Meta is discreetly conducting a trial of a new feature, which has the potential to alter the use of Facebook by creators and brands. The trial consists of the users with professional accounts or Facebook Pages being limited in posting to two links, unless they are Meta Verified subscribers. The subscription plan, which is priced from $14.99 a month, seemingly allows for the posting of more link-oriented content, which will turn the basic posting function into a premium feature.
The test was initially detected by the social media strategist Matt Navarra, who published screenshots demonstrating the restriction. Eventually, Meta acknowledged the trial and designated it as a test on whether the link-posting expansion offers additional value to the Meta Verified subscribers. Although the trial is presently limited, it is an indication of a major change in Meta’s attitude towards outbound traffic from its platforms.
Impact and Continuation of Current Practices
The limitation is applicable only to users opting for professional mode and Facebook Pages, the two formats that are extensively employed by creators, influencers, and brands for wider outreach and monetization purposes. The professional mode converts a personal profile to a creator account, which offers eligibility for content discovery outside of one’s network.
However, not all links will come under this restriction. The users who are part of the experiment continue to be allowed to post affiliate links, to put links in the comments, and to share links directed to Meta-controlled platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp.
Currently, publishers are not a part of the trial, and Meta has underlined the point that comment links are unrestricted. Nevertheless, the limitation is a direct hit on the visibility and distribution strategy of creators who depend upon directing traffic to their blogs, newsletters, or external platforms.
Monetization or Manipulation?
Meta’s explanation sounds simple and clear at first glance, where the company is trying to find new ways to add value to Meta Verified services. However, if you look deeper, you will see a familiar pattern, where free features are being marked out as premium ones more, and the creators are being pushed towards paid plans just to keep having the same reach and functionality.
Although Meta does not completely forbid external links, it makes the friction just high enough to push the people to take the subscription. For creators and small brands that operate on thin margins, it becomes a tough decision to either pay every month just to keep existing workflows or change content strategies according to the limits set by the company.
Why Meta Is Targeting Links Now?
The timing could be explained by the data provided by Meta itself. The company mentioned in its Q3 transparency report that more than 98% of feed views in the U.S are from posts without links. Only a small percentage of the whole engagement of linked posts is shared, and most of the traffic still comes from the pages that users already follow. Posts with links that are shared by friends or groups hardly get seen.
The implication of such data is that Facebook’s algorithm, as well as its users, prefer to see native content. By limiting link posts, Meta may be trying to bring product design closer to behavior that is becoming more prevalent, along with slowly discouraging traffic loss to the internet as a whole.
Also, it is hard not to notice that the most shared domains include YouTube, TikTok, and GoFundMe, which tells us that external platforms are not only competing with Meta for users’ attention, but are also directly in fight with it one way or another.
The Open Web
This experiment is not an isolated event, the entire internet is going through a phase of being pressurized, and the link-based web is also under pressure. The gradual process of AI-generated summaries, in-app publishing tools, and platform-first content strategies is working on the users by not giving them the reason and incentive to click away.
Social platforms, including X in recent years, have openly tried the approach of reducing the visibility of posts with external links and promoting native content instead.
The company is reinforcing a model that is closed loop, where content, engagement, and monetization all happen on-platform by limiting links and rewarding those who stay within its ecosystem. For the creators, this gives rise to long-term issues about ownership, audience portability, and depending on algorithms that can change overnight.
What This Means for Creators, Brands, and Growth Strategies
If this test expands, creators and brands may be forced to rethink how they use Facebook as a traffic driver. Making fewer but more strategic links, shifting links to comments, or leaning harder into native formats like Reels and text-first posts could become the new normal.
On the other hand, some may opt to pay for Meta Verified just to maintain their current workflows. In either case, Facebook is looking for content that will keep users on Facebook. Also, external links are no longer neutral, instead they represent a trade-off and possibly a costly one.
Meta’s link posting test may be framed as a small experiment, but its implications are anything but minor. By placing limits on outbound links and tying flexibility to a paid subscription, Facebook is redefining the cost of visibility in subtle but consequential ways. Whether this move improves user experience or simply tightens Meta’s grip on the behavior of the creator, it will depend on how far the company takes it.
