Is There Much of a Difference Between Threads and Twitter?

A new social media platform has emerged that has a lot of people talking about it: Instagram Threads. Threads dropped at a time when Twitter is facing tons of scrutiny from its users. Threads is a similar platform to Twitter, where users can create short-form content. Threads has quickly gained a huge following, with millions downloading the app within hours of launch. While Threads does seem quite similar to Twitter, there are some differences between the two platforms.

Account Management

Since Threads is a part of Instagram, there are differences when creating and trying to delete your account. When you create a Threads account, it will ask if you want to import your Instagram profile and follow the same users. Whereas on Twitter, you have to create your own profile from scratch. If you want to delete your Threads account, it will delete your Instagram account too. Instead, you need to deactivate it. You can delete your Twitter account at anytime without it deleting any of your other platforms.

Availability

You can access your Twitter account through various channels, such as on a website or through the app. Threads is currently app-only, making it not accessible on the web.

Price

Threads is completely free with no ads on the app. Twitter has certain features that can only be utilized if you pay for the “Twitter Blue” subscription. Twitter also has ads on their platform.

Verification

Blue checkmarks will appear next to a Threads user, meaning they are verified. Verified users on Instagram carry over onto the Threads platform. Since Elon Musk took over Twitter, users can now buy a verification badge through their subscription. There are also certain color checkmarks based on what kind of business you are.

Text Posts

Threads and Twitter are very similar in their purposes: to share short messages. However, Threads has a character limit of 500, whereas Twitter has a character limit of 280.

Multimedia Posts

You can share more images and videos on Threads at once, with it allowing up to 10 items per post. Twitter has a limit of 4 items per post. Threads also lets you swipe left to right to view images and videos, similar to carousel posts on Instagram.

Engagement

The only noticeable difference in engagements between the two platforms is that Twitter shows you previous tweets you have liked. Threads does not show you posts you have liked.

Content

On Twitter, you are able to switch between two feeds: the “For You” feed and the “Following” feed. On Threads, there is only one feed that shows you content from people you follow and content that is trending. You can also only search for accounts on Threads, whereas on Twitter you can search for words or phrases.

Messaging

Threads currently does not have an in-app messaging option. Twitter does have an in-app messaging option where you can communicate directly with other users.

It will be interesting to see how Threads continues to evolve and the potential effect it could have on Twitter. Will Twitter eventually completely disappear, and everyone will turn over to Threads? Or will Threads fail? Or could they both be successful simultaneously?

Cate Bender, the author, is Project Coordinator of Marketing Keys

Editors note: At press time, Threads has already hit 100 million sign ups after its initial week.