Mastodon Migration Posts Behavior: Why Posts Do Not Move

When you migrate your Mastodon account from one instance to another, you expect your followers, profile, and posts to move with you. However, Mastodon deliberately does not transfer your posts. This behavior confuses many users who assume a full account export includes a complete move of all content. The reason is technical: Mastodon instances are independent servers that store posts locally, and posts contain references to the original server that cannot be recreated elsewhere. This article explains why posts do not move during migration, what actually transfers, and how to handle your existing content.

Why Mastodon Does Not Transfer Posts During Account Migration

Mastodon is a federated network of independent instances. Each instance runs its own database and stores posts locally. When you post on an instance, that post is saved only on that instance’s server. Other instances that follow you cache a copy of the post, but the authoritative record remains on the original server.

During an account migration, Mastodon performs a handshake between your old instance and your new instance. This handshake transfers your profile display name, bio, avatar, header image, and follower relationships. Posts are excluded from this handshake for three key reasons.

Federation Integrity

Every Mastodon post carries a unique identifier tied to its originating instance. If a post were moved to a new instance, its identifier would change. Other instances that have already federated the post would see a duplicate or broken reference. This would break replies, boosts, and favorites that reference the original post ID.

Storage Architecture

Mastodon instances store posts in a relational database with foreign key constraints. Posts are linked to user accounts, media attachments, and other posts through these keys. Exporting and re-importing posts with new user IDs would require remapping every foreign key, a process that is error-prone and not supported by the current software design.

User Intent and Consent

Mastodon treats post ownership as bound to the original instance. Moving posts to a new instance could imply that the new instance now hosts content it did not originally serve. This has legal and moderation implications. The Mastodon development team has chosen to keep posts on the original instance to maintain clear content provenance.

What Actually Transfers During a Mastodon Migration

Understanding what moves and what stays helps you plan your migration. The following items transfer to your new account.

1. Followers and following lists
   Your followers are prompted to follow your new account. Your existing follow list is copied to the new account. This process happens over a few hours as the instances communicate.
2. Profile display name and bio
   The text you entered for your display name and biography is copied to the new account. You can edit these after the migration.
3. Avatar and header image
   Your profile pictures are transferred from the old instance to the new instance. The images are re-uploaded to the new server.
4. Blocked and muted user lists
   Your privacy settings for blocking and muting accounts are moved. This prevents you from having to rebuild those lists manually.

Items that do not transfer include direct messages, scheduled posts, draft posts, and lists. You must export these manually from your old instance before you start the migration.

How to Preserve Access to Your Old Posts

Although your posts cannot move, you can keep them accessible to your followers. Mastodon provides a redirect mechanism on your old profile.

1. Set up the account alias on the old instance
   On your old instance, go to Preferences > Account > Move from a different account. Enter the username of your new account. This creates a one-way alias that tells the old instance where you moved.
2. Initiate the follower migration on the new instance
   On your new instance, go to Preferences > Account > Move from a different account. Enter the full handle of your old account, for example @olduser@oldinstance.social. Confirm the action. This triggers the follower transfer.
3. Verify the redirect banner on the old profile
   After the migration completes, visit your old profile page. A banner appears at the top that reads “This account has moved to [new profile link].” Anyone who visits your old profile sees this banner and can click through to your new profile.
4. Export your archive before leaving the old instance
   Go to Preferences > Import and export > Data export. Click the “Request your archive” button. The instance generates a CSV file containing your posts, media links, and metadata. Download this file within 48 hours. The archive is for your personal records only. It cannot be imported into a new Mastodon account.

The redirect banner remains active as long as your old account exists. If you delete the old account, the banner disappears and your posts become unreachable. Some users choose to keep the old account active as a static archive.

Common Misunderstandings About Post Migration

“I exported my posts, so I can import them to the new instance”

Mastodon’s data export generates a CSV archive for backup purposes only. No Mastodon instance provides an import function for posts. The CSV format is not designed to be re-inserted into a live database. If you attempt to manually insert the data, you will break the foreign key relationships and the posts will not display correctly.

“My new instance admin can copy my posts from the old server”

Instance administrators have access to their own server’s database but not to the databases of other instances. Even if your old admin is willing to help, copying posts directly from one database to another requires manual SQL manipulation. This is not supported by the Mastodon software and voids any data integrity guarantees. Most admins will refuse this request.

“I can repost everything manually on the new account”

You can manually copy and paste the text of your old posts into new posts on the new instance. However, the original post IDs will be lost. Any replies, boosts, or favorites that existed on the old posts will not carry over. The new posts will appear with new timestamps and new IDs. This approach works for a small number of important posts but is impractical for accounts with hundreds or thousands of posts.

Item	Transfers During Migration	Stays on Original Instance
Followers	Yes	No
Following list	Yes	No
Profile display name and bio	Yes	No
Avatar and header image	Yes	No
Blocked and muted lists	Yes	No
Posts	No	Yes
Direct messages	No	Yes
Scheduled or draft posts	No	Yes
Lists	No	Yes

Now you understand why Mastodon does not move your posts during migration. The design prioritizes federation stability and data provenance over content portability. To preserve access to your old posts, keep your original account active with the redirect banner. Export your archive for personal backup before you leave the old instance. If you need to retain specific posts, consider manually reposting them on your new account and pinning the most important ones to your profile.