Xiaohongshu: Navigating an App that isn’t designed for English-speaking People, but for a Chinese Company

At least so far, pettiness and revenge appear to be enough to motivate people to learn how to navigate Xiaohongshu, an app that is overwhelmingly used by Chinese-speaking people and was not designed with English-speaking users in mind. “I have no idea what I’m doing here. One TikTok refugee going by the name of “Elle belle” said on the app that he was unable to read the rules.

Some users are predictably going to Instagram or YouTube, but others say they would like to stick to a platform developed by a Chinese company to protest the decisions by US lawmakers that lead to this situation. “Telling me to download Rednote out of spite over the TikTok ban was the only push I needed actually,” one person wrote on Bluesky. Internet culture journalist Taylor Lorenz also shared a link to her Xiaohongshu account on Bluesky, calling the platform “the hottest new social app in America.”

The Supreme Court heard arguments from the US government against a law passed last year that would force TikTok to sell its operations or be banned in the US by January 19. Experts said the justices appeared to think the law was constitutional and would likely allow it to stay, leaving many users feeling that the app’s days are numbered. Many people will panic when they see that TikTok will be deleted from US app stores, as it is unlikely to disappear from people’s phones who have downloaded it.

Do We Live in China? What do you want to see in a TikToker? Are you curious about what you eat? What can you do about it?

Many TikTokers are also curious about RedNote users in China. Posts pictures of your meal or snacks for today! One user writes that they were curious to see what they typically eat. Another asks, “I’m American. Do y’all like us? We know that you are not the enemy. Can we all be friends?

I think the trend is wholesome, but I am not confident that it will last. If these apps get popular, they could face a ban as well. But the migration to RedNote is likely just a trend — and trends only last as long as it takes for another to replace it.