In January 2026, Threads has reached 141.5 million daily active users, clearly surpassing X's 125 million daily users. It's about an official overtaking according to reliable data from Similarweb, which marked a historic turning point in the world of social network mobile apps in 2026. This event represents a turning point for all digital marketing professionals, WordPress publishers and Italian brands that are planning their social media presence.
Meta's text-based platform has registered a growth of 127.8% compared to 2025, consolidating its dominant role in the mobile segment. While X still holds the lead in web usage, from computers, with around 150 million daily visits compared to 8.5 million users on Threads.com and Threads.net, the battle for mobile dominance has been definitively won by Mark Zuckerberg's creation.
For Italian brands and creators, this historical moment represents a unique opportunity: the platform is expanding global advertising monetization right now, and costs are still significantly lower compared to other Meta placements. According to the latest analyses, i CPM (cost per mille impression) su Threads variano attualmente da $3 a $8, mentre il CPC (cost per click) si colloca tra $0,30 e $1,50 – valori sensibilmente inferiori rispetto a Facebook ($8-14 CPM) e Instagram ($6-18 CPM).
Why Threads Surpassed X: Analysis of Growth Factors
The rise of Threads is not a coincidence, but the result of a precise and well-articulated strategy by Meta. The increase has generated greater attention from companies and advertisers toward Threads, redefining digital marketing strategies and boosting competition between rival platforms..
Integration with the Meta Ecosystem
Threads' most relevant competitive advantage is its complete integration with Instagram and Facebook. The increase in daily Threads usage on mobile devices is due to several factors, including cross-promotion of posts on Facebook and Instagram, which encourages people to sign up for Threads, and the launch of new features..
Cross-promotion on Instagram and Facebook reduces the barrier to entry, while audience portability allows for the transfer of attention and relationships from the Meta ecosystem, making it easier to get started.. For Italian brands that already have an established presence on Instagram, this means being able to immediately activate a community on Threads without having to build everything from scratch.
Interest-Based Discovery and Conversational Algorithm
Discovery by interests offers less dependence on who you follow and more ability to find relevant conversations, while features designed for retention include coordinated notifications, network suggestions, and creator tools adapted to text format. This approach fosters the organic discovery of new brands and creators, representing a significant opportunity for emerging players in the Italian market.
The Threads algorithm rewards the quality of conversations. The Meta Threads algorithm favors fresh content and real engagement, prioritizing posts with meaningful replies and personalized relevance. The algorithm selects posts for the feed based on recency and engagement metrics, where each like, comment, and share increases the post's reach..
Advertising Monetization: The Right Time to Invest
Meta announced the expansion of advertisements on Threads to all users worldwide, with the rollout beginning the following week that will be gradual and may take a few months to complete. The platform, launched in July 2023, has surpassed 400 million monthly active users.
Current Advertising Costs and Future Projections
Initial estimates indicate a time-limited window of opportunity. CPMs on Threads are currently in the range of ~$3-8, but are expected to jump to the $15-25 range by Q4 2026. This means that brands that invest now can benefit from. CPMs% 15-25% lower than Instagram Feed, though this gap is expected to narrow as more advertisers adopt the placement.
For Italian marketing professionals, it is recommended to Start with a test budget of $$20-50 per day for a two-week campaign solely on Threads placements. This provides Meta's algorithm with sufficient data to optimize, while keeping the test budget under $$700. If CPM and engagement rates prove solid, you can gradually scale by 20-30% per week..
Available Advertising Formats
Advertisers can add Threads placements to Advantage+ and manual campaigns via Ads Manager, using formats including image, video, and carousel units. Ads are delivered using Meta's AI targeting and optimization systems, similar to those used on Facebook and Instagram..
The advertising infrastructure is fully integrated with the existing Meta ecosystem: You can leverage the full Meta targeting stack, including Custom Audiences, Lookalike Audiences, and Advantage+, from Instagram and Facebook without the need for separate pixels or additional data setup..
Content Strategy for Italian Brands and Creators
Understanding the peculiarities of the Threads format is essential for maximizing ROI. The text-first conversational format prioritizes authentic content and engaging copy over visual polish: brands that lead with strong written hooks see higher engagement rates..
Fundamental Principles of Algorithm Threads
The Threads team emphasizes that actions that require more effort carry more weight. For example, taking the time to write a comment or check someone's profile shows interest. The system combines these factors to evaluate each post, and posts predicted to generate engagement appear at the top of the feed, while less relevant content goes down.
Key signals that the algorithm evaluates include:
- Qualitative engagement: Responses and conversations are crucial – the more responses you get, the better the post's performance. Early engagement counts: the faster people comment after posting, the more the thread is pushed.
- Consistency Appearing daily maintains visibility
- Interacting with others: Commenting on other people's posts also increases your visibility.
- Recency The latest content is prioritized in user feeds, and AI predicts which posts best align with individual interests, ranking them higher.
