Minds
Platform · this deep dive is built from the official pages of the platform itself and of the tools that support it.
Overview
Minds is an open-source social network built around two ideas: freedom of speech and paying authors from inside the platform itself. It describes its moderation rules like this: the terms were drawn up “with the express purpose of allowing users to speak freely, around our fundamental First Amendment rights”, and everything that is legal in the United States is permitted.
The advertising here is its own too: Boost is “Minds' own advertising network”, a way to get views in exchange for Minds tokens or US dollars. Paying for advertising and paying authors are parts of one mechanism: the platform gives a share of Boost revenue to channel owners.
A separate product is Minds Networks: on the home page the platform offers to launch your own community app on your own domain, on the web, Android and iOS, compatible with ActivityPub, RSS, DNS, Bitcoin, Ethereum and Stripe. This is not a “company page” inside Minds but a separate platform running on its engine.
Who's here
Minds publishes almost no audience figures of its own. The home page says that Minds.com is “one of the largest networks in the decentralized social media space”, having generated “over a billion views”; no date or period is given.
An indirect quantity belongs to Apple: App Store data via the public iTunes interface showed, on the day of our check, 1,750 ratings with an average of 4.36, the publisher MINDS.ORG, INC., version 5.5.2 of 9 May 2025, a 17+ rating and a single declared interface language — English.
Geography is limited by the payment infrastructure: cash rewards are handled by Stripe, which is not supported in every country, and members outside the United States and Europe are told to check the list of countries. The platform publishes no breakdown by country or language.
Getting started
The basic unit is a channel, which is also the profile. There is no separate business account with document checks; paid tiers take its place. Earning requires confirmation: the ad revenue share programme is available to channels in good standing that are verified as human — through a phone number or the “human detector” in the app.
A separate page for a brand appears at the Minds Pro level: a premium plan with a dedicated Pro page, “a great way to build a brand”. For a community of your own the platform describes launching Minds Networks: name, description and visibility, styling and branding, connecting a domain, the first post, comments on your own site, subscriptions.
What you can publish
The platform describes the editor in detail: uploading media, marking NSFW with the “E” button, hashtags, choosing visibility, monetization through the dollar icon (Minds+ or Memberships) and scheduling a post for a date and time. The scheduler is built in and needs no external service.
Video limits are tied to the paid tier. About Minds+ the platform writes of unlimited HD video up to 95 minutes, and about Minds Pro of video up to 60 minutes, 4 GB and 1080p, even though Pro, according to the same page, includes all Minds+ features. These two descriptions in the platform's help centre contradict each other. One more restriction: you cannot post links in Minds+ — only original content is allowed there.
What is forbidden. The platform names the behaviour that may lead to a channel ban: harassment, bullying, spam, threats of violence and copyright infringement.
How to grow
Advertising
Boost works as an auction: there is no fixed price, the advertiser sets a maximum bid, and the post is promoted according to its size. You can pay in tokens or money; cards are stored by Stripe. Approved Boosts are not refunded, and cancellation is only possible before approval. The placements are described contradictorily within a single help page: first it is “every twelfth post in the feed”, and lower down a rotator at the top of the feed and “every sixth”.
All Boosts go through review usually within an hour, sometimes with a delay of up to a day; there are two categories — Safe and Controversial — and delivery goes only to those who have agreed to see the category. A separate page lists what may not be promoted: breaches of the content rules and of Stripe's policy, moderation appeals, support requests, sales of Minds tokens, content from banned users, explicit content and malicious harassment.
Organic reach and communities
There are groups: you can post to a group from the editor by choosing it instead of your channel; a closed group is joined by invitation or request. An important caveat: posts in groups, reposts and quotes do not count towards engagement rewards. There is no description of the feed algorithm in the help centre.
Path to monetization
Minds pays authors in several ways, and almost all of them require a paid subscription from the author themselves.
