[2][3] Mumsnet was created in 2000 by Justine Roberts, who came up with the idea of a website to help parents pool information and advice, following a disastrous first family holiday with her one-year-old twins.

[7] In February 2013, Roberts and co-founder Longton were assessed as the 7th most powerful women in the United Kingdom by Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.

[10] In November 2009, several political leaders held live chats on Mumsnet in advance of the 2010 United Kingdom general election,[11][12][13] in part due to the website's primary demographic being regarded by politicians as key floating voters, with online forums seen as arenas in which their votes could be courted.

[14] Then-Prime Minister, Gordon Brown,[15][16] and the leader of the opposition, David Cameron,[17][18] both appeared on the website's webchats in quick succession, an event that was highly publicised.

[19] Conservative commentator Toby Young, in arguing that Mumsnet users constituted a minor and insignificant demographic, commented that the website's users were "Guardian-reading, laptop-wielding harpies", and that the website was "peopled exclusively by university-educated, upper-middle-class women who are only "swing voters" in the sense that they swing between voting Labour, Lib Dem and Green".

[23] As well as selling traditional advertising spaces on the website, Mumsnet also hosts sponsored discussion threads that act as product placements.

[29] In 2022, then Prime Minister Boris Johnson took part in a sit down interview with founder Justine Roberts, who posed questions submitted by Mumsnet users.

[42] In November 2010, Mumsnet co-founder Justine Roberts wrote to Prime Minister David Cameron, urging reform of the draft Defamation Bill to address the rise of online publication.

[50] In January 2011, Riven Vincent, a regular Mumsnet user with a severely disabled child, received widespread media attention after posting on the site about her despair in the face of local budget cuts.

[51][52][53] In response to Vincent's plight, Mumsnet launched its 'Respite Care' campaign, which called on local authorities to provide adequate short breaks for families with disabled children.

In response, a number of NHS Trusts across the UK cancelled or revised their contracts with commercial companies, with over 75 MPs signing an Early Day Motion calling for a ban on sales reps in wards.

[59] In January 2025, the site launched 'Rage Against the Screens', a campaign to inform parents about the dangers of smartphones and social media, and empower them to take action to protect their children’s health[60].

The forum has been portrayed in the media as being populated by pushy and anxious mothers, including on TV comedy shows such as Outnumbered[citation needed] and Bad Education.

In October 2019, Upfield, the makers of Flora margarine, withdrew from a "Mumsnet rated" promotional agreement after campaigners drew attention to alleged transphobic content on the site.

[69][70] In 2024, in evidence to the House of Lords Communications and Digital Select Committee Inquiry: the future of news: impartiality, trust and technology, Professor Sarah Pedersen & Professor Simon Burnett described Mumsnet as a "trusted 'third space'" for women, and wrote that "through Mumsnet, users are able to avoid the aggression and misogynistic abuse women face when they attempt to discuss news in the wider public sphere of the Internet"[71].