Retweet FAQs

What is a Retweet?

  • A Retweet is a re-posting of a Tweet. Twitter's Retweet feature helps you and others quickly share that Tweet with all of your followers. You can Retweet your own Tweets or Tweets from someone else.
  • Sometimes people type "RT" at the beginning of a Tweet to indicate that they are re-posting someone else's content. This isn't an official Twitter command or feature, but signifies that they are quoting another person's Tweet.

What does a Retweet look like?

  • Retweets look like normal Tweets with the author's name and username next to it, but are distinguished by the Retweet icon  and the name of the person who Retweeted the Tweet. If you see content from someone you do not follow in your timeline, look for Retweeted by info in the Tweet—the Retweeter should be someone you follow.

Note: Retweets may appear differently in third-party applications, and will show up in apps only if they are using Twitter's Retweet API. Many apps have built in their own version of Retweeting—those Tweets are not treated as official Retweets on Twitter. To test, try Retweeting from a third-party app, then check your profile on the web.

Where do Retweets appear?

Tweets Retweeted by other people:

  • You can see Tweets people you follow have Retweeted in your Home timeline.
  • Retweets, like regular Tweets, will not show up from accounts you have blocked.

Your Tweets that others have Retweeted:

  • Go to your Notifications tab. There you will see all activity concerning your Tweets—including which have recently been Retweeted and by whom.

How do I turn Retweets off?

  • You can turn off Retweets for a specific account if you don’t like what they share. Select Turn off Retweets from an account profile page to stop seeing Tweets they've Retweeted (tap the gear icon  on iOS or click or tap the overflow icon  on web and Android).
  • Turning Retweets on or off is not retroactive, meaning that you can't remove Retweets that are already in your timeline.
  • It is not possible to turn off ALL Retweets from ALL accounts.

How can I undo or delete my Retweet?

  • You can undo a Retweet you've made by clicking on the highlighted Retweet icon  in the Tweet. This will remove the Retweet from your timeline, but will not delete the original Tweet.

Why can I no longer see my Retweet?

  • If the original Tweet was deleted by its author or otherwise removed from the service, or if the original Tweet author’s account was deleted or suspended, your Retweet will no longer be available.

Why can't some Tweets be Retweeted?

  • If you see the lock icon  next to someone's name on their profile page or on their Tweets, their Tweets are protected and you will not be able to Retweet their content.
  • If your Tweets are protected, you can still Retweet and Retweet with comment. Only people you have allowed to follow you will be able to view them.
  • You can see protected Tweets from an account you follow in your timeline because that account has accepted your follow request, but because they have chosen not to share their Tweets publicly, their Tweets cannot be Retweeted by you or anyone else.

Are there limits on Retweets?

  • There is no limit to the number of times a Tweet can be Retweeted, but Twitter will only show up to the most recent 100 people who Retweeted any public Tweet.
  • Retweets are counted toward your 1,000 Tweets per day limit.

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