Alternative frontends

An alternative frontend is a different interface for accessing a platform's content without going through the official site or app. Here's how it typically works: the frontend still fetches the data from the original service (videos from YouTube, posts from X, photos from Instagram...) but displays it with ads, tracking, and often even the need for an account stripped away.

It's worth having realistic expectations: in most cases a frontend doesn't make you anonymous to the origin platform. The frontend's server (or, in some cases, your own device) still contacts the official servers, so don't expect your IP address to stay hidden from the platform you're bypassing. They're still a great compromise when you don't want, or can't, leave a service entirely: they block invasive ads and trackers, and often let you browse without an account and without agreeing to the original platform's terms of service.

Many of these projects work through instances: servers run by volunteers that host the frontend's software. You can use an existing public instance, or, if you're reasonably technical, run your own (self-hosting). Where possible we list both the available instances and, when one exists, an official or particularly reliable instance to start from.

Below you'll find the frontends organised by platform. For each one we list the project (or projects — in some cases there's more than one) and the useful links to get started.

We do want to point out, though, that frontends remain a compromise, not a solution. Continuing to watch the same content on closed, proprietary platforms — even "disguised" through a frontend — still gives them relevance. As long as there's an audience, even one that's perhaps less visible to their advertising stats, creators will keep publishing there, and those platforms will keep the power they have today. The better choice, whenever possible, is to leave them behind entirely in favour of open, federated alternatives like the Fediverse, where no single company controls the flow of information or the rules of the game.