Last updated on December 16, 2021
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, neighbors around the world have continued to turn to Nextdoor to receive trusted information, give and get help, and build real-world connections with those nearby — neighbors, businesses, and public services. Below, you’ll find timely updates on our product and policy initiatives to help keep neighbors safe and healthy.
Note: for up-to-date information on COVID-19, refer to official COVID-19 resources such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Updated on December 16, 2021:
In light of heightened health and safety concerns related to New Variants of Concern (VOC) of COVID-19 around the holiday season, we have provided tools and resources from Nextdoor and trusted sources such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for neighbors during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Nextdoor Help Map is an interactive map of your neighborhood where neighbors can ask for and offer help to those nearby. If you’d like to offer help, mark yourself as someone who can pitch in with a short note of how you can help so neighbors in need can reach out to you — just be sure to follow all safety instructions from your local and national authorities to protect yourself and others from COVID-19.
Nextdoor Groups can help you stay connected to the neighborhood, even while social distancing. Form supportive networks to organize volunteer activities, stay in touch while physically apart, and coordinate favors around the neighborhood.
The emergence of new variants emphasizes the importance of vaccination and boosters to protect against severe illness from COVID-19 variants. Neighbors can use the Nextdoor Vaccine Map to schedule a COVID-19 vaccination or booster appointment at a local pharmacy.
Loneliness is a deeply human experience that is often prevalent around the holidays, and is only exacerbated during a global pandemic. Though you may feel lonely, you are not alone — we are all in this together.
Connection can come from a variety of different places, including the neighborhood. A global study found that knowing as few as six neighbors reduces the likelihood of feeling lonely and is linked to lowering depression, social anxiety, and financial concerns related to COVID-19. To help neighbors feel more connected, we have put together the Nextdoor Loneliness Toolkit with actionable steps you can take to alleviate feelings of loneliness and help a fellow neighbor who might be feeling lonely.
Nextdoor is an official CDC EPIC partner for exchanging information that helps people stay safer and healthier during public health emergencies. The CDC has provided the following guidance to help keep your family, friends, and communities safer this holiday season:
We have the tools to fight COVID-19, including Omicron and Delta variants, so let’s use them!
Updated on June 6, 2021:
Throughout the pandemic, Nextdoor has played a critical role in helping neighbors and businesses connect to each other and to trusted, locally relevant information related to COVID-19. With the rollout of multiple vaccines, neighbors have continued turning to Nextdoor to help guide one another through the process. That is why we are introducing the Nextdoor COVID-19 Vaccine Map to help ease the burdens of the scheduling process while providing trustworthy, locally relevant information so neighborhoods can come together once again.
Sponsored by Albertsons Companies, the Vaccine Map will locate nearby vaccine appointment locations, including local Albertsons Companies pharmacy store banners such as Safeway, Vons, Albertsons, and Jewel-Osco, and allow you to schedule an appointment or learn more about the vaccines with educational information from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Updated on January 22, 2021:
To ensure neighbors connect with accurate and up-to-date information pertaining to the COVID-19 vaccine, we are sharing additional direction as it relates to Nextdoor’s policies.
We continue to take active measures to reduce the spread of medical misinformation. As a commitment to neighbor safety, Nextdoor prohibits false or misleading statements and conspiracy theories about vaccines that could prevent or discourage people from receiving vaccines, including claims that:
Additionally, Nextdoor’s COVID-19 misinformation policy prohibits the following:
The COVID-19 pandemic is a dynamic situation, and we will align any action we take with the guidelines of trusted public health officials, including the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
If you believe you see misinformation related to COVID-19 or the vaccine, please follow these steps to report it so that our team can review and take the appropriate action. Note: Reports of misinformation are reviewed by Nextdoor staff, not Leads or Community Reviewers.
We have taken many steps to help neighbors identify accurate information about COVID-19 and vaccines including search results pop-ups, posting facts reminders, and proactive promotions that direct to trusted sources from public health officials. Additionally, we have added labels to certain posts related to COVID-19 that direct to the CDC for trusted information.
