How to Change Bluesky Settings

Getting your Bluesky settings just right is the first step to building a timeline and community you actually enjoy. Taking a few moments to configure your account puts you in control, letting you tailor everything from what you see to who can interact with your posts. This guide provides a complete walkthrough of every important menu, showing you how to customize your feed, manage your privacy, fine-tune notifications, and use moderation tools to create your ideal experience.

How to Access Your Bluesky Settings

Before you can change anything, you need to know where to go. Finding the main settings menu is straightforward on both the mobile app and the desktop website.

• On the mobile app (iOS and Android): Tap the hamburger menu icon (three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner of your screen. In the slide-out navigation panel, you'll see a "Settings" option with a gear icon next to it. Tap that to enter the main settings hub.
• On the desktop website: Look for the navigation menu on the left-hand side of the screen. Click on "Settings," which is usually located between "Profile" and "Moderation."

Once inside, you'll see a list of categories that we'll break down one by one.

Customizing Your Profile and Account Details

Your profile is your digital storefront. It’s what people see when they’re deciding whether to follow you. Making sure it’s accurate and compelling is fundamental for personal branding or business marketing.

Changing Your Display Name and Bio

Your Display Name is the bold name that appears at the top of your profile and next to your posts. You can change this as often as you like.

1. Navigate to Settings.
2. Under the main menu, your display name and handle are shown. Click 'Edit profile'.
3. Here, you can modify your public-facing Display Name and your personal Bio description.
4. Don't forget to upload a compelling Avatar (profile picture) and Header Image (banner) to complete your look.

Pro Tip for Brands: Your bio is valuable real estate. Use keywords that describe your niche or industry, and include a non-clickable link to your website or a call-to-action that audiences can easily find.

Updating Your Handle (Your @Username)

Your handle is your unique identifier on Bluesky (e.g., @yourname.bsky.social). Unlike your display name, you can only change this once every few weeks. This limit is in place to prevent spam and impersonation.

1. From the Settings screen, go to the Advanced category.
2. Click on Change Handle.
3. You can choose a new handle that ends in `.bsky.social` or set your own custom domain as your handle if you own one. Using a custom domain is a fantastic branding move for businesses or creators, as it verifies your identity and reinforces your web presence.

Mastering Your Feeds: The Heart of Bluesky Customization

Perhaps Bluesky's most powerful feature is its system of customizable algorithmic feeds. Instead of being stuck with a single "For You" page, you can subscribe to dozens of different timelines curated by other users, each focused on a specific topic like "Cat Pics," "Game Devs," or "#MarketingTwitter."

Discovering and Adding New Feeds

1. In the left-hand navigation menu (on both mobile and desktop), select the Hashtag icon for Feeds.
2. Here you can search for feeds by name or keyword. The "Discover new feeds" section is a great way to view trending feeds.
3. When you find a feed you like, tap "Add to My Feeds" to subscribe to it.

Managing "My Feeds"

Once you’ve added some feeds, you'll want to organize them. Bluesky gives you complete control over how your Home screen is laid out.

1. In the main Settings panel, tap on My Feeds.
2. This shows a list of all your subscribed feeds. You can tap the Trashcan icon to remove any feeds you no longer want.
3. Use the Pin icon to add a feed as a separate tab at the top of your Home screen for quick access. This is perfect for your favorite topics.
4. You can also drag and drop your pinned feeds to reorder them, ensuring the most important ones are always first.

Strategic Advice: For marketers and brand builders, finding and participating in feeds directly related to your industry is an incredible organic growth strategy. It allows you to engage with a self-selected group of people who are already interested in your niche, putting your content in front of a highly relevant audience.

Content Filtering and Moderation Settings

Creating a safe and comfortable environment is up to you. Bluesky offers powerful tools to filter what you see and who can interact with you.

Managing Content Visibility

You decide how sensitive content is handled on your timeline. These settings are under the Moderation section in the main left-hand sidebar navigation.

• Content Filtering: Here you can choose your global preference for content labeled as adult content. The options are typically Show, Warn, or Hide.
• Mute Words & Tags: Have a topic you're tired of seeing? Go to Moderation > Mute words & tags. You can add any keyword, phrase, or hashtag to this list. Posts containing your muted terms will be hidden from every one of your feeds.

Managing Muted and Blocked Accounts

Sometimes filtering keywords isn't enough. You can also hide content from specific accounts entirely, a great way to deal with spammers and trolls without letting them know you’ve done anything.

• Mute an account: Go to the user's profile, tap on the three dots (...) menu, and select "Mute Account." They won't know they are muted, and you won't see any of their posts. You can manage your list of muted accounts under Moderation > Muted accounts.
• Block an account: Blocking is a more definitive action. It prevents them from seeing your posts, replying to you, or mentioning you. They won't be able to interact with you at all. Go to their profile, tap the three dots, and select "Block Account." Your blocked accounts list can be found under Moderation > Blocked accounts.

Privacy and Engagement Settings

While Bluesky is a public network by design, you still have control over how people engage directly with your content.

Controlling Who Can Reply

When you compose a post, look for the small gear icon at the bottom of the composer window. Tapping it before you post gives you options to control who can reply:

• Everyone: Anyone on Bluesky can reply (the default). Great for maximum engagement.
• Users you follow: Only people you follow can reply.
• Users you follow and users you have mentioned: Limits replies to a select group of accounts relevant to that specific post.

Audience Engagement Tip: For a business-to-consumer brand, keeping replies open is almost always the best move. It invites customer feedback, questions, and public testimonials. If you're making a sensitive company announcement, you might briefly restrict replies to control the conversation.

Fine-Tuning Your Notifications

An overflowing notification tray can be distracting. Dial in your alerts to focus only on interactions that matter most to you. You can find these options in Settings > Notifications.

Here, you can toggle push notifications on or off for specific activities:

• Likes on your posts: Can be noisy. Many users turn this off.
• Reposts of your posts: Lets you see when your content is being shared.
• Replies to your threads: Essential for keeping up with conversations.
• Quote Posts of your posts: Shows you who is commenting on your content.
• Follows: Notifies you when you get a new follower.
• Mentions: Important for tracking when people are trying to get your attention.

Customize these to find your perfect balance between staying informed and being overwhelmed.

Accessibility Settings

Bluesky includes several settings to make the platform easier for everyone to use. Navigate to Settings > Accessibility. One of the most important settings here is the option to "Enable 'Add alt text'." Alt text is a written description of an image for visually impaired users. Keeping this on serves as a frequent reminder and is a critical practice for creating inclusive content.

Final Thoughts

By customizing your feeds, leveraging moderation tools, and adjusting your profile, you’ve taken control of your Bluesky experience. You've built a space that serves your goals, whether that’s connecting with a community, building a brand, or simply enjoying a quieter, more curated social network. These tools are there to empower you, now you know how to use them.

Once you’ve dialed in your Bluesky strategy, the real work of managing it alongside all your other social profiles begins. We understand that juggling different platforms, each with its own content style and schedule, can feel chaotic. That’s why we built Postbase. Our visual calendar helps you see everything at a glance, allowing you to plan, schedule, and publish content across Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and more from a single, modern dashboard. It helps you stay consistent so you can focus on building your brand without fighting your tools.