Pinterest: The right lane of the internet

The internet is a diverse, yet alarmingly fast-paced environment. In the span of 90 seconds, you can hear about politics, the most recent celebrity beef, and Austin Butler’s latest project. Short-form content has only increased this speed, but there is one app that has rejected this concept: Pinterest.

Pinterest is an app in which the main focus is to inspire its users. You can scroll through a feed of images, find ones you love, and “pin” them to your own, personally curated board. People use Pinterest boards to plan weddings, find their personal style or save art reference photos.

At the beginning of this year, I used Pinterest to make my vision board for 2024, and I had such a positive experience. It was fun and easy, and as the year goes on, the app recommends me photos to add, so I can continue to stay inspired. 

One of the alluring aspects of Pinterest is the sense of anonymity that other apps lack. I feel like platforms like Instagram and TikTok are driven by creators and influencers who typically want to reach some level of fame, but on Pinterest, the people are just people. 

Of course, you can still find images of celebrities, but generally, users are generally able to focus more on concepts like fashion and jewelry rather than the person who is wearing these items. 

The fast changes between videos on TikTok can be overwhelming, and while there are some videos with audio, Pinterest users typically retain a calm experience. They are able to simply focus on the images they are looking at, and those sounds sometimes inspire an addition to their board. For example, I love listening to music while making boards for my dream home or my dream vacation.

Another factor that adds to Pinterest’s unique nature is the minimal comment section. As hilarious as TikTok comment sections can be, I also find they can turn into toxic environments quickly. With Pinterest, there are far less people bickering in comments, so users can focus more on content and less on discourse.

One of the biggest drawbacks for Internet users are advertisements. They are great for companies and influencers who work with these companies, but they are annoying for users, as they often may come off as disingenuous. 

TikTok has seen an increase in ads with the introduction of TikTok Shop, which has incentivized creators to commodify their content. I have been using TikTok far less because of this new feature, along with my friends and family. It aggressively tries to convince users to buy just about anything, and this can be really frustrating when people are simply trying to be entertained.

Pinterest is a lot less aggressive when it comes to their advertisements, but it is not necessarily a perfect oasis. It still contains advertisements that implicitly, and often explicitly, want viewers to buy something. I use an ad blocker to remedy this issue, but it can still be annoying. Most of the ads are based off of the other content anyway, so they typically blend in.

Niches and aesthetics have always been prevalent on the internet, and Pinterest has always been an outlet in that. As someone who was too young for Tumblr, I remember using Pinterest to pin photos of flower crowns and skinny jeans for outfit inspiration back in 2014. 

Then, in 2018, I fell into a makeup phase. Luckily, Pinterest was a calm environment that allowed me to explore my interests without pressure, and the algorithm kept me inspired. I also loved drawing, and as I mentioned earlier, the app is a great place for art references.

With the rise of the “clean girl aesthetic” and “coquette fashion,” Pinterest is able to keep up and recommends photos that are relevant today. Additionally, I love looking for new styles without feeling pressured to buy a brand new wardrobe. 

I admire how much Pinterest has remained true to itself. I have consistently used the platform for about ten years now, and I always look forward to scrolling and making new boards. I appreciate how slow-paced it is compared to other social media platforms, and the fact that their interface has remained relatively the same makes the user-friendliness all the better.

I hope to see Pinterest continue to grow in the future. I think it’s a timeless platform that has the exceptional ability to evolve over time. I would love to see myself, and you, using it ten years from now.