Nextdoor also partners with public agencies to ensure that neighbors receive the most up-to-date COVID-19 resources and information. This includes resources on where and how to get vaccines and warnings about potential fraudulent information.
Thank you for all you do to help build a welcoming neighborhood for all.
Updated on December 11, 2020:
With the availability of a vaccine fast-approaching, we want to remind you of the COVID-19 resources and tools on Nextdoor to ensure that you are connecting with and sharing COVID-19 information that is accurate and up to date.
COVID-19 Information Reminder: When you create a post related to COVID-19 or the vaccine, a pop-up window will encourage you to check that the information in your post reflects guidance from public health officials, like the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO), or your local public agencies.
COVID-19 Search Results: When you search for COVID-19 or the vaccine on Nextdoor, you’ll receive a pop-up announcement that directs you to information directly from public health officials that you can trust.
Misinformation Reporting: If you believe you see misinformation related to COVID-19 or the vaccine, please follow these steps to report it so that our team can review and take the appropriate action.
We continue to be inspired every day by how neighbors are helping each other around the globe. Now more than ever, we need the strength of our neighborhoods, and neighbors like you.
Updated on April 23, 2020:
We’ve partnered with Walmart on a new program called “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” to make it easier for neighbors across the country to help one another during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The “Neighbors Helping Neighbors” program builds on our recently launched feature, Nextdoor Groups, that enables neighbors to organize around a shared interest or project. With “Neighbors Helping Neighbors,” Nextdoor neighbors can now ask a neighbor for help with shopping at their local Walmart. This support network makes it easier for neighbors to connect and coordinate the pickup and delivery of groceries, medications and other essentials, completely contact-free.
If you need help or want to offer help, just go to the “Groups” tab and you will see Walmart stores in your area pinned to the top of the page. You will be prompted to share a message in the group feed to either request or offer help. You can then connect with a neighbor via the message board or direct message to work out details of the shopping trip. Additionally, the Nextdoor Help Map will now display Walmart locations, store hours, and store information.
Updated on April 15, 2020:
Today, we’re announcing new local business sections in the main Nextdoor feed and encouraging local businesses to add their takeout and delivery options, gift cards, and GoFundMe campaigns to their Nextdoor Business Pages.
To ensure that you have the most current and accurate information about local businesses, like updates to hours, services, or operations, you’ll now see business posts in the main Nextdoor newsfeed.
We’ve also updated Nextdoor Business Pages so neighbors can support their favorite businesses with:
As businesses update their Business Pages with this information, we’ll highlight businesses near you that are offering gift cards and takeout with prominent features in the newsfeed and in the main Nextdoor Businesses tab.
We know how important it is that Nextdoor be your go-to source for news from neighbors and local businesses. If you know a business that’s not on Nextdoor, encourage them to claim a free Business Page to connect to the neighborhood. Share this article to help them get started. Nextdoor is here for you, and all the people and businesses who make your neighborhood a great place to live. With neighbors helping neighbors, we know we can make it through this time — and make our communities stronger than ever.
Updated on March 26, 2020:
Since the beginning of the coronavirus (COVID-19), Nextdoor has been monitoring the community impact around the world. We have seen neighbors across the globe sharing important information, offering help, requesting assistance, and discussing ways to safely support their communities.
As a community-building platform, we want all neighbors to feel welcome, safe, and respected when using Nextdoor. This is important in good times and absolutely essential in times of crisis and need. In response to the coronavirus outbreak and as part of Nextdoor’s racism-prevention efforts, we’ve made several important updates so that neighbors can continue to connect in a respectful and informed manner and to reduce the spread of misinformation and stigmatization.
How to talk about the coronavirus
In accordance with guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO), we ask that neighbors only use the terms “coronavirus” and “COVID-19” when discussing the current pandemic. Messages that refer to the virus or disease in other ways, particularly in ways that may stigmatize or stereotype a group of people, are subject to removal. We encourage neighbors to have thoughtful, respectful discussions about the coronavirus, but stigmas and harmful stereotypes have no place on our platform. Please visit the Nextdoor Help Center for more information on permissible terms regarding the coronavirus.
