Mastodon Hashtag Trends Disabled on Some Instances: How to Verify

You open the Explore page on your Mastodon instance expecting to see trending hashtags, but the section is blank or missing entirely. This happens because instance administrators can choose to disable the trending hashtags feature in the server settings. Mastodon gives each instance full control over whether trending content is calculated and displayed to users. This article explains why instances disable hashtag trends, how to verify whether your instance has turned them off, and what steps you can take next.

Why Mastodon Instances Disable Hashtag Trends

Hashtag trends in Mastodon are a discovery feature that shows which hashtags are being used most frequently across the federated network in recent hours. The feature relies on the instance computing a trending algorithm based on recent toots. Instance administrators can disable this feature for several reasons. Some instances disable trends to reduce server load because the trending calculation consumes database and CPU resources on larger instances. Other administrators disable trends to prevent spam or coordinated hashtag manipulation. A Mastodon instance may also disable trends to align with a community policy that avoids algorithmically promoted content. The setting is controlled by a single toggle in the Admin dashboard under Server Settings > Discovery. When this toggle is off, the instance stops computing trending hashtags entirely, and the Explore page will show an empty or missing trends section for all users on that instance.

Steps to Verify Whether Hashtag Trends Are Disabled on Your Instance

1. Open the Explore page directly
   In your web browser, navigate to https://[your-instance-domain]/explore. Replace [your-instance-domain] with the actual domain of your Mastodon instance, such as mastodon.social. If the page shows a section labeled Trending Hashtags with content, the feature is enabled. If the section is missing or shows a message like Not available on this server, the feature is disabled at the server level.
2. Check the user-level trending toggle in Preferences
   Click the Preferences gear icon in the Mastodon web interface. Go to the Appearance section. Look for the setting labeled Show trending hashtags in the sidebar. If this toggle is unchecked, you will not see trending hashtags even if the server has trends enabled. Check the box and click Save Changes. Then return to the home timeline and check the right sidebar for the trending hashtags section.
3. Review the instance discovery policy using the API
   Open a new browser tab and enter the URL https://[your-instance-domain]/api/v1/instance. This returns a JSON object with instance metadata. Look for the key trends inside the object. If the value is true, the instance supports trending hashtags. If it is false or missing, the instance has disabled trends. For example, a response containing "trends":true confirms that the server computes trends.
4. Ask the instance administrator directly
   If you cannot determine the status from the above methods, send a direct message to the instance admin. Most instances list the admin account on the About page. Navigate to the instance About page at https://[your-instance-domain]/about. Scroll to the Contact section. Send a polite message asking whether trending hashtags are intentionally disabled. This is the most reliable method when technical checks are inconclusive.

If Mastodon Hashtag Trends Still Appear Missing

Trending hashtags section is blank on the Explore page

Even when the server has trends enabled, the Explore page may show an empty trending section if no hashtags have met the trending threshold in the past few hours. Mastodon requires a minimum number of unique accounts using a hashtag within a time window before it appears as trending. On smaller instances with low activity, this threshold may never be reached. Wait 24 hours and check again. If the section remains blank, the instance likely has trends disabled at the server level.

Trending hashtags appear on the home timeline but not on the Explore page

The home timeline sidebar displays trending hashtags only when the user-level toggle in Preferences > Appearance is enabled. The Explore page shows trending hashtags only when the server-level Discovery toggle is enabled. If you see trends on the sidebar but not on the Explore page, the server has trends enabled but the Explore page may have been customized or the page did not load fully. Refresh the Explore page with Ctrl+F5 on Windows or Cmd+Shift+R on Mac to force a cache clear.

Third-party Mastodon apps do not show trending hashtags

Some third-party Mastodon client apps, such as Tusky for Android or Metatext for iOS, have their own implementation of the Explore page. These apps may not display the trending hashtags section even when the instance supports it. Check the official Mastodon web interface first. If the web interface shows trends, but the app does not, the issue is with the app, not the instance. Contact the app developer for support.

Server-Level Toggle vs User-Level Toggle: Comparison

Item	Server-Level Toggle	User-Level Toggle
Location	Admin > Server Settings > Discovery	Preferences > Appearance
Effect on all users	Disables trending calculation for every account on the instance	Only hides the trending sidebar for your account
Effect on Explore page	Removes the trending hashtags section entirely	Does not affect the Explore page
Who can change it	Instance administrator only	Any user for their own account
API response key	trends in /api/v1/instance	Not reflected in the API

You can now verify whether your Mastodon instance has disabled trending hashtags by checking the Explore page URL, reviewing the user-level toggle in Preferences, or querying the instance API. If the feature is disabled at the server level and you want it enabled, contact your instance administrator and explain why trending hashtags would be valuable for your community. As a final tip, bookmark the URL https://[your-instance-domain]/api/v1/instance for quick future checks of any instance capability.