How to Configure Mastodon Instance Local Trends Visibility

Mastodon instances can show trending posts, hashtags, and links that are popular among local users. By default, this Local Trends feature is enabled for all members of an instance. However, instance administrators may want to restrict who can see these trends for privacy or content moderation reasons. This article explains how to configure the visibility of Local Trends in an instance using the built-in settings and, if needed, through custom deployment modifications.

You will learn where the Local Trends setting is located in the Mastodon admin panel, how to toggle it on or off, and what effects each option has on user experience. The article also covers how to verify the change and what limitations exist when restricting trend visibility. By the end, you will be able to control whether local trends appear on your instance without modifying source code.

What Are Local Trends in Mastodon and Why Control Visibility

Local Trends in Mastodon refer to the trending posts, hashtags, and links that are generated from activity within a single instance. The Mastodon software automatically detects spikes in activity for specific hashtags or links and promotes them to a dedicated Trends section in the web interface. This feature helps users discover popular content without relying on algorithms from other platforms.

The visibility of Local Trends is controlled by two separate settings in the Mastodon admin panel. The first setting enables or disables the entire trending system. The second setting determines which user groups can see the trends once the system is enabled. By default, both logged-in users and logged-out visitors can view Local Trends. An instance administrator may want to restrict visibility for privacy reasons, to reduce server load, or to prevent external scraping of trending data.

Mastodon also offers a separate setting for Federated Trends, which shows trending content from other instances. The Local Trends configuration does not affect Federated Trends visibility. Both settings are managed independently in the same admin section.

Prerequisites for Configuring Local Trends

Before you can adjust Local Trends visibility, you must have administrator access to the Mastodon instance. Specifically, you need a user account with the “Admin” or “Moderator” role. The settings are available only through the Mastodon web interface, not through the mobile app or API. Ensure you are logged in as an admin user before proceeding.

Steps to Configure Local Trends Visibility in Mastodon Admin Panel

1. Log in as an admin user
   Open your Mastodon instance URL in a browser. Enter your admin or moderator account credentials and sign in. Only accounts with the Administrator or Moderator role can access the server settings.
2. Navigate to Administration > Server Settings
   Click the hamburger menu icon in the top-left corner of the Mastodon interface. Select “Administration” from the dropdown menu. Then click “Server Settings” in the left sidebar.
3. Open the Discovery tab
   In the Server Settings page, locate the horizontal menu bar. Click the “Discovery” tab. This section contains all settings related to trends, hashtags, and content discovery.
4. Enable or disable trending items
   Find the toggle labeled “Enable trending items.” If you want to completely hide Local Trends from all users, set this toggle to OFF. This will disable both Local and Federated Trends entirely. If you want to keep trends but restrict visibility, leave this toggle ON.
5. Adjust visibility for logged-in users
   Scroll down to the “Trends” subsection. Locate the dropdown menu labeled “Display trends to logged-in users.” The options are: “Everyone” (default), “Admins and moderators only,” and “No one.” Select the option that matches your requirement. For example, choose “Admins and moderators only” to hide trends from regular users but allow staff to see them.
6. Adjust visibility for logged-out users
   Below the previous dropdown, find “Display trends to logged-out users.” This controls whether visitors who are not signed in can see trends. Options are “Everyone” (default), “Admins and moderators only,” and “No one.” Choose “No one” to prevent external visitors from viewing trends.
7. Save the settings
   After making your selections, scroll to the bottom of the page. Click the “Save changes” button. A confirmation message will appear indicating that the settings have been updated. The changes take effect immediately for new page loads.

Common Mistakes and Things to Avoid When Configuring Trends Visibility

Trends Not Showing After Enabling the Setting

If you set “Display trends to logged-in users” to “Everyone” but trends still do not appear, check the main toggle. The “Enable trending items” toggle must be ON for any trend visibility setting to take effect. Also verify that there is enough recent activity on the instance to generate trends. Mastodon requires a minimum number of posts within a time window before it displays any trending items.

Mistaking Local Trends for Federated Trends

The settings described above apply to both Local and Federated Trends simultaneously. There is no separate toggle for Local Trends alone. If you want to hide only Local Trends but keep Federated Trends visible, this is not possible through the admin panel. You would need to modify the Mastodon source code or use a custom deployment script to achieve that level of granularity.

Visibility Option Not Saving

If the dropdown selections revert to default after saving, clear your browser cache and cookies. Then reload the Server Settings page and try again. If the problem persists, check the Mastodon server logs for any database write errors. The settings are stored in the database under the SiteSetting model.

Users Complaining About Missing Trends

When you restrict trends visibility to “Admins and moderators only” or “No one,” regular users will not see the Trends section in the web interface at all. This can cause confusion if users were accustomed to using trends for discovery. Consider communicating the change to your instance members through an announcement post or pinned message.

Local Trends Visibility Settings Summary

Setting	Option A	Option B
Enable trending items	ON	OFF
Display trends to logged-in users	Everyone	Admins and moderators only
Display trends to logged-out users	Everyone	No one

After configuring these settings, you can now control exactly which users see Local Trends on your Mastodon instance. The changes are immediate and require no server restart. To verify the effect, open a private browsing window and visit your instance URL without logging in. If you set logged-out visibility to “No one,” the Trends section should not appear. For logged-in users, sign in with a regular user account and check the sidebar for the Trends link. If you restricted visibility to admins only, the link will be absent. For advanced customization beyond these built-in options, consider using the Mastodon API to build a custom frontend that filters trends based on user roles.