Craigslist at 30: No Algorithms, No Ads, No Problem (arstechnica.com)
- Reference: 0180554216
- News link: https://tech.slashdot.org/story/26/01/09/1618243/craigslist-at-30-no-algorithms-no-ads-no-problem
- Source link: https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/01/ungentrified-craigslist-may-be-the-last-real-place-on-the-internet/
University of Pennsylvania associate professor Jessa Lingel called it the "ungentrified" Internet. Unlike Facebook Marketplace, Etsy, or DePop, Craigslist doesn't use algorithms to track users or predict what they want to see. There are no public profiles, no rating systems, no likes or shares. The site effectively disincentivizes the clout-chasing and virality-seeking that dominates platforms like TikTok and Instagram.
Craigslist began in 1995 as an email list for a few hundred San Francisco Bay Area locals sharing events and job openings. Engineer Craig Newmark even recruited CEO Jim Buckmaster through a site ad. The two spent roughly a decade battling eBay in court after the tech giant purchased a minority stake in 2004, ultimately buying back shares and regaining full control in 2015.
[1] https://arstechnica.com/culture/2026/01/ungentrified-craigslist-may-be-the-last-real-place-on-the-internet/
No ads? (Score:4, Funny)
It's literally an ad site!
down (Score:2)
Looks like it was slashdotted ...
currently down.
Re: (Score:2)
that explains why i was having issues trying to access it earlier. didn't know there was a slashdot article about it. :D
Longevity (Score:5, Insightful)
The reason it is alive today, isn't in spite of itself. It is alive because it is exactly what it has ALWAYS been.
Functions exactly as it should.
Hasn't chased bigger metrics.
Hasn't deviated from core goals/values.
Provides service as advertised (pun intended).
Stayed out of politics.
The perfect role model for business longevity.
Just don't F it up by going AI.
Re: (Score:2)
No one in their 30s knows what this site is, all its current users will die off along with craigslist business model
Re: (Score:3)
> No one in their 30s knows what this site is...
Aaaaand that's exactly why it's still usable and functional!
Re: (Score:2)
> Provides service as advertised (pun intended). .
Non native english speaker here. Where is the pun there?
Re: (Score:2)
> Where is the pun there?
The pun is that Craigslist is an advertising site.
It was created and advertised as a site where people could place ads.
For many years people have placed and responded to many ads, which makes it an advertising site which works as advertised.
Re: (Score:2)
> Stayed out of politics.
See the post about the person selling Pelican cases.
Bought a tractor off there (Score:2)
And a lathe. And a PDP-11. No regrets.
Re: (Score:3)
You are on a site that's supposed to be "news for nerds" and you are asking why someone would want to buy such an iconic piece of computing hardware?
It's not as busy as it once was (Score:3, Insightful)
Many of the listings are less than half as busy as they were 10-15 years ago, at least in the nearest major metro to my locale.
Re:It's not as busy as it once was (Score:4, Insightful)
Yeah unfortunately Facebook Marketplace has really eaten into it's share of the local selling game.
Re: (Score:2)
Marketplace is straight up easier to use, has far more user reach, and far more listings. I still *check* craigslist when I'm looking for something - but 99% of the time marketplace has more options, better pricing, and faster responses when I'm trying to buy something. Only recent exception is I did luck out on a dock on craigslist last year $4k - 144ft roll in aluminum dock. Lowest comparable marketplace listing was $12k at the time. Needless to say I jumped on it and got the guy cash in hand the same
Re:It's not as busy as it once was (Score:5, Insightful)
I mean that's kindof the whole thing right there isn't it and this applies to so many things.
We have 2 platforms, one is fairly closed source, AI ridden, privacy invading, etc and one is low-key, hands off and privacy respecting but the user experience and user base overrides those greater philosophical concerns.
And that's nothing about judgement, you the buyer want to get the stuff you want to get wherever it is, it's just a greater reminder of how business works and what people value and reward.
Re: (Score:2)
Facebook marketplace is run by aholes.
I tried selling some Pelican cases there. The cases are called rifle cases by Pelican but can be used for many other things such as camera, electronic or fishing gear.
FB marketplace permanently closed my marketplace account. Sent me a form letter email saying I violated the TOS. Appeals generate the same mindless, robotic form letter.
It is a plastic case, but it had the word 'rifle' in its name.
Re: (Score:2)
I had the similar experience trying to sell something just as innocuous on Facebook Marketplace. It was either a walker or a wheelchair, I can't remember which, but FB claimed the item was against their rules, yet I could find similar items up for sale. Huh?
Re: It's not as busy as it once was (Score:1)
Once craigslist started to charge for posts, it became pretty much useless. I was trying to find someone for a cheap lawn mow and they wanted $50 just to post the ad. Which also cut down the service providers posting there dramatically, and the ones there are only the most expensive. Never went back since.
Re: (Score:2)
Where were you posting? As far as I know CL isn't really used as a request forum but one for service providers have to pay to advertise. I post stuff for sale all the time for free.
[1]https://www.craigslist.org/abo... [craigslist.org]
Also for that type of thing, "who wants to cut my lawn today?" Nextdoor is really useful honestly
[1] https://www.craigslist.org/about/help/posting_fees
Re: (Score:2)
Unfortunately this is true about Facebook Marketplace taking over Craiglist list..