High-Engagement Content Types
Field evidence indicates specific formats that generate superior results:
- Hot takes and provocative opinions: These spark conversations – they are bold, discussion-worthy statements that invite people to share their opinions
- Polls and quick debates: Threads makes it very easy to create polls, to use for fun, low-pressure interactions
- Open questions: Instead of a simple closed-ended question, try something like, ‘What's the weirdest coffee combination you've ever tried that actually worked?’ This type of question encourages users to share personal stories, which the algorithm loves.
- Behind-the-scenes content Share behind-the-scenes posts, talk about what matters to the brand. The right people will resonate.
Optimal Publication Frequency
Successful brands on Threads typically post 2-3 times a day, every day. The recommended approach involves Choose a cadence – for example, twice a day, three times a week – and be as reliable as clockwork. Inconsistency alienates users and negatively impacts algorithms..
For Italian teams with limited resources, it is suggested to Encourage consistency: if posts aren't performing well, adjust posting frequency accordingly and consider increasing it. Since the platform has a similar vibe to early Twitter, it's recommended to post at least once a day..
Critical Errors to Avoid
Major mistakes include: treating Threads like Instagram (it is not a photo-first platform), talking only to people instead of with people, not responding to comments (you miss a huge opportunity for visibility), being too formal (Threads is casual, conversational, and fast-paced), posting without a hook (you need to grab attention quickly).
Practical Implementation for WordPress Sites
Integrating Threads into your WordPress content strategy requires a structured approach. It is recommended to create a workflow that allows for the strategic repurposing of content across different channels.
Optimized Cross-Publishing Workflow
To maximize operational efficiency without sacrificing quality:
- Top Performer Analysis: Take the evergreen tweets with the best performance and post them as Day 1 content on Threads - they have already been proven successful
- Format Adaptation Do not create totally new and custom content for Threads. You should mainly repurpose the brand's Twitter + Instagram content
- Connection with WordPress: Use blog posts as deep-dive content hubs, while Threads functions as a conversational teaser that drives qualified traffic. This strategy integrates seamlessly with approaches like Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), where original and authoritative content increases the likelihood of citation by AIs such as ChatGPT and Perplexity
- Voice search optimization Conversational Threads posts can contribute to the strategy of optimization for Siri AI and other answer engines, providing signals of authority and brand engagement
Scheduling and Analytics Tools
It is recommended to use a planning and scheduling tool to plan in advance and skip manual posting. With tools like Metricool, you can schedule Threads and let the tool post them automatically on the platform. This not only saves time but also prevents platform hopping during social media manager scheduling..
Meta has released An official Threads API for posting and replies. A key constraint to plan for is the posting limit per profile of approximately 250 API posts per 24 hours, with a separate limit for replies. You can inspect quotas via the posting limit endpoint..
Creating AI-Proof and Distinctive Content
In an increasingly AI-proof content creation based on EEAT and original data.
Authenticity as a Competitive Advantage
The golden rule is to maintain authenticity, rawness, and a lack of filters. Threads loves authenticity.. For Italian brands, this means valuing:
- Verifiable expertise: Share insights based on direct experience, real case studies, proprietary data
- Human voice: Threads' growing user base and text-centric format make it easy to experiment and complement efforts on other channels. As text-heavy posts continue to dominate the Threads landscape, there is a lower barrier to success than with video-centric platforms
- Real interaction: Brands like ClickUp often engage in the comments section, interacting with followers and other creators to foster a sense of community. They use a mix of text-based posts, images, and memes, often focusing on humorous and relatable content for community building.
Performance Monitoring and Relevant KPIs
Accurate performance measurement is fundamental for optimizing Threads strategy over time.
Primary Metrics to Track
Tracking KPIs like engagement rates, comments, shares, and follower growth is crucial for refining your Threads strategy. This data helps identify which content types resonate most with your audience..
For advertisers, Meta Ads Manager does not display Threads performance in default reports. The dashboard shows aggregated numbers across all placements, but Threads data is hidden unless you know where to look. This is important because Buffer's analysis of 10.2 million posts found that Threads generates 73.6% higher engagement than X (6.25% vs 3.6% median engagement rate). Without placement-level tracking, it's impossible to know if Threads ads perform better or worse than Instagram Feed..
Competitive Analysis and Industry Benchmarking
It is recommended to monitor:
- Performance vs. Other Platforms Compare CPM, CTR and conversion rates between Threads, Instagram Feed, Facebook and other placements
- Organic engagement rate: The median engagement rate on Threads is 6.25% vs. 3.6% on X
- Session duration: Threads users spend an average of 1 minute 41 seconds per session, demonstrating that even brief and consistent engagement can generate meaningful interaction and discovery
- Follower growth Engagement rates, impressions and follower growth are good indicators of how well the content is performing
Future Perspectives and Roadmap 2026
Evercore ISI analysts project that Threads could generate $8 billion in revenue by the end of 2025 and rise to $11.3 billion by 2026, making it a key contributor to Meta's expanding portfolio.. This growth trajectory has direct implications for brands and creators.
