Nextdoor
Platform · this deep dive is built from the official pages of the platform itself and of the tools that support it.
Overview
Nextdoor is a social network tied not to interests but to an address. A person registers in a specific neighbourhood and sees a feed of neighbours: notices, recommendations of tradespeople, things for sale, local news.
The platform describes itself this way: «Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services» — the wording from nextdoor.com. The «about the company» section lists what the product consists of: news from local publications, safety alerts, neighbours' recommendations, a «for sale and free» section and local events.
For a business this is a narrow but specific bet: Nextdoor is useful where the customer is physically nearby — plumbing, repairs, dentistry, real estate, retail near the home. What sets it apart from other platforms is a free business page and an advertising dashboard with geography down to neighbourhood level. Mechanisms for creators to earn, meanwhile, are few and far between here.
Who's here
All the figures below are the platform's own claims, and Nextdoor attaches its own footnote about the source to each. In the section about the company the platform reports 110 million neighbours in 350,000 neighbourhoods.
The business section gives different numbers, each with a footnote: «1 in 3 US households are active on Nextdoor» — citing GWI for 2022; «available in 11 countries and more than 340 thousand neighbourhoods» — citing form 10-Q, that is, the company's quarterly reporting; «more than 100 million verified users» — citing the shareholder letter for the third quarter of 2024; «4.1 million businesses have created a page» — citing internal data from 2022.
Note the discrepancy: 110 million on the «about the company» page and «more than 100 million» in the business section. The figures are of different ages and origins, and cannot be set against each other as a trend.
Getting started
Nextdoor is built so that a person joins a neighbourhood by address.
A free business page. The platform lists what it gives (noting separately that «casual» services such as dog walking require official business documents, and that without them services are promoted only from a personal account): an online presence and a description of the company, collecting recommendations, reaching local customers with an unlimited number of free posts, up-to-date contact details, photos of the team, collecting «Faves» and replying to customers' messages straight from the page.
The advertising dashboard. It is set up separately, at ads.nextdoor.com. A campaign is assembled in four steps: campaign (objective) → ad group (placements, audience, bid, daily budget, term, schedule) → ad (creative and text) → review and publish. Payment is automatic: the charge happens when the billing threshold is reached or on the monthly billing date — whichever comes first.
What you can publish
The platform declares no limit on the number of posts for a free business page — on the contrary, it promises unlimited free posts. For advertising the specifications are published in detail, and there are three placements: the feed (Newsfeed), the «For Sale & Free» section and the right-hand column (desktop only).
An image ad in the feed: a logo of 100×100 pixels, an image of 1200×628 or 1200×1200, a file of up to 150 MB, JPEG or PNG; the advertiser name and the headline are 70 characters each, the text 1700 characters truncated after 90, and the button 45 characters. Video — from 2 to 300 seconds, up to 500 MB, MOV or MP4.
The platform separately warns that emoji and special formatting are not supported in ad texts.
How to grow
Organic growth rests on neighbours' recommendations. The formalised mechanism is the annual Neighborhood Faves award. The platform publishes its scale and its claimed effect: 6.9 million «Faves» and 1.7 million businesses that received the mark according to internal data for 2025; winners, according to the same data, get 38 times more views of the business page and 32% more clicks on advertising.
Paid growth is advertising with targeting: personal targeting (home ownership, household income, gender, age and more), custom audiences for retargeting and interest targeting.
For contractors there is a paid Opportunity Alerts subscription: the alerts come from neighbours' posts within a 20-mile radius of a chosen address, and you can pick up to three service categories, with a monthly charge.
Path to monetization
It is important to say this plainly: Nextdoor does not pay creators for content. There is no advertising revenue share programme, no creator fund and no paid subscriptions to an author here. Money moves in one direction — from business to the platform.
Free: the business page, posts in the neighbourhood feed, collecting recommendations and replying to customers' messages. Paid: advertising through Ads Manager and the Opportunity Alerts subscription. Earning is possible only indirectly: enquiries and sales from neighbours.
Tools and automation
Nextdoor does have a developer portal — a link from the business section leads to it, and «Nextdoor APIs» sits as a separate item in the site footer.
Of the built-in tools the platform describes only its own: the Ads Manager dashboard and the Business Settings section, where team and user access is configured, payment methods are updated and new advertisers are created.
Limits and rules
The advertising policy is published in full and dated: the effective date is 1 April 2025.
Targeting restrictions. Ads are prohibited from asserting or implying knowledge of a viewer's personal characteristics — race, citizenship or immigration status, religion, sexual orientation, political views, employment status, disability, health condition, financial position, trade union membership, criminal record, or being transgender or non-binary. For credit, housing advertising and job vacancies the list is extended: you may not imply relevance to sex, gender, age, marital status, household composition and postcode.
Age. The rule is unambiguous: Nextdoor does not give advertisers the ability to target an audience under 18. For medicine, financial services, contests and prize draws the threshold is 18, for alcohol and gambling 21, and the minimum age may differ under local laws.
Vulnerable audiences. It is prohibited to exploit the commission of a crime, divorce, financial difficulties, relationship and family problems, or the status of a victim of violence, crime, a natural disaster or another traumatic event.
Who it's for
It suits businesses with a physical tie to a neighbourhood: home services, dentistry, car repair shops, estate agents, local retail, municipal services. A free business page with unlimited posts makes entry cheap.
It suits advertisers who need geography down to neighbourhood level and an audience of homeowners. But the frame is strict: the policy prohibits clickbait, emoji in the text and any exploitation of a person's vulnerable position, while credit, housing and job vacancies are advertised under separate rules.
It does not suit creators looking for monetization: Nextdoor does not pay creators. It does not suit brands with no local tie, or anyone whose audience is under 18.