Treat your neighbors with compassion
These are tough times for neighbors everywhere, so it is important to treat each other with kindness and compassion. Neighbors are working from home, home-schooling children, sharing cramped living spaces, caring for a sick family member, or all of the above. And many people are experiencing much more difficult situations than this. When posting about a neighbor on Nextdoor, we ask you to slow down and consider not only the tone of your post or comment, but also what your neighbor might be going through.
Last year, we announced a new feature to promote kindness on Nextdoor. This feature was developed with an advisory panel of academics and experts to help us understand how to keep neighborhood conversations respectful. If someone replies to a neighbor’s post with a potentially offensive or hurtful comment, Kindness Reminder is prompted before the comment goes live, and the author is given the chance to reference our Community Guidelines and reconsider or edit their reply. In recent weeks, we modified the Kindness Reminder to remind neighbors, particularly in this difficult time, that we’re in this together and to be compassionate.
Remember that we are all neighbors and we are all in this together—now more than ever. For more information on Nextdoor’s response to COVID-19, please visit our Coronavirus Resource Center.
Updated on March 19, 2020:
As concern around the coronavirus grows, the safety of you, our neighbors, is our top priority. To ensure that the information you find on Nextdoor is accurate and up to date, we have made several important product updates:
COVID-19 Information Reminder: When you create a post related to COVID-19, a pop-up window will encourage you to check that the information in your post reflects guidance from public health officials, like the CDC or WHO.
COVID-19 Public Agency Carousel: We have aggregated posts from public health officials into “carousels” at the top of the feed so that the information from these trusted sources is easily discoverable. Here, we’ll include posts that contain accurate, real-time information from public agencies, including cities, counties, and local and state health departments.
COVID-19 Search Results: When you search for coronavirus (or other related terms) on Nextdoor, you’ll receive a pop-up announcement that directs you to information from public health officials.
Misinformation Reporting: If you believe you see misinformation related to coronavirus, please follow these steps to report it so that our team can review and take the appropriate action.
We continue to be inspired every day by how neighbors are helping each other around the globe. If you’re healthy and able, raise your (figurative) hand for whatever you can. Now more than ever, we need the strength of our local community, and neighbors like you.
Updated on March 18, 2020:
Nextdoor was created to bring neighbors together — this is important in good times and essential in times of need. Today, we’re launching two features to help you do that now, when it matters most. We’re releasing Nextdoor Groups globally to aid the continued organization of local help groups as well as launching Help Map, an interactive map of your neighborhood where you can mark yourself as someone who can pitch in for neighbors who need it.
Nextdoor Groups will continue helping you stay engaged even while social distancing. Neighbors will see prompts on Nextdoor, encouraging them to turn active conversation threads into groups. This tool makes it easier than ever to bring your local community together, safely, with a click of a button.
One of the most popular group types right now are those organizing volunteers:
With neighbors around the world raising their hands to offer similar support, the Help Map creates a screenshot of your neighborhood and its resources. Neighbors can add themselves to the map detailing the errands or support they can help elderly and at risk neighbors with. Those who need help can visit the map to see who in their immediate and nearby neighborhoods is offering help and send a private message.
Updated on March 4, 2020:
Given the increasing risk to the general public for contracting the coronavirus (COVID-19), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that now is the time for communities to prepare.
We continue to see in times like this that having a neighborhood to rely on is often key. Neighbors turn to Nextdoor to lend a hand, lean on others when they need help the most and connect with local authorities, who can provide relevant, real-time information.
We are constantly monitoring how the coronavirus is impacting communities around the world, and are working closely with government partners to share important and timely information. It is with this in mind that we have gathered the following tips to help you, your family, and your neighbors to get prepared.
We are here to help. Leverage our platform so you can stay connected to your neighbors – click here to invite your neighbors. And, for real-time updates, we encourage you to also visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
If you believe you are seeing false information related to Coronavirus, please report it to Nextdoor. To learn more visit here.
To stay up-to-date on the progress of our work, please continue to visit our blog.
To connect with your local neighborhood, please login at nextdoor.com.
