Like

What is a Like on Social Media?

A "like" is an action available on various social media websites, in which a user "likes" a post or comment of another user by clicking on a like button, which has a thumbs up icon or a heart icon. The number of likes a post has is typically displayed next to this button.

Although "like" is a positive term, someone can "like" a post even without approving of the post's content. Observe that, when you see a post, there are only two actions that notify the user who posted the post that you have seen the post: you can comment (or reply) to the post, which takes effort since you have to write, or you can simply click on a "like" button, which is more convenient. Consequently, "like" can be interpreted as "reacting" in general terms.

Facebook, which popularized the concept of "liking" posts, has today various different emotions that you can use to react to posts, but most social media only make available the reaction of "liking." Social media that support liking include: Instagram, Twitter, Bluesky, Threads, Tumblr, and TikTok. Although similar to Twitter, Bluesky, and Threads, Mastodon uses the term "favorite," which is rather confusing since favoriting in other social media tends to mean "bookmark," i.e. to save a post. On Youtube, the concept of "liking" exists as a vote, there being something such as "dislike" (a thumbs down icon). On Reddit, votes also exist but aren't called likes, instead they're called upvotes and downvotes. On Pinterest, there aren't likes, however there are reactions displayed for selection when you click on a button with a heart icon.