If you’ve been blogging for a while, you’ll probably know the WordPress.com Reader – a calm place to catch up on the blogs you follow, without an algorithm deciding what you see.
This month, we added a new Social Feeds section to the Reader. Now you can bring in the people you follow on Bluesky, on Mastodon, and across the Fediverse. Then read, react, and post, all without leaving the Reader.
One place to read, with more people to follow
The Reader has always been one place to catch up on writing across the open web: WordPress.com blogs, Jetpack blogs, any blog with an RSS feed. That part hasn’t changed. What’s new is the company you can keep there.
In the left navigation, you’ll find a new Social Feeds section, with entries for your connected accounts. Connected social accounts include:
- Bluesky: and the wider ATmosphere, including Blacksky and other Bluesky‑compatible platforms.
- Mastodon: bring in your timeline from any instance, big or small.
- The Fediverse: via your own blog. If you have a WordPress.com site, you can join the Fediverse without creating a new account; your blog is your identity. Don’t have one yet? Start a blog, and you can join too. Our Social Web page is a good starting point if that’s new to you.
Pick a network, sign in once, and your timeline shows up in the Reader.
Already connected? You’re in
If you’ve ever used Jetpack Social to share your posts to Mastodon or Bluesky, those connections are already there. Open the Social Feeds section, and your accounts are waiting.
Read, react, and reply
Inside a Bluesky or Mastodon timeline, the actions are the ones you’d expect: like a post, repost it, quote it, reply to it. Same keyboard, same window, no second app.
Compose and post
The Reader is a place to write now, too. Click Compose, type a short post, attach an image, and send it to your followers on Bluesky, Mastodon, or the Fediverse.
When a thought outgrows a social post
WordPress.com is a tool for creators, and we didn’t want to box you into the character limits of any one network. So when a draft starts running long for a social post, the Reader offers to hand it off to your blog. You keep writing in a fresh post draft, with all the room you need, and once you hit Publish, it reaches your followers on Bluesky, Mastodon, and the Fediverse all the same.
Try Social in the Reader
Head over to WordPress.com/reader, expand the Social Feeds group in the sidebar, and connect an account. It’s free, and the support doc walks through the details if you’d like a closer look.
If you’d like more on how WordPress.com fits into the wider Social Web, our previous posts on the Social Web Foundation and our recent ActivityPub feature update are both good follow‑on reads.
Happy reading, and happy blogging!
WordPress.com News 
Not in the jetpack app reader yet? Or is there a mobile reader app?
It’s not available in the mobile Jetpack app indeed. That’s something we may add to the app in the future though! Until then, you can load the WordPress.com Reader in your mobile browser, it should work just fine.
Yes, finally managed — login was a bit tricky initially!
This is amazing. Our patience has been duly rewarded. Kudos to the team who made this a reality. It is so refreshing and liberating to interact this way with the Fediverse, including Bluesky and Mastodon. Reader is now a one-stop shop for our curated RSS feeds (including Substack subscriptions) and Fediverse profiles. WordPress/Automattic now needs to promote Reader to the masses.
Do you need to create a new blog to access this feature?
No, you don’t have to.
Two of the connection options (Bluesky and Mastodon) don’t even require a blog at all.
The third connection option (the Fediverse) is accessible with any WordPresss.com site. If you already have a site (and I see you do!), you can go to Settings > ActivityPub. You’ll be able to click on “Join the Open social web” button there. Once you do so, you’ll get access to the Fediverse section in the Reader right away. You can learn more about what the Open social web is on this page.
That’s good!
Works great with Bluesky! Sadly, my ActivityPub enabled site is not showing and can’t see a way to add it. “Social Feeds -> Add Account -> Fediverse” sends me to the ActivityPub for WordPress settings page with not a visible option to add my site to Social Feeds.
Do you see an option to “Join the Open Social Web” on that ActivityPub settings screen? If so, you can click it. That’s all it takes for your site to join the Fediverse! It will then appear in your Social Feeds, and you’ll be able to start following people on the Fediverse by going to Settings > ActivityPub > Following in your dashboard.
Thanks for the reply!
The “Join the Open Social Web” is shown on sites that still aren’t on the Fediverse, right? I install and activate the ActivityPub for WordPress plugin back in 2022 and currently follow 90+ Mastodon and Pixelfed profiles. ActivityPub > Advanced > Reader activates a social web reader (located at Dashboard > Social Web) apart from the main Reader and Social Feeds, and Social Feeds > Add Account > Fediverse sends me to the ActivityPub for WordPress settings page with no visible option to add my site to Social Feeds.
If Social Feeds and ActivityPub enabled WordPress.com sites integration just happens “automagically” then something is (probably) broken on my side.
Thanks for the extra details! I’m happy to see someone already so involved in the Fediverse; I hope you’ve been happy with the feature so far, and that it brings interesting and valuable interactions back to your blog!
From the sound of it, it seems like you may be using plugins on a WordPress.com business site? If so, I’m afraid you won’t be able to use the Fediverse section of the WordPress.com Reader just yet. We’re still working on adding support for such sites. You can expect your site to appear there in the next couple of weeks!
Yes! In fact, my WordPress site is now my sole Fediverse profile as I already move my followers and delete my former Mastodon account. The ActivityPub for WordPress plugin has been so useful and I can’t thank enough to you, to Matthias and to the rest of the ActivityPub crew.
I’m on the Business plan, I understand is not an easy task so I can wait whatever it takes for Social Feeds support. Thanks!
Sorry to hear that . I am new here and I am finding it complicated
First of all, welcome!
If you’re only getting started with WordPress.com and do not have a Mastodon or a Bluesky account, that’s okay! You don’t have to use this section of the Reader just yet.
If you’d like to get familiar with the Reader, I would recommend reading our support documentation here.
How can I find a friend’s blog in Reader?
You can go to the “Search” menu in the sidebar and look for their site there:
https://wordpress.com/reader/search