Mastodon is built around decentralized servers called instances, which means posts from a niche community on a small instance may not appear in your home or federated timeline. Without a direct connection between instances, you miss discussions about specific hobbies, professions, or interests. Mastodon relays solve this problem by acting as centralized hubs that forward public posts from all connected instances to every instance in the relay network. This article explains what relays are, how to join one, and how they help you discover content from niche communities without following every user individually.
Key Takeaways: Finding Niche Content With Mastodon Relays
- Preferences > Administration > Relays: Add a relay URL to automatically pull in public posts from all instances connected to that relay.
- Relay list on relaylist.com: Browse categorized relays for topics like art, technology, gaming, and regional communities.
- Local timeline after relay join: Posts from relay-connected instances appear in your instance’s federated timeline, not the local timeline.
What Mastodon Relays Are and How They Work
A Mastodon relay is a special server that acts as a middleman between instances. When you join a relay, your instance sends all public posts to the relay server, and the relay forwards those posts to every other instance in the relay network. This creates a web of content sharing without requiring each instance to manually follow every other instance.
Relays are especially valuable for niche communities. For example, a small instance dedicated to vintage computer restoration might have only 50 active users. Without a relay, your instance would never see their posts unless one of your users manually follows someone from that instance. With a relay, all public posts from that vintage computer instance appear in your federated timeline automatically.
Relays do not give you access to private or unlisted posts. They only forward public posts. Also, relays do not bypass instance moderation rules. Your instance admin can still block specific instances even if they are on the same relay. This keeps your timeline safe from spam or abusive content while still broadening the range of posts you see.
Steps to Join a Mastodon Relay and Discover Niche Content
Only instance administrators can add a relay to a Mastodon server. If you are not an admin, share this information with your instance admin or consider moving to an instance that already uses relays relevant to your interests. The following steps assume you have admin access to your Mastodon instance.
- Find a relay URL for your niche
Visit relaylist.com and browse categories such as Art, Tech, Gaming, Science, or Regional. Each relay entry displays a URL that starts with wss:// or https://. Copy that URL. For example, a relay for the Fediverse Art community might have the URL wss://art.relay.example.com. - Log in as admin and open the relay settings
Go to Preferences > Administration > Relays. This page lists all relays currently connected to your instance. Click the Add New Relay button. A text field appears where you paste the relay URL you copied. - Paste the relay URL and enable it
Paste the full URL into the field. Click the Enable button. Mastodon sends a handshake request to the relay server. The relay then adds your instance to its network. After a few seconds, the relay status changes from pending to enabled. - Wait for content to populate
Public posts from all instances connected to that relay begin flowing into your instance’s federated timeline. Depending on the relay size and the number of connected instances, this may take several minutes. Check your federated timeline, not your local timeline, to see the new posts. - Repeat for additional relays
You can add multiple relays to your instance. For example, add one relay for a photography community and another for a regional relay covering your city. Each relay adds its own set of instances to the content your instance receives.
If You Are Not an Admin: Alternative Ways to Access Niche Content
If you do not have admin access, you cannot add a relay directly. However, you can still benefit from relays by joining an instance that already uses them. Ask your instance admin which relays are active. If the admin has not added any relays, suggest adding a relay for your specific interest. Many admins are happy to do this because it enriches the local community without requiring manual instance following.
Another alternative is to use the Mastodon search feature with hashtags. Even without relays, public posts with hashtags are discoverable across instances. For niche communities, use specific hashtags like #vintagecomputers or #watercolorart. This method is less comprehensive than a relay because it only catches posts that use the exact hashtag you search for.
Common Mistakes and Limitations When Using Mastodon Relays
Posts from relay-connected instances do not appear in the local timeline
Many users expect relay content to show up in the local timeline alongside posts from their own instance. This is not how relays work. Relay content appears only in the federated timeline. The local timeline remains reserved for posts from users registered on your instance. To see relay content, switch to the federated timeline in your Mastodon client.
Relay URL is incorrect or uses the wrong protocol
Some relay URLs start with wss:// for WebSocket connections, while others use https://. Make sure you copy the exact URL from the relay list page. If the URL is wrong, the relay status will show as failed. Remove the failed relay and add the correct URL again.
Relay adds too much noise to the federated timeline
Large relays with hundreds of instances can overwhelm your federated timeline with posts you do not care about. To avoid this, choose smaller, topic-specific relays instead of general-purpose relays. For example, a relay for #photography will bring in more relevant posts than a relay labeled #general. You can also ask your admin to remove a relay if it does not improve your experience.
Instance blocked by the relay or vice versa
If your instance is blocked by the relay, the relay status shows as disabled and you cannot enable it. This usually happens when the relay operator has a moderation policy that excludes certain instances. Check the relay’s documentation or contact the relay operator to understand the block reason. Similarly, your instance admin can block a relay entirely through the moderation tools.
Mastodon Relays vs Manual Instance Following
| Item | Mastodon Relay | Manual Instance Following |
|---|---|---|
| Setup effort | Admin adds one URL | Admin follows each instance individually |
| Content source | All instances in the relay network | Only the instances you explicitly follow |
| Maintenance | Automatic updates when new instances join the relay | Manual addition of each new instance |
| Control over content | Less control — all public posts from relay instances appear | Full control — only posts from followed instances appear |
| Ideal for | Discovering broad niche communities quickly | Curating a small set of trusted instances |
Relays are best for initial discovery when you want to see what a niche community is posting without manual work. Manual instance following is better when you want to limit content to a specific set of instances you trust.
After setting up relays, check your federated timeline regularly to see if the content matches your interests. If a relay brings irrelevant posts, remove it and try a different one. You can also combine relays with hashtag searches to refine what you see. For advanced control, ask your admin to use the instance moderation tools to mute individual instances from the relay without removing the relay entirely.