Bluesky finally adds a feature many had been waiting for

Bluesky has been making a lot of progress in recent months by simplifying the process to sign up while at the same time rolling out a steady stream of new features.

As part of those continuing efforts, the social media app has just announced that users can now send direct messages (DMs).

It means that anyone with a Bluesky account can send private one-to-one messages directly within the app. The company noted in a post announcing the feature that by default, anyone who you follow on Bluesky is able to DM you. However, you can turn off DMs or select those who can DM you by diving into the app’s Settings. Additionally, you can’t receive DMs from someone you’ve blocked, though muted users are able to DM you. If you receive a DM from someone you want to block, you can do so from within the DM feature.

Sending a DM is simple. All you do is:
1. Select the Chat icon. On mobile, the icon is located at the bottom of the screen. On desktop, it appears as a chat bubble on the side bar.

2. On mobile, select the + icon to start a new conversation, and on desktop, select New chat in the top right to start a new conversation.

3. Search for the user you want to message. Write your message and hit send.

Bluesky adds that if the app says a user is unable to be messaged, they may have set their account to only allow DMs from people they follow or from no one.

DMs on Bluesky only allow for text-based messages at the current time, but the company is working on adding images and other forms of media. Direct messages for groups is another feature that it wants to add, and it plans to “fully support end-to-end encrypted messaging down the line.”

Bluesky and Meta-owned Threads have emerged as the main rivals to X (formerly Twitter), and recent features from both apps have continued to make the user experience similar to that offered by X.

Earlier this year, Bluesky said it added almost a million users within a day of exiting its invitation-only beta and opening to everyone, bringing its total base to around 4 million.