Saritel Abbaszade
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Mastodon is a decentralized, open-source social network that has grown rapidly as an alternative to traditional platforms. Unlike centralized networks, Mastodon consists of many independent servers (instances), each with its own community. If you're running a WordPress website and want to reach the Mastodon community, FS Poster lets you automatically share your posts to any Mastodon instance.
This guide will show you how to set up FS Poster to auto-post your WordPress content to Mastodon.
How to Add Mastodon Accounts for Auto-Posting
To start sharing your posts to Mastodon, you need to connect your Mastodon account to FS Poster.
Navigate to FS Poster > Channels in your WordPress dashboard and click the Add channel button.
{screenshot: mastodon-add-channel}
In the opened window, find Mastodon in the list. FS Poster offers two methods to connect your Mastodon account:
Easy Method (Recommended)
The Easy method uses FS Poster's standard app to connect your account quickly. Enter your Mastodon server URL (e.g., mastodon.social, fosstodon.org, or any other instance), then click Sign in. You will be redirected to your Mastodon instance's authorization page where you grant FS Poster permission to access your account.
{screenshot: mastodon-easy-method}
After authorizing, your account will be added to the plugin automatically.
Advanced Method
If you prefer to use your own Mastodon app credentials, you can use the Advanced method. You will need to create an application on your Mastodon instance first (usually under Preferences > Development > New Application) to get your Client Key and Client Secret.
Once you have your credentials, go to FS Poster > Channels > Apps, add your Mastodon app with the server URL, Client Key, and Client Secret, then use it to connect your account.
{screenshot: mastodon-advanced-method}
There is no limit for adding accounts. You can add accounts from multiple Mastodon instances.
You can also add accounts using a proxy for additional security.
How to Share from WordPress to Mastodon
Once your Mastodon account is connected, you can start sharing your WordPress content.
Go to the Calendar tab and click Schedule new post.
{screenshot: mastodon-schedule-post}
Click Choose channels, find your Mastodon channel, and add it to the share list.
In the composer, you can customize the message that gets posted to Mastodon. By default, FS Poster uses the post title, but you can customize it using built-in keywords like {post_title}, {post_excerpt}, {post_content}, and more.
Mastodon has a 500 character limit for posts, so keep your message concise or let FS Poster automatically truncate it.
You can schedule the post for a specific date and time, or share it immediately by clicking the arrow next to the Schedule button and choosing Share now.
Mastodon Settings
FS Poster provides several Mastodon-specific settings that you can configure under Settings > Mastodon:
Post Content — The message text for the shared post. Supports FS Poster keywords like
{post_title},{post_excerpt}, etc. Default:{post_title}Attach Post Link — When enabled, the WordPress post URL will be appended to the post content. Default: Enabled.
Upload Post Image(s) — When enabled, the plugin will upload images with the post. Default: Disabled.
Media Type to Upload — Choose which images to upload: featured image only, or all attached images. Only visible when "Upload Post Image(s)" is enabled. Default: Featured image.
{screenshot: mastodon-settings}
These settings apply to all Mastodon channels unless overridden per channel.
How to Schedule Posts on Mastodon from WordPress
Scheduling previously published WordPress posts to Mastodon using the FS Poster Planner is straightforward.
Navigate to the Planner tab and click New Planner.
{screenshot: mastodon-planner}
Select your Mastodon channel, configure which posts to share (by category, tag, date, or specific posts), set the interval, and activate the planner.
FS Poster will automatically share your posts to Mastodon based on the schedule you configured. You can choose to post randomly, from oldest to newest, or newest to oldest.
You can also set sleep times to avoid posting during specific hours, and customize the post content using built-in keywords or AI-generated content.
Channel Settings
Each Mastodon channel can be individually configured:
Activate — Enable the channel for automatic posting whenever a new WordPress post is published.
Conditional Posting — Activate channels conditionally by selecting specific categories to share or exclude specific posts.
Custom Content — Override the global Mastodon settings with channel-specific post content.
Proxy — Enable or edit proxy credentials without re-authorizing the channel.
Permissions — Allow other WordPress users to use this channel in their own FS Poster dashboard.
Labels — Organize channels into groups for easier bulk management.
{screenshot: mastodon-channel-settings}
Conclusion
This article covered how to auto-post to Mastodon from WordPress using FS Poster. With support for any Mastodon instance, customizable post content, image uploads, and scheduling, FS Poster makes it easy to keep your Mastodon presence active with fresh content from your WordPress site.
You can check out the core features of the plugin.
Contact us for any pre-sale questions: [email protected]
If you decide to continue with FS Poster, you can check out the official website.
