Threads is becoming a bit more user-friendly. But will its stream of new features that other apps already have keep users engaged long-term?
Threads is continuing to add new features as it vies to keep its spot as one of the fastest-growing major social media apps this year.
On Monday, the app launched the advanced filters announced last month that sort out search results based on dates and profiles. This could be to help Threads compete with social media rivals X/Twitter and Bluesky, the latter of which has gained millions of users since the US elections.
Threads' default search previously only allowed keyword searches for trending accounts and topics, with "Top" or "Recent" as the sorting options. The new update could make your search results include more of what you want, like posts on a specific topic from a specific person within a specific timeframe.
Threads is now getting a new filter button to the right, which opens up options to add "After date," "Before date," and "From profile." You can use one of the filters or a combination of multiple filters and follow it up with a keyword to locate the desired posts.
Suppose you need to find all the announcements posted by Instagram boss Adam Mosseri between two specific dates. You can use the first two filters to add the date range, use the "From profile" option to pick Mosseri's account, and then use "update" as the keyword to complete the search string.
A quick test shows Threads' new search features work quite well. But just adding the filters isn't enough -- you have to use at least one keyword. If you aren't already seeing the new filters, they should be rolling out in the coming weeks.
X has let users do advanced searches like this for years, so it's not exactly game-changing. But it could make Threads have more staying power if it's easier to find exactly the kind of content you want.
X lets users find results using exact phrases, hashtags, words to be excluded, languages, engagement numbers, and more, though, so Threads could still make its search even more advanced. Bluesky has a more visually simplified search, but there are still ways to search for a particular URL or posts that mention a specific user if needed.
Threads has seen more downloads than X and Bluesky this year, but still falls behind Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok's growth globally across iOS and Android, according to AppFigures data.
Last month, Threads started testing and rolling out AI-powered trending topic summaries, like X provides via Elon Musk's Grok. And come January, you might start seeing ads on Threads, too.