Meta tests 'Threads Friends' for sharing posts with a smaller group
Meta's social app Threads is testing a feature called 'Threads Friends' in Ireland, Italy and Japan, letting users share posts with up to 50 chosen people. It resembles Twitter's 'Circles' feature from 2022.
Threads, the short-post social network owned by Meta, has begun testing a feature called 'Threads Friends' that lets users share posts with a smaller circle of followers. The trial is running in Ireland, Italy and Japan. It matters for users who want to share content more privately instead of making it visible to everyone on the platform.
The feature works much like a 'close friends' list on other social apps. A user can choose to show a post to no more than 50 friends, and nobody else on the platform can see it. The app also refers to these friends as 'Thriends'.
Similarity to Twitter's 'Circles'
The feature closely resembles one that Twitter introduced in 2022 under the name 'Circles'. Twitter's version let users limit posts to groups of up to 150 people. The company ended Circles about a year later.
How the list is built
A Meta spokesperson said the company helps users set up their first friends list: the app automatically suggests followers the user engages with often. The list can be customized. Once it is set up, a green bubble appears at the top of the user's feed, and tapping it shows friends' posts shared in the last 24 hours.
Meta has not yet released detailed images of the feature. However, Laura Javier, product design director for Threads, showed a brief preview of how a friends-only post will look. She also revealed an Easter egg that changes 'Threads Friends' to 'Thriends'.
Wider availability
It is unclear whether or when Meta plans to widen the test, so most users in the US will not have access for now. Still, if someone in one of the test countries adds you to their list, you will be able to see their friends-only posts.
