How to make your Twitter (X) account private on Android and desktop

Unwanted retweets, negative comments, and pestering strangers will likely spoil your X (formerly Twitter) surfing. So, why not make your Twitter account private and save yourself from all this? With a simple change, you will enjoy unprecedented privacy, improved control over your shared content, safety from spam, and a curated follower list you want to interact with.

This article will offer a detailed guide on how to make your Twitter (X) account private on Android and desktop. In addition, I have explained what happens when you private your Twitter account. Without much ado, let’s start.

How to make your Twitter account private on Android phone

Launch the X app.
Tap your Profile picture at the top.
Tap the drop-down next to Settings & Support → Choose Settings and privacy.
Select Privacy and safety → Hit Audience and tagging.
Toggle on Protect your posts.
On some devices, you might find a checkbox instead of a slider.

How to make your Twitter account private on Desktop

If you are using the web version of X on your desktop, you can still turn your X account private in a few simple steps. Let’s know them:

Open your Twitter on your preferred browser.
Click More with a three-dot icon on the left sidebar.
Select Settings and privacy → Choose Privacy and safety.
Click Audience, media, and tagging.
Check mark Protect your posts checkbox.
Select Protect from the prompt window.

What happens when you make your Twitter account private?

Once you make your Twitter profile private, you can see the following changes:

1. Restricted access to your tweets

Only your followers can see the tweets you share on your private X account. Anyone who isn’t on your followers’ list will see a message stating your tweets are protected. So, they won’t be able to retweet or repost them with comments.

2. Follow requests

In private Twitter accounts, anyone who wants to follow you must send a follow request for the same. You can manually approve or deny their request, giving you control over your followers list.

3. No public engagement

Popular features such as public retweets and adding your tweets to public lists are prohibited in private accounts. Mentions and retweets can only occur with your approved followers. Moreover, when you reply to any tweet, they can only see it if they follow you.

4. Vanish from Search

Private profiles are partially hidden in public search results on Twitter. People can look for you only with your official username. In addition, your protected posts won’t be visible on Twitter and search engines like Google.

Only you and your followers can search and see your posts on the portal. If you share a link via a private tweet, it is shortened to a t.co link. Any user with the link can open the URL.

How to review a follow request on a private Twitter account

Your X follower requests appear in the notification gallery. However, if you miss them, they are visible as pending follower requests in the Follower requests section. The steps to view your follower requests on X account are as follows:

Open the X app.
Navigate to your profile picture.
Tap Follower requests.
You will see all the follower requests received here. Choose ✔️ to approve the requests and X to deny them.

How to public your Twitter account from private on Android

A private X account promises top-notch privacy and keeps your profile low-key in the bustling social media community. However, this global user base can majorly catalyze your business expansion and promotion.

This is when you might want to switch your private X account to a public profile. Fret not; I have got you covered. The steps to convert a private X account into a public one are similar and easy to follow. Check them out here:

Go to your official X account.
Tap the Profile picture.
Scroll down to Settings & Support → Move to Settings and privacy.
Hit Privacy and safety → Select Audience and tagging.
Disable the Protect your posts toggle.
Alternatively, check off the Protect your posts checkbox.

Can I search private X accounts?

Yes, you can see private X accounts in search results. However, you won’t see the user’s tweets unless they grant you access to their followers list.

Can I like others’ tweets with my private account on X?

When you like someone’s tweet with your private X account, the like will be visible there. However, your username, profile picture, and other information won’t be available for others to see.

Can I see the followers of a private Twitter account?

No, you can only see the bio, if added, of any private Twitter (X) account.

Wrapping up…

Twitter is undoubtedly one of the most popular social media portals. However, sometimes, the vast exposure can leave you overwhelmed. This is when you can make your Twitter account private using the steps mentioned in this article.

Trust me; you will love the personalized feel with limited followers, private tweets, and safety from intruders. Let me know your take on the private Twitter account in the comments section.

Read more:

Author

Srishti Pandey

For over five years, Srishti has been exploring the tech space with her writing glasses long forgotten on her head. As an Android user for years, she likes fiddling with the features and experimenting like a curious child. Thanks to her Master’s degree in English Literature, she is pretty good at weaving words that decode complex tech jargon and present it in a language that is easy to understand and put-to-good-use. With her keen interest in digging out the most sorted gadgets and apps, she saves her readers a few extra hours of not-so-fruitful Internet surfing.

View all posts