Tweetbot’s devs are back with a Mastodon client

Ivory, a Mastodon client from the company behind the beloved and departed Tweetbot, has just launched on the iOS App Store. While it’s still in early access, many people (myself included) have been impressed with the alpha version that had a very limited number of slots; now, anyone on iOS can use it to cruise the fediverse, aka Mastodon’s network.

The app comes from Tapbots, a company that recently had the rug pulled out from under it when Twitter banned third-party clients. Because Tapbots basically had to ship Ivory with very little warning, there are still a lot of missing features that may be available in more mature Mastodon clients or on the web. According to the company’s road map, it still has to add the ability to edit your profile, edit posts (no, Mastodon doesn’t require a paid subscription for that), read alt text, and more. There’s also no Ivory app for the Mac yet.

Despite all that, I’ve found Ivory to be — and I say this with love to open-source projects everywhere — really the only Mastodon client that I’d consider using. Even in its very early state, its UI just clicks with how I like to use social media, and it has a base level of polish that I appreciate. It also does a pretty good job of obfuscating the complexities of Mastodon, of which there are many.

I recommend checking out MacStories’ deep-dive review if you’re still on the fence or if you want to get some tips on how to make the most of Ivory. And if you’re interested in Ivory but haven’t set up a Mastodon account yet, I recommend checking out our 101 article explaining the service.

Before you rush out to download it, it’s worth noting that Ivory is a paid app. While you can demo it in a read-only mode (meaning you can’t post or even boost or favorite other people’s posts), getting full access to the app costs $1.99 a month or $14.99 a year, though there is a one-week trial that’s separate from the demo. The company does say that the subscription works with iCloud family sharing, so if you have that set up, your family should be able to use it on their devices, too.