Adding a verified link to your Mastodon profile proves to visitors that you control the website or social media account you link to. Without verification, any user can add any URL to their profile, making it easy for impersonators to appear legitimate. Mastodon uses the HTML rel=me attribute standard to perform this check automatically. This article explains exactly how to set up a verified rel=me link on your Mastodon profile and what to do if the verification fails.
Key Takeaways: How to Add a Verified rel=me Link to a Mastodon Profile
- Profile > Edit Profile > Metadata: Add the URL you want to verify as a link in your profile metadata.
- Website
<head>tag: Add a<link rel="me" href="https://mastodon-instance.example/@yourusername">tag to your own website. - Profile badge: After both steps are correct, Mastodon automatically shows a green checkmark badge next to the verified link.
What the rel=me Verification System Does
Mastodon does not have a central identity authority like Twitter Blue or Instagram Verified. Instead, it relies on a bidirectional link check. You add your website URL to your Mastodon profile, and you add a Mastodon profile link back on your website. When Mastodon sees both links pointing to each other, it marks the profile link as verified. This method works for any website you control, including personal blogs, company pages, GitHub profiles, or other Mastodon instances. The verification is free and does not require any application or approval from Mastodon staff.
The technical standard used is the HTML rel=me attribute. When you add rel="me" to a link on your website, you are telling search engines and Mastodon that the linked profile belongs to the same person or entity. Mastodon crawls the URL you add to your profile, looks for a link back to your Mastodon profile with the rel=me attribute, and if found, displays a green checkmark next to the link on your profile page. The checkmark means “this person controls both this profile and that website.”
Steps to Add a Verified rel=me Link to Your Mastodon Profile
- Copy your Mastodon profile URL
Open your Mastodon profile in a web browser. The URL looks likehttps://mastodon.social/@yourusername. Copy the entire URL from the address bar. This is the link you will place on your website. - Add your website URL to your Mastodon profile
Click the Preferences button (gear icon) in the Mastodon web interface. Go to Profile > Appearance. Under Profile metadata, add a new row. In the Label field, type something like “Website” or “Blog”. In the Content field, paste the full URL of the website you want to verify (for example,https://example.com). Click Save changes at the bottom of the page. - Edit your website to add the rel=me link back
Open the HTML source of your website. Find the<head>section of your site’s main page. Add this line inside the<head>tag, replacing the example URL with your Mastodon profile URL:<link rel="me" href="https://mastodon.social/@yourusername">
If your site uses a content management system like WordPress or Squarespace, use the custom header or theme editor to insert this line. For GitHub Pages, edit the_config.ymlor the<head>in your default layout. Save and publish the change. - Alternatively, add a visible link with rel=me on your website
If you cannot edit the<head>section, you can add a visible hyperlink on your website’s main page. The link must point to your Mastodon profile URL and include therel="me"attribute. For example:<a href="https://mastodon.social/@yourusername" rel="me">Follow me on Mastodon</a>
Place this link on the homepage or the page that Mastodon will crawl. Save and publish the change. - Trigger Mastodon to recheck your profile
Return to your Mastodon profile page. Refresh the page. Mastodon may take a few minutes to crawl the URL. If the green checkmark does not appear, go back to Preferences > Profile > Appearance and click Save changes again. This forces Mastodon to recheck the link. - Confirm the verification badge
Look at your profile page. The link you added in step 2 should now show a small green checkmark badge next to it. Click the link to make sure it goes to your website. The checkmark confirms that the bidirectional link check passed.
Common Mistakes and Why Verification May Fail
Mastodon profile link is not on the same page as the website URL
Mastodon crawls the exact URL you entered in the profile metadata. If you entered https://example.com but placed the rel=me link on https://example.com/about, Mastodon will not find it. Place the link on the exact page that matches the URL in your Mastodon profile metadata.
Mastodon profile URL contains a typo
Double-check that the Mastodon profile URL in your website’s rel=me link is exactly correct. A missing character, wrong instance domain, or incorrect username will break the verification. Copy the URL directly from your Mastodon profile page to avoid typos.
Website uses JavaScript to render the link
Mastodon’s crawler does not execute JavaScript. If your website loads the rel=me link dynamically with JavaScript, the crawler will not see it. Place the link in the static HTML source or use a server-side template. For single-page applications, include the <link> tag in the <head> element.
Multiple rel=me links on the same page cause confusion
Having multiple links with rel="me" on the same page is fine, but each must point to a distinct profile. Mastodon only checks the specific URL you added to your profile metadata. It does not get confused by other rel=me links. However, if you have two links pointing to the same Mastodon profile, the verification still works.
Profile metadata link is not a direct URL
Some users add a text label without a hyperlink in the profile metadata. Mastodon requires an actual URL in the content field. Ensure the content field starts with https:// and is a clickable link. Plain text like “example.com” without protocol will not be crawled.
| Item | Direct link in website <head> | Visible link with rel=me on website |
|---|---|---|
| Implementation | Add <link rel="me" href="..."> inside <head> |
Add <a href="..." rel="me"> in the page body |
| Visibility to visitors | Not visible on the page | Visible as a clickable link |
| Ease of setup | Requires access to site template or header code | Can be added to any page content area |
| Common platforms | WordPress theme header, Jekyll _includes/head, static HTML | WordPress post or page editor, Wix, Squarespace page builder |
You can now add a verified rel=me link to any Mastodon profile. The process requires two matching links: one on Mastodon and one on your website. After both are in place, Mastodon automatically shows the green checkmark. For the strongest verification, place the <link> tag in your website’s <head> section so it works even if you change your page layout later. If verification fails, check for typos and confirm the link is on the exact page Mastodon crawls.