Author subscriptions. Minds+ costs 7 dollars a month or 60 dollars a year and is required for authors to receive payouts for their content and to withdraw earned tokens to the blockchain. Minds Pro costs 50 dollars a month or 480 dollars a year and adds earnings from page views.
A share of ad revenue. The Boost Partner Program promises 50% of revenue — in tokens and money — from Boost impressions on the pages of your posts and channel; cash payouts require at least 100 dollars of accumulated earnings, a connected bank account and an active Minds+ subscription.
Subscriptions, paid replies and tips. Memberships are paid access tiers: money requires Stripe, tokens require verification; a “tokens only” tier cannot be created. Supermind is an offer of money for a reply: up to 7 days to answer, otherwise the offer expires and the money is returned. Wire is a transfer between members in tokens or dollars.
Token rewards. The rewards system automatically distributes 10,000 MINDS tokens to the community every day. The token is described as a utility token, traded on crypto exchanges, with a price set by the market. And a detail about currency: pay for the subscription in tokens and payouts come only in tokens; pay in money and they come in money or tokens.
Tools and automation
The code is open: both Minds and the mobile app are licensed under AGPLv3, and developers are offered documentation, a design system and repositories on GitLab. The internal interface is GraphQL: a single query returns the whole feed, with pagination in the Relay Cursor Connection style; this is documentation for the platform's own development, and the open pages contain no procedure for issuing keys to third-party apps.
Connectivity with other networks is declared through two protocols. For ActivityPub the documentation gives a support table: creating a note, reposting, liking, following and unfollowing work, while deleting, reporting and account migration are in progress or unsupported; attachments are images, and video is called a future feature. Nostr is enabled in the settings.
Of the built-in features: the scheduler in the editor, the Boost console and a wallet with sections for rewards, earnings, balance, transactions, on-chain transfers and settings, including connecting Stripe, plus embeddable comments and a share button for an external site.
Limits and rules
The strike system is described point by point: a strike expires after 90 days; three strikes for unmarked NSFW mark the whole channel with the NSFW category; for harassment and spam the third strike is a ban, and spamming with a bot can lead to an immediate ban. The same page lists the grounds for an immediate ban: illegal content, disclosure of personal data, malware, token manipulation, impersonation and a genuine threat of violence. Appeals against strikes are heard by a “jury” of members, and appeals against an immediate ban by administrators.
The mobile apps are cut down: the platform warns that monetization and NSFW features are limited on mobile devices; officially supported are the latest versions of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, Edge and Brave and the latest three versions of Android and iOS. Subscriptions renew automatically: the help centre quotes section 14 of the terms, under which a subscription renews itself unless you cancel before the period begins.
Who it's for
Minds makes sense if you need a channel outside the large advertising ecosystems and are prepared to pay for your own access to monetization: without a Minds+ subscription payouts do not work. The model is clear for authors who already have an audience and who need paid tiers, tips and paid replies rather than reach.
For a company that needs a campaign with clear targeting and predictable reach the platform is a worse fit: there is no price, only a bid, and delivery is limited to those who have agreed to see the chosen category. For a community of your own on your own domain, Minds Networks is worth a look. It does not suit you if payouts are needed outside Stripe's countries, or if a policy of “everything legal in the United States is allowed” is incompatible with your brand's requirements about what its content sits next to.
Verified data
The checked data this deep dive rests on.
About the platform
the platform describes itself as follows: «Minds.com is one of the largest networks in the decentralized social media space», having generated more than a billion views
source, checked 2026-07-28
the publisher of the mobile app is MINDS.ORG, INC.