Projected Platform Evolution
In the past year, Threads has implemented new features including communities, direct messaging, longer text posts, and disappearing posts. There are rumors about a messaging feature that would allow users to connect directly within the app, which would be a big win for brands looking to build and foster Threads communities..
Integration with the WordPress ecosystem will continue to deepen. As the evolution of WordPress 7.0 and the 2026 roadmap including collaboration features and integrated AI, greater synergy between content management platforms and conversational social media like Threads is expected.
Preparing for Increased Advertising Costs
The window of opportunity for advantageous advertising costs is limited. Costs will likely increase as more advertisers adopt the platform and competition in auctions intensifies.
The recommended strategy for Italian brands involves:
- Immediate early adoption Activate test campaigns now to capitalize on current low CPMs
- Organic community building: Investing in organic growth while interest-based discovery still favors newcomers
- First-party data collection Use Audience Threads to enrich Custom Audience Meta to be reused when costs increase
- Creating evergreen content: Valuable threads that generate continuous engagement will build long-term authority
FAQ
When is it convenient for an Italian brand to start investing in Threads advertising?
Il momento ottimale è adesso, nel primo semestre 2026. I dati indicano che i CPM su Threads si collocano attualmente tra $3 e $8, significativamente inferiori rispetto a Facebook ($8-14) e Instagram ($6-18). Le proiezioni indicano un aumento verso la fascia $15-25 entro il Q4 2026. Iniziare ora permette di capitalizzare sui costi bassi, testare formati creativi, costruire audience proprietarie e stabilire autorità nel proprio settore prima che la competizione si intensifichi. Si raccomanda di partire con budget test di $20-50 al giorno per campagne di due settimane dedicate al placement Threads.
How to integrate Threads into an existing WordPress strategy?
Threads functions optimally as a conversational layer that drives qualified traffic to in-depth content on WordPress. The recommended approach involves using the WordPress blog as an authoritative content hub (long-form articles, guides, case studies), while Threads serves as a conversational teaser and engagement tool. Key points from WordPress articles can be repurposed as serialized threads, including open-ended questions and calls-to-action that link to the full content. This strategy integrates seamlessly with GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) and answer engine optimization, increasing brand authority and engagement signals.
What is the optimal posting frequency on Threads to maximize engagement?
Field data indicates that successful brands on Threads typically post 2-3 times a day, every day. The Threads algorithm rewards consistency and early engagement: the faster people comment after a post, the more the thread is amplified. For teams with limited resources, the recommended minimum is at least one post per day, maintaining a regular cadence (e.g., twice a day at fixed times, or three times a week like clockwork). Inconsistency drives users away and penalizes algorithmic visibility. It's also crucial to respond quickly to comments, as posts have a short attention window and active conversations exponentially increase reach.
Can Threads completely replace X (Twitter) in an Italian brand's social media strategy?
Not necessarily. While Threads has surpassed X in daily mobile users (141.5 million vs. 125 million as of January 2026), X still maintains significant dominance in desktop usage (around 150 million daily web visits compared to 8.5 million for Threads) and remains the go-to platform for real-time news, journalism, and conversations about current events. The most effective approach for Italian brands is a strategic multi-platform presence: utilize X for breaking news, thought leadership positioning, and desktop reach; Threads for authentic conversations, mobile community building, and leveraging the integrated Meta ecosystem. The key is to adapt content to each platform's context, not simply cross-post identically.
What metrics should I monitor to evaluate success on Threads?
The primary metrics to track include: engagement rate (Threads has a median rate of 6.25%, versus X's 3.6%), number and quality of replies (the algorithm rewards meaningful conversations over passive likes), organic follower growth, average session time, click-through rate to WordPress content, and for paid campaigns: CPM, CPC, conversion rate, and ROAS specific to the Threads placement. It is crucial to use breakdowns by placement in Meta Ads Manager, as default reports aggregate all placements and hide specific Threads performance. Tools like Dataslayer can automate this tracking, showing CPM, CTR, and conversions specific to Threads compared with Instagram Feed and Facebook.
The rise of Threads in 2026 represents a watershed moment in the Italian social media landscape. Companies, users, and creators are called upon to stay updated and ready to seize the potential of a revolution that is still underway.. For WordPress professionals, digital publishers, and Italian brands, the combination of still-contained advertising costs, an algorithm favorable to new entrants, and native integration with the Meta ecosystem creates a window of opportunity that will not be repeated once the platform reaches full maturity.
The time to act is now: test creative formats, build authentic communities, capitalize on low CPMs, and establish authority in your industry before the competition—and costs—explode in the next few quarters of 2026.
