enshittification

American  

[en-shit-uh-fi-key-shuhn] / ˌɛnˌʃɪt ə fɪˈkeɪ ʃən /

Sometimes shittification

noun

1. the gradual degradation of an online platform or service's functionality, as part of a cycle in which the platform or service first offers benefits to users to attract them, then pursues more and more profits at the expense of users.

   There's been a significant enshittification of the website in just this year alone.

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Etymology

Origin of enshittification

Coined in 2022 by Canadian author Cory Doctorow (born 1971); en- ¹ ( def. ) + shit ( def. ) + -i- ( def. ) + -fication ( def. )

Example Sentences

The enshittification of the app is perhaps temporary, but, either way, it could spell the downfall of TikTok, the way so many social media platforms fell before it.

From Slate • Jan. 27, 2026

Nitish Pahwa: When was the first time you began thinking about the concept represented by the term enshittification?

From Slate • Oct. 13, 2025

The whole screed reads like a lament of enshittification, without using the term or even nodding to Cory Doctorow’s theories.

From Slate • Feb. 11, 2025

The problem with enshittification is that there is no exit as the systems on which we rely really begin to break down.

From Slate • Oct. 30, 2024

But the underlying principle and characteristic trash-trail of enshittification are becoming just as applicable to geosynchronous and low Earth orbit as they are to Twitter and TikTok.

From Salon • Oct. 24, 2023