App Store data via Apple's public iTunes interface
source, checked 2026-07-28
the code of the platform and of the mobile app is licensed under AGPLv3
The platform's claim in its help centre
source, checked 2026-07-28
Who's here
the platform reports «over a billion views»; no date or period is given
The platform's claim about itself, not an independent measurement
source, checked 2026-07-28
App Store: 1,750 ratings, average 4.36; version 5.5.2 of 09.05.2025
The store's rating count, not a number of users
source, checked 2026-07-28
Account and access
Earning is closed until confirmation: participation in the Boost Partner Program is available to channels «in good standing and verified as human (via phone number or mobile app human detector)» (verbatim). Cash payouts additionally require accumulating at least 100 dollars, linking a bank account and having a Minds+ subscription; the channel verification badge is granted only with an active Minds+ or Minds Pro
Publishing, Boost and groups are not restricted for new accounts in any way in the help centre; the restrictions Minds itself names are human verification and paid status
source, checked 2026-08-07
Confirming that a human is behind the channel — by phone number or through the mobile app human detector — plus the channel being «in good standing»; for withdrawing money — a Minds+ subscription, a linked bank account and 100 dollars accumulated; for the verification badge — an active Minds+ or Minds Pro and an application on the Minds+ site
Two different sources: the Boost Partner Program terms and the article about Minds+
source, checked 2026-08-07
for the ad revenue share programme a channel must be in good standing and verified as human — by phone number or through the «human detector» in the app
source, checked 2026-07-28
Business terms
a separate brand page is available at the Minds Pro level («Pro page»)
The format of a company's presence is tied to a paid subscription
source, checked 2026-07-28
Minds Networks is the launch of your own community app on your own domain, on the web, Android and iOS
A separate product, not a presence inside Minds
source, checked 2026-07-28
What you can publish
the editor: uploading media, marking NSFW, hashtags, choosing visibility, monetization, scheduling a post for a date and time
source, checked 2026-07-28
Sources diverge: Minds+: unlimited HD video up to 95 minutes; Minds Pro: video up to 60 minutes, 4 GB, 1080p — while Pro is declared to include all Minds+ features
A contradiction within the platform's own help centre; the second page is /1686936779-minds-pro
source, checked 2026-07-28
Content
you cannot post links in Minds+: only original content is allowed
source, checked 2026-07-28
Advertising
Boost is the platform's own advertising network; there is no fixed price, the advertiser sets a maximum bid; payment in MINDS tokens or money
source, checked 2026-07-28
all Boosts go through moderation review: usually within an hour, sometimes with a delay of up to a day; approved Boosts are not refunded
source, checked 2026-07-28
two Boost categories — Safe and Controversial; delivery only to those who have agreed to see the category
source, checked 2026-07-28
what may not be promoted: breaches of the content rules, breaches of Stripe's policy, moderation appeals, support requests, sales of Minds tokens, content from banned users, explicit content, malicious harassment
source, checked 2026-07-28
Sources diverge: in a single help article promoted posts are called both «every twelfth» and «every sixth» in the feed
A contradiction within one page of the platform
source, checked 2026-07-28
How the money works here
Boost Partner Program (a share of Boost impressions), Minds+ (a subscription to closed content, out of which creators are paid), Minds Pro; the settlements are visible in the Wallet section — tokens and money separately
The programme names are given as on the site, the page is in English
source, checked 2026-08-04
Who is admitted. The Boost Partner Program is joined by "all Minds channels that are in good standing and verified as human (via phone number or mobile app human detector)" — that is, channels without violations that have passed the human check by phone number or through the detector in the app. For payouts in money it is additionally necessary to accumulate at least 100 dollars, link a bank account and be a Minds+ subscriber
Our translation, the original is in English; the quotation is given
source, checked 2026-08-04
Creator's share. "50% of the revenue – both tokens and cash – from Boost views" — the creator receives 50% of the revenue from Boost impressions, both in tokens and in money
Our translation, the original is in English
source, checked 2026-08-04
Payout minimum. 100 US dollars of total earnings: "You must have accrued a minimum of $100 in total earnings" — before that, withdrawal in money is unavailable
