Threads has crossed 350 million monthly users, yet it remains a weak source of referral traffic for publishers and bloggers. In June, outbound clicks reached 28.4 million, up from 15.1 million a year earlier, according to SimilarWeb (via Engadget). That’s still low given the platform averages over 115 million daily users.
Meta has tried improving how links perform. It added link analytics, allowed more links in profiles, and adjusted how its system ranks them. Still, engagement remains minimal. Most users scroll past links, and publishers aren't seeing much change. Chartbeat data shows publisher pageviews from Threads rose from 8.8 million in January to 15.1 million in June, but that’s a small slice of their overall traffic.
Referral traffic from Threads peaked in March, with 28.8 million visits. That bump followed Meta’s decision to lift restrictions on political content, which briefly boosted visits for outlets like Newsweek and Forbes. But those gains haven’t held across the board.
Compared to other sources, Threads sits near the bottom. Chartbeat reports it delivers less than 0.1% of publisher referrals, far behind Facebook’s 2 - 3% and Google Discover’s 13 - 14%. It even trails Reddit and ChatGPT in some cases.
Meta hasn’t commented on the low traffic numbers. But with ads on the way, this trend may raise concerns among marketers and creators who rely on clicks and conversions. For now, Threads remains more of a passive feed than a platform that moves audiences.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.
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