Have Hashtags Gone Out of Style?

It’s finally time to break the news: Hashtags might not be what they used to be.

Written by Julia Giantomasi
Published on February 13, 2025

Keeping up with what’s cool, what was once cool, then became SUPER uncool, and is now cool again for the moment can be EXHAUSTING! Trends are quick to enter the chat and just as quick to leave sometimes. In the case of hashtags though, it’s been a slow fadeout and we think it’s finally time to break the news. Hashtags might not be what they used to be.

It has been questioned many times over the years. Do hashtags serve a purpose anymore? While users seemed to use them less, it wasn’t taken seriously until Instagram Threads debuted. Initially, a thread didn’t allow for hashtags, which was the first statement that maybe they’re not all they’re cracked up to be. Then, as bugs were fixed and updates were made to the Threads model, they allowed for one hashtag per post.

The intention behind this was to limit tagging irrelevant topics in a post, but the larger message was that the hashtag era might be coming to an end. Many people became unsatisfied with the changes at Twitter when it changed ownership and became X, and were looking for new alternatives for text-based social media platforms. The fact that people are choosing to move to a space where hashtags are limited shows that many are accepting the change in the landscape of how we share information.

Other than new platforms becoming available, the technology behind social media has evolved tenfold in recent years with the introduction of AI and a more advanced search capacity. In the early social media days, users needed hashtags to group posts together by topic or make them easier to find through search tools. Now, the modern algorithm and sorting systems on these platforms are able to infer context and topic info directly from the post details. Think about how your TikTok is able to serve you the exact video you want on your nightly doom-scroll. The algorithm is smart…almost too smart! Unfortunately, that also means hashtags have become devalued along the way.

Although the system doesn’t need hashtags anymore and they no longer affect the reach of your post, you might not want to fully erase them from your marketing lexicon! Campaign-specific hashtags can still foster community engagement. For example, NJ State Library’s evergreen campaign which highlights all of the services public libraries offer. By using the hashtags #LifeHappensAtYourLibrary and #BeyondBooks, we’re creating a niche topic to tie campaign posts together and create a way for all NJ Public libraries to feel connected when they share their own posts on the topic.

It also allows us to track which libraries have utilized the campaign by searching the hashtags.

In conclusion, at the risk of sounding “uncool,” we say don’t bury hashtags at the bottom of a bin with all of your clothes that are no longer trendy just yet. Sure, hashtags aren’t as effective as they used to be, and you shouldn’t be relying on them for engagement or reach. However, using campaign or event-specific hashtags can still enhance your content and resonate with followers. Just be more aware when you’re using them and what you’re looking for them to do in the context of your marketing goals.

And who knows, in 5 years we could be writing a blog about how hashtags are “so nostalgic” and making a comeback!