Verified data
The checked data this deep dive rests on.
About the platform
the platform describes itself as follows: «Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services.»
Self-description: this is the platform's claim about itself, not an independent assessment
source, checked 2026-07-28
the platform describes itself: «Nextdoor is the neighborhood hub for trusted connections and the exchange of helpful information, goods, and services»
source, checked 2026-07-28
Who's here
the section about the company claims 110 million neighbours in 350,000 neighbourhoods
The claim carries no date
source, checked 2026-07-28
Where it is available. a presence in 11 countries and more than 340 thousand neighbourhoods is claimed, citing form 10-Q
The platform does not give a list of the countries
source, checked 2026-07-28
Sources diverge: the business section claims «more than 100 million verified users», citing the shareholder letter for Q3 2024
Disagrees with the «110 million» on about.nextdoor.com: the figures are of different ages and origins
source, checked 2026-07-28
Getting started
the advertising console is set up separately from the business page: «To sign up, visit ads.nextdoor.com to complete the sign up flow and select “Create a New Business.”»
the page «Get started with Nextdoor Ads Manager», read in full. There are no requirements as to turnover, subscriber count or minimum budget on that page
source, checked 2026-08-07
Account and access
to post in the neighbourhood feed, a provider of casual services needs official business documents: «If you offer casual goods or services (dog walking, babysitting) you will need official business documents to verify your Business Page in order to post messages to the nearby neighborhood newsfeed. If you do not have these business documents, you can promote your services from your member account using the new “Neighbor Made” or “Neighbor Services” options.»
the «Frequently Asked Questions» section on the platform's page for businesses. The threshold here is neither in subscribers nor in money but in documents, and the platform names the way around it itself
source, checked 2026-08-07
Business terms
it is claimed that 4.1 million businesses have created a page; the footnote is Nextdoor internal data from 2022
source, checked 2026-07-28
the business page is free and gives an unlimited number of posts, the collection of recommendations and «Faves», and replies to customers' messages
source, checked 2026-07-28
for «casual» services (dog walking, babysitting) posting to the neighbourhood feed requires official business documents; without them — only «Neighbor Made» or «Neighbor Services» from a personal account
source, checked 2026-07-28
What you can publish
an image ad in the feed: a logo of 100×100 px, an image of 1200×628 or 1200×1200, a file of up to 150 MB, JPEG/PNG; the advertiser name and headline 70 characters each, the text 1700 characters truncated after 90, the button 45 characters
source, checked 2026-07-28
a video ad: from 2 to 300 seconds, a ratio of 16:9 or 1:1, a file of up to 500 MB, MOV or MP4
source, checked 2026-07-28
a lead collection form: from 2 to 11 fields, up to 3 of your own questions and up to 3 with answer options; a link to the advertiser's privacy policy is mandatory
source, checked 2026-07-28
emoji and special formatting are not supported in ad texts
source, checked 2026-07-28
Promotion
according to the platform's internal data for 2025: 6.9 million «Faves», 1.7 million businesses marked; winners get 38 times more views of the page and 32% more clicks on advertising
The platform's own measurements, not an independent check
source, checked 2026-07-28
the paid Opportunity Alerts subscription: alerts from neighbours' posts within a 20-mile radius of a chosen address, up to three service categories, charged monthly
The subscription price is not stated on the page
source, checked 2026-07-28
Advertising
three placements: the feed (Newsfeed), the «For Sale & Free» section, the right-hand column (desktop only)
source, checked 2026-07-28
the charge is automatic: when the billing threshold is reached or on the monthly date, whichever comes first; the size of the threshold is not published
The minimum budget and bids are not named on the open pages
source, checked 2026-07-28
How the money works here
the platform lists who may enter as a business: «Local business owners, casual service providers, and home service providers can all participate on Nextdoor. To list your business, first create or claim your Business Page that displays basic information about your business or services.»
the «Frequently Asked Questions» section. The platform frames the account-type restriction not as a prohibition but as a procedure: you either create a business page or claim an existing one
source, checked 2026-08-07
advertising is paid for by impressions delivered, and the invoice is issued automatically: «Automatic Payments enable you to spend incrementally as activity progresses. Payment will be automatic, and you'll be billed once you reach your billing threshold, or upon your monthly billing date, whichever comes first.»
the page «Get started with Nextdoor Ads Manager». The size of the «billing threshold» is not named on the page — it only says that there is one; the platform does not publish rates per impression or per click either
source, checked 2026-08-07
Pricing
the monetary threshold is zero: the business page is free and the number of posts is not limited. Verbatim: «What do you get from a free Business Page? … Reach local customers with unlimited free posts: updates, expert advice, and more!» and «Claim your free Business Page now!»
the platform's page for businesses, read in full (8345 characters of visible text). This is the answer to «what will it cost me to start»: the platform takes no money for the page itself or for posts. Advertisements remain paid — they are set up separately in the console at ads.nextdoor.com
source, checked 2026-08-07
Restrictions
the advertising policy: the effective date is 1 April 2025
source, checked 2026-07-28
Nextdoor does not give advertisers the ability to target an audience under 18; for medicine, finance and contests it is 18+, for alcohol and gambling 21+
source, checked 2026-07-28
ads are prohibited from asserting or implying knowledge of race, citizenship, religion, orientation, political views, health, financial position, criminal record and more; for credit, housing and job vacancies the list is extended with sex, age, marital status and postcode
source, checked 2026-07-28
in the United Kingdom political advertising is prohibited; in the USA it is available only to managed clients, and self-service does not place it
source, checked 2026-07-28
Languages
the database records that the interface language is not stated in the markup; during our check local versions of the business site exist for the USA, the United Kingdom, Canada (en/fr) and Spain
source, checked 2026-07-28
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