When you interact with a post on Mastodon, you have two primary ways to save or acknowledge it: Favorite and Bookmark. Many users confuse these two actions because both add a post to a personal collection. The key difference lies in intent and visibility. A Favorite sends a public notification to the author and appears on your profile. A Bookmark is a private saved post that only you can see. This article explains the functional difference between Favorites and Bookmarks on Mastodon, including how to use each feature effectively and how they affect your privacy and timeline.
Key Takeaways: Mastodon Favorite vs Bookmark
- Favorite (star icon): Public like that notifies the author and appears on your profile under Favorites.
- Bookmark (ribbon icon): Private save that only you can see in your Bookmarks list; no notification sent to the author.
- Use both together: Favorite for public acknowledgment, Bookmark for private reference without social pressure.
Understanding Mastodon Favorites and Bookmarks
Mastodon is a decentralized social network where each instance operates independently but can communicate with others. The Favorite and Bookmark features are part of the ActivityPub protocol that Mastodon uses to handle interactions between instances. While they seem similar, their underlying functions differ in terms of visibility, notification behavior, and storage.
A Favorite on Mastodon is equivalent to a Like on other platforms. When you click the star icon on a post, the author receives a notification, and the post appears in your profile under the Favorites tab. This action is public by default, meaning anyone who visits your profile can see which posts you have favorited. Favorites also contribute to the post’s engagement metrics, which can influence how the post appears in federated timelines.
A Bookmark on Mastodon is a private saved post. When you click the ribbon icon, the post is saved to your personal Bookmarks list, which is accessible only from your account settings. No notification is sent to the author, and the post does not appear on your public profile. Bookmarks are designed for personal reference, such as saving a tutorial, an announcement, or a thread you want to read later. They do not affect the post’s public engagement count.
How Favorites Work Across Instances
When you favorite a post from another instance, your instance sends a Like activity to the remote instance. The remote instance processes this activity and may update the post’s favorite count. If the remote instance is not federated with yours, the favorite may not be visible to the original author. However, in most cases, the favorite is synchronized across instances because Mastodon uses a federated model where activities are forwarded between servers.
How Bookmarks Work Across Instances
Bookmarks are stored locally on your instance. When you bookmark a post from a remote instance, your instance saves the post’s URL and content locally so you can access it even if the remote instance goes offline or deletes the post. This local storage means bookmarks persist even if the original post is deleted, though the content may become stale if the remote instance is unreachable. Bookmarks are not federated, so no activity is sent to the remote instance.
How to Favorite and Bookmark a Post on Mastodon
Both actions are available directly from the post action bar. The steps are identical on Mastodon web and most third-party apps.
- Locate the post you want to interact with
Open your Home timeline, Federated timeline, or a user profile. Find the post you want to favorite or bookmark. - Click the star icon to Favorite
The star icon is located at the bottom of the post, between the reply and boost icons. Click it once to favorite. The star turns yellow, and the author receives a notification. To unfavorite, click the star again. - Click the ribbon icon to Bookmark
The ribbon icon is located next to the star icon on the same action bar. Click it once to bookmark. The ribbon turns blue. No notification is sent. To remove the bookmark, click the ribbon again. - Access your Favorites list
Go to your profile page by clicking your avatar in the top navigation bar. Click the star icon on your profile to view all posts you have favorited. This list is public. - Access your Bookmarks list
From the left sidebar in Mastodon web, click the Bookmarks icon. This opens a private list of all your bookmarked posts. Only you can see this list.
Common Mistakes When Using Favorites and Bookmarks
Accidentally Favoriting a Post Instead of Bookmarking
The star and ribbon icons are close together on the action bar. If you click the star by mistake, you send a public notification to the author. To avoid this, pause before clicking and verify the icon shape. If you accidentally favorite a post, click the star again to unfavorite. The author will not be notified of the unfavorite.
Expecting Bookmarks to Be Public
Some users assume that bookmarked posts appear on their profile like Favorites do. This is incorrect. Bookmarks are private by design. If you want to share a saved post, you must manually link to it or use a different method such as replying with a link.
Losing Bookmarks After Instance Migration
When you move your Mastodon account to a new instance, your bookmarks do not migrate. Only your followers, followees, and blocks transfer. Bookmarks are stored locally on the original instance. To keep bookmarks, export them manually before migration. In the Preferences menu, go to Import and Export > Export and select Bookmarks as a CSV file. Then import that CSV into your new instance after the migration is complete.
Mastodon Favorite vs Bookmark: Feature Comparison
| Item | Favorite | Bookmark |
|---|---|---|
| Visibility | Public, visible on your profile | Private, only you can see |
| Notification to author | Yes, the author is notified | No notification sent |
| Icon | Star | Ribbon |
| Appears in timeline engagement | Yes, counts toward post engagement | No, does not affect engagement metrics |
| Storage location | Federated across instances | Stored locally on your instance |
| Persistence after post deletion | Favorite removed if post is deleted | Bookmark remains but content may be stale |
| Exportable | No | Yes, via CSV export |
Now you understand the functional difference between Favorites and Bookmarks on Mastodon. Use Favorites to publicly acknowledge a post and Bookmarks to privately save content for later reference. To manage your Bookmarks efficiently, consider using the keyboard shortcut B on Mastodon web to bookmark the selected post without clicking the ribbon icon. This saves time when saving multiple posts in a row.