Vero App: 7 Things to Know About This Hot Instagram Alternative

Vero is an Instagram alternative that is exploding in popularity so fast that the team behind it is struggling to keep it online as new users come flooding in. This is what you need to know about the Vero app, why you should sign up and what to do if you see a Vero error as you get started.

Unlike Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat which are all free, only the first million users can get Vero for free. At some point in the future anyone outside of the first million users will need to pay a small fee.

If you’re sick of only seeing what Instagram and Facebook want you to see or the Snapchat redesign put you off base this is what you need to know about the Vero app.

What is Vero?

What you need to know about Vero.

The Vero app is a social network app that is an alternative to Instagram and Facebook. This isn’t a brand new social network, but it is getting more popular as users look to a social network with more controls over your friends and for an experience without algorithms deciding what you see every time you log in.

After over a year of obscurity the app started to explode over the weekend as social media users began logging in to become one of the first million users to sign up, locking in a free account for life.

While Instagram is only or photos and videos and Facebook is for a little bit of everything, Vero is in the middle. You can post a picture, video, link, music, movie/TV, book or place to Vero with captions and hashtags if you want. This is no text only posting option, which makes it closer to Instagram than to most other social networks, but the basics are all there and you can type quite a bit about what you are posting.

Download Vero on iPhone or Android for free.

How is Vero Different from Instagram & Facebook?

Vero wants to stand out by not using algorithms to decide what you see when you open the app. Vero describes the social network as one that lets you be yourself. Instead of showing you a carefully crafted set of posts designed to increase your time on site and drive ad views and purchases, Vero is hoping to create a better social network.

With new users signing up in droves this week, they are starting to reach critical mass, where you will find people to follow and to see what you post. One of the major parts of the service is setting friend levels. You can be acquaintances, friends and close friends. While Facebook offers a similar feature, this is a very up front choice you need to make when adding a friend and then you can control who sees what by selecting the group as part of posting a new photo or update.

Instead of planning to make money by showing you ads, Vero will charge a subscription fee and take a cut of what businesses sell through the app.

How Much Does Vero Cost?

Vero is free right now and the first million users who sign up for Vero will not have to pay for the app. The Vero subscription will cost a small amount when the company starts charging. According to CNBC the Vero cost will be a few dollars a year.

There are no ads in Vero. While influencers can share branded content and brands can get profiles and promote themselves, but for now you won’t see ads. If the subscription model works out then you will be the customer instead of the product sold to advertisers. It will be interesting to see if this holds true in the long run.

Is Vero Safe For Kids?

The Vero app has a 17 rating, but it is safe for most kids over 13, if you monitor who they follow and what they post, similar to Instagram or Facebook.

Vero is a social network, so you should treat it like Facebook or Instagram when deciding if it is safe for your kid to use. One upside is that the privacy controls are much easier to understand out of the box than on Facebook.

You need to be 13 or older to use Vero, according to the terms of use, so that limits the use for younger kids. The app is rated 17 years and older, which is interesting considering you can see the same content as Facebook or Instagram, but those apps are only rated 12 and up. Apple says the rating is due to;

• Unrestricted Web Access
•  Infrequent/Mild Horror/Fear Themes
•  Infrequent/Mild Cartoon or Fantasy Violence
•  Infrequent/Mild Profanity or Crude Humor
•  Infrequent/Mild Sexual Content and Nudity
•  Infrequent/Mild Realistic Violence
•  Infrequent/Mild Alcohol, Tobacco, or Drug Use or References
•  Infrequent/Mild Simulated Gambling
•  Infrequent/Mild Mature/Suggestive Themes

Why You Should Sign up for Vero

If you are one of the first million users to sign up for Vero, you will not need to pay an annual fee. If you sign up now you can join a growing social network and start building up followers and fans in case this takes off. It only takes a minute to sign up, and it is a good idea to lock in your account if you use social media.

Is there Vero for the Web?

There is no Vero website that you can use to post and view content on. You can’t even register for Vero on the website. Instead you need to use the Vero app for iPhone, iPad or Android to sign up, post and view content. You can check out the Vero website to learn more about the company and the service.

Vero Error Messages and Problems

Be prepared for a decent amount of Vero problems as the app deals with new users.

Right now Vero is experiencing higher than normal load due to new users signing up and using the service after a massive growth this week and the past weekend. You can still sign up, but you may see some error messages when trying to post or the app my feel sluggish.

The best thing to do is sign up now to get your spot reserved and then try using the app in a day or two when they catch up with the demand. It’s very common for apps that get a lot of new users to have growing pains, so don’t let a few error messages dissuade you from trying Vero again.

If you see an error while posting, you can simply try to post another time and it may go through.