When I want to unload items for cheap, I often find myself selling through Facebook, although I do get responses on Craigslist. That reminds me, I've gotten so Pavlov'd into using Craigslist to give away "moving boxes" that I completely neglected to try Facebook. It also may explain why it takes a few days for someone to respond, when a few years ago I'd get three or four calls within hours of putting up the ad. (I live in L
A rare example of an 'honest' business (Score:5, Interesting)
Being from the Bay Area, I was an early Craigslist user. Used it to find multiple apartments, furniture and other items as a 20-something in the 90s, and sell a few things here and there that did not make sense on Ebay. It was a really great thing, especially when the only real alternative at that time was newspaper classifieds.
The other day I was looking for an inexpensive musical keyboard, and I was having trouble with Facebook Marketplace listings because most of the sellers didn't respond to inquiries about their ads. (this seemed particular to the type of item I was looking for, I've not generally had trouble with other stuff.) So I thought, "I wonder if anyone still uses craigslist" and sure enough, plenty of listings. I contacted one and went to pick it up later the same day. Reminds me to check there for anything else I am looking for as well.
Unlike just about every other online business today, Craigslist is a completely honest, straightforward business. There is no hidden toll or price (your data) for 'free' (they make revenue elsewhere) and the transaction is straightforward for buyer and seller. No upsells to a paid version. No AI. Unlike many early sites, the founders did not sell out and continued to be satisfied with the existing level of income provided rather than the temptation of a large payout up front, enjoying a first-mover advantage with a lot of good will and brand recognition. Somehow, no one came and ate their lunch. It just kept going, year after year after year. How many sites do you remember becoming enshittified after being sold to a large corporation? Craigslist is a super rare example of what happens when you don't sell out.
It would be fun if an AI and data mining backlash spurred a bunch of new 'old school' sites with honest, straightforward dealings. I guess one can dream...
Have bought a guitar, and even found a job on CL (Score:3)
Bought a nice yamaha G-60A made-in-japan 1968 classical guitar off craigslist. Cleaned up real nice.
Found a job in it once, too. My worst IT job, and I stayed only a year, but it sure beat the convenience store I was working at, at that time. 2016-2018 was really rough on me.
I'd rather CL than Marketplace or Mercado Libre or whatever.
Not everything requires flash and dash and java and popups and dancing red peppers.
If it ain't broke... (Score:2)
While there are some outstanding bugs, and occasional floods of spam, the site mostly just works as intended. They only recently (maybe in the last year ?) made javascript required.
I just wish more people would use it instead of defaulting to stuff like Facebook marketplace, but that's a personal convenience thing...
Re: (Score:1, Interesting)
Sadly, the "javascript required" part seriously turned me off to it. Why must sites keep doing this? What functionality on CL that worked fine 30 years ago now requires JS? Sadly, this has made the site largely unusable for me as I browse with NoScript, so I haven't been on nearly as much recently as I was back in the day.
Re: (Score:2)
Probably just a matter of finding new developers. Most recently trained web devs are going to more familiar with client side javascripting than PHP, CGI/perl, or whatever their back end is.
Also server costs. It is much cheaper to ship some static js code + raw json content from a DB to the client and have their machine do the work of assembling the HTML DOM than to do it all on your own server and ship the finished HTML page. Basically all the business logic runs on the client and your backend becomes a
They skipped enshittification (Score:3)
yes
The irony (Score:3)
Funny how the article on Ars-Technica lauds Craigslist for having no ads while their own site is heavy with them.
Re: (Score:2)
I have no idea how many ads are on Ars Technica because I use ad blockers, Funny how you don't.
Feels kinda dead, ngl (Score:1)
I appreciate its integrity somewhat (at least it's not meetup.com that is on its last legs due to ruthless enshittification and monetization) but honestly the site has changed too little and allowed FB Marketplace to basically grab its entire marketshare. Locally for electronics it's just the same guy relisting his collection of odd junk like a 2000s-era flatbed scanner, even for nearby large metros it feels kind of barren, nowhere near the same number of listers like 10 years ago.
The last remnant (Score:2)
Craigslist is the last remnant of a "pre-professionalized" internet (with "professionalized" meaning SEO, algorithms, AI etc.) here.Of course it's a professionally run company, but its business model stayed always the same.
No more personals (Score:2)
Thanks to former Attorney General of California Kamala Harris, Craigslist no longer has personals. I met many women that way, some that led to years long relationships. Dating apps are a piss-poor replacement.
bought some DDR5 RAM there last week (Score:2)
Hello,
Craigslist is still around, and serves as a viable outlet for people who don't want to use the various enshittified alternatives like eBay and Facebook Marketplace.
Last week I bought a couple of 8GB DDR5-5600 SO-DIMMs from a somewhat-local neighbor who felt the same way. Met at a local police station (they have a place for people to do this), exchanged cash for the goods, and also had a nice chat about keyboards (the synthesizer kind, not the typing kind), swapped a few local restaurant recommendatio
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
You only used it to hire sex workers and they banned those years ago so of course you see no value in it.