  • by @daj@ibe.social