Lemon8 Review: Productivity Porn, Aesthetics, and the Digital Culture
TikTok launched Lemon8, a Pinterest-meets-Instagram social media platform, in the middle of its ongoing fight to avoid a ban in the U.S. Since it hit app stores in the U.S. and UK in February 2023, millions of people have downloaded it to their phones and cultivated a feed of aesthetically pleasing posts full of productivity tips, morning routines, side hustle advice, and carefully curated, doodle-laden photo dumps. Lemon8 is basically the anti-BeReal — but with the exact same problems.
A New Way to Blog
The app allows users to post videos and individual photos without doodles, but it's clear from the promoted posts that meticulously edited carousels and photos are prioritized by the app's algorithm. Meli Mae, or @meliiimae on Lemon8, noted that "visually, it's very reminiscent of Pinterest and Instagram, but I think the actual content in itself… the blogging experience is coming back." She described a "Tumblr experience where people are bringing microblogging back again," which is one of the best features of the app for her.
It took her a full week to craft her first post, which was a photo painstakingly edited to match the soft aesthetic of the app. The caption was so long that it was almost reminiscent of a microblog. Mae explained her preference for the platform, stating: "on Lemon8, it's people that are like-minded but don't actually know you. So there's that veil of anonymity." This creates a positive atmosphere where people have the freedom to comment but genuinely, authentically want to get to know you because it's a new platform.
Not a TikTok Replacement
Videos are almost nowhere to be found in the For You feed — a natural decision considering its owner, ByteDance, likely doesn't want Lemon8 to be a TikTok competitor. This is a fascinating choice during a time in which every other social media platform is attempting to Pivot To Video. Within 48 hours of posting her first image, Mae gained what she considers a strong following and says she loves the Lemon8 experience so much that she doesn't miss Instagram, which she deactivated earlier in the year.
Focus on Aspirational Lifestyle Content
The app is currently focused on lifestyle and travel content — and productivity porn. The entire platform seems to be aimed at a constant journey of self-improvement and self-optimization. The productivity aesthetic tends to be aimed toward young women, driving them to control their diet, exercise, sleep, hygiene, and attitude. While eating well, exercising, and meditation have all been proven to be effective forms of self-care, doing so with the intention of increasing your productivity changes the dynamic.
Lemon8 arrives amidst a storm of new apps designed to replace Instagram, Facebook, and even TikTok. These include:
- Geneva
- Diem
- Melon
- Pineapple
- Partiful
- Lex
- Somewhere Good
As lawmakers in more than a dozen countries have implemented various bans of TikTok due to fears regarding user data, ByteDance has now set its focus on this new app for Gen-Z.
| Feature Category | Lemon8 Characteristics |
|---|---|
| Visual Style | Aesthetically pleasing, doodle-laden, soft aesthetic |
| Content Focus | Productivity tips, morning routines, lifestyle, and travel |
| Social Dynamics | Microblogging, carousels, and a veil of anonymity |
| Algorithm Priority | Meticulously edited photos over video content |