Our translation, the original is in English
source, checked 2026-08-04
How they pay. In money — to a linked bank account through Stripe (the wallet has a section for the Stripe connection settings); in tokens — by an on-chain transfer to a crypto address. The way the membership is paid for sets the way of payout: "If you pay for your membership in tokens, you will only be eligible to be paid out in tokens. If you pay in cash, you are eligible to be paid out in cash or tokens"
Our translation, the original is in English; the Stripe information is from the page https://help.minds.com/hc/minds/articles/1694176253-wallet
source, checked 2026-08-04
Creator's share. Boost Partner Program: 50% of revenue in tokens and money from Boost impressions on channel and post pages
source, checked 2026-07-28
Payout minimum. cash payouts require at least 100 dollars of accumulated earnings, a connected bank account and an active Minds+ subscription
source, checked 2026-07-28
cash rewards are handled by Stripe, which is not supported in every country; members outside the United States and Europe are told to check the list of countries
source, checked 2026-07-28
the rewards system automatically distributes 10,000 MINDS tokens to the community every day
source, checked 2026-07-28
posts in groups, reposts and quotes do not count towards engagement rewards
source, checked 2026-07-28
Supermind is a paid offer for a reply from an author: up to 7 days to answer, otherwise a refund; a reply is not guaranteed, and the author sets the minimum amount
source, checked 2026-07-28
paid access tiers: money requires Stripe, tokens require verification; a «tokens only» tier cannot be created
source, checked 2026-07-28
Wire is a transfer between members in tokens or dollars; a cash transfer is possible only to recipients with a cash account enabled
source, checked 2026-07-28
someone who paid for a subscription in tokens can receive payouts only in tokens; someone who paid in money can receive them in money or tokens
source, checked 2026-07-28
Paid subscriptions
Minds+ costs 7 dollars a month or 60 dollars a year; it is required for authors to receive payouts and to withdraw tokens to the blockchain
source, checked 2026-07-28
Minds Pro costs 50 dollars a month or 480 dollars a year; it adds earnings from page views and a separate Pro page
source, checked 2026-07-28
subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled before the period begins (section 14 of the terms of service)
The terms are quoted in the help centre; the document itself is served only to a script
source, checked 2026-07-28
Limits and restrictions
monetization and NSFW features are limited when used on mobile devices
source, checked 2026-07-28
Restrictions
a strike expires after 90 days; three strikes for unmarked NSFW mark the whole channel with the NSFW category; the third strike for harassment and spam is a ban; spamming with a bot can lead to an immediate ban
source, checked 2026-07-28
immediate ban: illegal content, disclosure of personal data, malware, token manipulation, impersonation, a genuine threat of violence
source, checked 2026-07-28
Moderation
Verbatim: «All strikes can be appealed to a Minds Jury» — strikes are challenged before a jury of users. Verbatim: «Appeals on immediate bans will be reviewed by the Minds admins and not a jury» — immediate bans are reviewed by administrators. No deadline for submitting is named
source, checked 2026-08-07
Legal
the terms are drawn up around the US First Amendment: everything legal in the United States is permitted; a channel ban is possible for harassment, bullying, spam, threats of violence and copyright infringement
A retelling of the terms in the platform's help centre; the full text is served only to a script
source, checked 2026-07-28
API access
the internal interface is GraphQL with pagination in the Relay Cursor Connection style; the documentation is written for the platform's own development
No procedure for issuing keys to third-party apps is described
source, checked 2026-07-28
ActivityPub support: creating a note, reposting, liking, following and unfollowing work; deleting, reporting and account migration are in progress or unsupported; attachments are images, and video is declared a future feature
A table of conformance to the specification in the platform's documentation
source, checked 2026-07-28
support for the Nostr protocol is enabled in the account settings
source, checked 2026-07-28
Languages
the interface language of the home page: en
The language is taken from the markup attribute, the versions from hreflang
source, checked 2026-07-28
the only declared interface language of the app is English
The languageCodesISO2A field in the App Store data
source, checked 2026-07-28
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