Summary
- To delete a Twitter account you must first deactivate the account for 30 days. It will disappear from Twitter after that.
- To deactivate: Go to More > Settings and Privacy> Your Account> Deactivate your account> Deactivate.
- During the 30 day wait, you can hide your tweets by going private.
This article explains how to permanently remove your Twitter account from Twitter servers using the deactivation process. It also explains how to hide your tweets during deactivation.
The Best Alternatives to Twitter
How to Deactivate and Delete a Twitter Account
The only way to delete a Twitter account is to leave it deactivated for 30 days. At that point, Twitter will fully remove the account from its system. Once the account is removed, all your tweets will leave the Twitter servers permanently. You can hide tweets prior to taking the steps to deactivate the account.
Start the process of deleting your account by signing into Twitter, then follow these steps:
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Select More in the list on the left side of your Twitter profile.
In the menu that appears, select Settings and Privacy.
Go to Your Account (Account, in the mobile app)> Deactivate your account. Â
Twitter lets you know that your tweets will only be saved for 30 days. At that point, your account and all posts you have made on your account will be removed from the Twitter servers permanently. If you wish to proceed, select Deactivate.
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Confirm your password and select Deactivate.
Now, do not enter the account for 30 days. At that point, Twitter will remove all your tweets from its servers and your account will be permanently deleted. Other people will be able to use your handle but any tweets you shared previously will not be shown on any new account.
If you do enter the account before the 30 day period ends, you automatically reactivate the account and will need to start all over again with the deactivation process.
Fast Security: Hide Tweets by Going Private
To remove your tweets from prying eyes without deactivating the account at all, you can make your account private. You can still deactivate the account at any point after hiding tweets, however.
Of course, any tweets captured by a screenshot and posted online will still exist. Twitter has no control over what people post on non-Twitter websites.
When you make your account private, the only people who can read your tweets are your followers. No one else can access any of your posts, even if they use Google or another third-party search engine. Taking this step is the quickest way to remove your tweets from the public eye.
In a web browser, log in to Twitter. Select More in the menu.
Select Settings and Privacy.
Select Your Account.
Select Account information and enter your password.
Select Protected Tweets.
Check the box next to Protect my Tweets to go private.
In the Twitter mobile app, go to Menu > Settings and Privacy> Privacy and Safety> turn on Protect Your Tweets.
To prevent a specific person from viewing your tweets, you can block them. However, they’ll still be able to see your posts if they sign out of the platform.
Deactivating vs. Deleting
It is important to distinguish between a deactivated account and a deleted account. In many ways, they are the same: all tweets and all references to the account will leave Twitter within the first few days of deactivation. Other Twitter users will be unable to follow the account or search for the account, including searches for historical tweets made by the account.
You (and anyone else) will also be restricted from using the deactivated account’s username or signing up for a new account using the deactivated account’s email address.
A deactivated account can be reactivated, which will bring back all of those old tweets, but only within 30 days.
The only way to delete an account is to leave it deactivated for 30 days. Once the account is deleted, all tweets leave the Twitter servers permanently. Anyone can use the username for the account, and you can use the same email address to sign up for a new one.
How to Reactivate Your Account
If you log in to the account within 30 days, everything will look normal, as if you never left Twitter. You will then receive an email letting you know your account is active again.
Remember that you won’t receive a prompt asking whether you want your account to be reactivated. It happens seamlessly when you log back in, so if you want your Twitter account deleted permanently, you will need to stay away for at least 30 days.
It is important to know there is no way to suspend or freeze an account permanently. After 30 days, your account will be gone for good. However, you could recreate it with the same username and email address after 30 days. It will simply be missing all of your status updates, and anyone who wants to follow the account must refollow it.
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