Mastodon Profile Edit ‘Featured Hashtags’: How to Pick the Top Five

When you visit a Mastodon profile, you often see a list of hashtags below the bio. These are called featured hashtags. They let visitors quickly see what topics you post about most often. Mastodon allows you to pin up to five hashtags so they appear prominently on your public profile.

Many users do not know how to select and display these five tags effectively. The default setting shows the hashtags you use most frequently by post count. However, you can override this order and choose any hashtags you want to highlight, even if you use them less often. This control helps you shape how others perceive your interests and expertise.

This article explains exactly how to edit your featured hashtags in the Mastodon web interface and mobile apps. You will learn how to pin, unpin, and reorder hashtags. We will also cover common mistakes that make your profile look cluttered or confusing.

How Featured Hashtags Work on a Mastodon Profile

Featured hashtags are a profile feature unique to Mastodon and other ActivityPub-based platforms. When you pin a hashtag to your profile, Mastodon collects all your public posts that include that hashtag. Visitors can click the hashtag on your profile to see a filtered timeline of only those posts.

The system automatically suggests hashtags based on how often you use them in your public toots. By default, Mastodon shows the five hashtags you use most frequently. However, you can manually override this list. You can pin a hashtag that you use only occasionally if it represents a core interest or professional topic.

Each pinned hashtag shows a count of how many public posts you have made with that tag. This count updates automatically as you post more content. Your profile displays only the pinned hashtags, not every hashtag you have ever used. This selective display keeps your profile clean and focused.

Steps to Edit Featured Hashtags on Mastodon Web

The web interface gives you full control over your featured hashtags. Follow these steps to pin, unpin, and reorder your top five hashtags.

1. Open your profile settings
   Click the Preferences link in the navigation menu on the left side of the Mastodon web interface. If you are on a small screen, click the hamburger menu icon (three horizontal lines) to reveal the navigation panel first.
2. Go to Profile section
   In the Preferences menu, click Profile. This opens your profile editing page where you can change your display name, bio, avatar, and header image.
3. Scroll to Featured hashtags
   Scroll down past the Display name, Bio, and Metadata fields. You will see a heading labeled Featured hashtags. Below it, Mastodon shows a list of hashtags you have used in your public posts, sorted by usage frequency.
4. Pin a hashtag manually
   Next to each hashtag in the list, you see a pin icon (a thumbtack shape). Click this pin icon on any hashtag you want to feature on your profile. The icon changes to a filled pin state to indicate it is now featured. You can pin up to five hashtags total.
5. Unpin a hashtag
   To remove a hashtag from your featured list, click the filled pin icon again. The icon returns to its outline state, and the hashtag disappears from your public profile.
6. Reorder your pinned hashtags
   After pinning multiple hashtags, you can change their order. Each pinned hashtag row shows a six-dot drag handle on the left side. Click and hold this drag handle, then move the row up or down to rearrange the sequence. The topmost hashtag appears first on your profile.
7. Save your changes
   Scroll to the bottom of the profile editing page and click the Save changes button. Your new featured hashtag order and selection now appear on your public profile.

Steps to Edit Featured Hashtags on Mastodon Mobile Apps

The official Mastodon mobile apps for iOS and Android provide a similar but slightly different interface for editing featured hashtags.

1. Access your profile
   Tap your profile avatar in the bottom navigation bar. This opens your public profile view.
2. Open edit profile
   Tap the Edit profile button located below your display name and bio. On some versions, this button may be labeled with a pencil icon.
3. Find Featured hashtags section
   Scroll down in the edit profile screen until you see the Featured hashtags section. It appears after the Metadata fields.
4. Tap the pin icon to add or remove
   Each hashtag in the list shows a pin icon on the right side. Tap the icon to toggle the featured state. A filled pin means the hashtag is featured on your profile.
5. Reorder by dragging
   Press and hold the drag handle (three horizontal lines) on the right side of any pinned hashtag row. Drag the row up or down to change its position. Release your finger to drop the row in the new position.
6. Save changes
   Tap the Save button at the top right corner of the edit profile screen. Your changes take effect immediately.

Common Mistakes When Picking Your Top Five Hashtags

Pinning Too Many Hashtags

Mastodon limits you to five featured hashtags. If you try to pin a sixth, the system will not allow it. You must unpin an existing hashtag before pinning another. A common error is to leave all five slots filled with low-value tags that do not represent your main topics.

Using Hashtags You Never Post With

You can only pin hashtags that you have used in at least one public post. If you try to pin a hashtag that does not appear in your post history, Mastodon will not show it in the suggestion list. To feature a new hashtag, first create a public post that includes it. After the post is published, the hashtag appears in the Featured hashtags section.

Choosing Overly Broad or Irrelevant Tags

Your featured hashtags represent you to new visitors. Pinning a hashtag like #news or #funny may attract the wrong audience if your main content is about software development. Select tags that directly describe your niche or professional focus. For example, #MastodonTips or #OpenSource is more specific and helpful.

Not Reordering After Pinning

The default order of pinned hashtags matches the order they appear in the suggestion list, which is sorted by usage frequency. If you do not manually reorder them, your most-used hashtag appears first. That may not be the tag you want visitors to see first. Always drag your most important hashtag to the top position.

Forgetting to Save Changes

After pinning, unpinning, or reordering hashtags on the web interface, you must click Save changes. On mobile apps, tap Save. If you navigate away without saving, your edits are lost. The profile continues to show the old featured hashtags.

Featured Hashtags vs Regular Hashtags in Posts

Item	Featured Hashtags	Regular Hashtags in Posts
Location	Displayed on your public profile below the bio	Embedded within the text of individual toots
Count	Maximum of five	Unlimited per post, but excessive use can look spammy
Click behavior	Opens a filtered timeline of only your public posts with that tag	Opens the federated timeline for that hashtag from all users
Visibility control	Only public posts count toward the displayed post count	Private or unlisted posts do not appear in hashtag searches
Editing method	Edit profile > Featured hashtags section	No editing needed; just include the tag in your post text

After reading this guide, you can now confidently select and arrange the five hashtags that best represent your Mastodon profile. Start by reviewing your most-used hashtags in the Featured hashtags section of your profile settings. Unpin any tags that do not match your current focus, then pin more relevant ones. Drag your primary hashtag to the top position so visitors see it first. For a professional look, update your featured hashtags every few months as your posting topics evolve. An advanced tip is to create a dedicated public post introducing your pinned hashtags and link to it from your bio for deeper context.