Deactivate or Delete Twitter Account: Step-by-Step Guide
Twitter has become one of the most popular social media platforms, with millions of active users worldwide. However, some users eventually decide they want to leave Twitter permanently and delete their accounts.
Deleting your Twitter account is more complex than it may seem. Twitter does not allow users to delete their accounts directly and permanently. The only option available in your account settings is to deactivate your account.
Deactivation hides your Twitter profile and tweets from view but does not permanently delete your account or data from Twitter’s servers. Your account remains dormant and can be reactivated at any time if you change your mind.
To permanently delete your Twitter account, you need to contact Twitter support and specifically request account deletion. Twitter will then initiate the account deletion process.
In this comprehensive guide, we will walk through all the steps involved in permanently deleting your Twitter account in 2025.
Key Takeaways:
- Twitter does not allow you to directly delete your account permanently. You can only deactivate it.
- To permanently delete your Twitter account, you need to contact Twitter support and request account deletion.
- Twitter may take up to 30 days to delete your account after you submit the request.
- Consider downloading an archive of your tweets and data before deleting your account.
- Deactivating your account hides your profile and tweets but does not delete your data.
- Be sure you want to delete your account permanently, as you cannot recover it after deletion.
Prerequisites Before Deleting Your Twitter Account
Before deleting your account, take some time to consider these recommendations:
- Download an archive of your Twitter data—Once your account is deleted, you cannot retrieve your old tweets and data. Download a copy for your records.
- Decide if deactivation is better – Deactivating your account hides your profile and tweets but keeps the data intact. Reactivation is easy if you change your mind later.
- Make sure you want permanent deletion – There is no way to undo or recover a deleted Twitter account. The decision is permanent.
- Remove linked accounts—After deleting your Twitter account, Unlink any connected social media accounts like Facebook and Instagram to avoid unwanted posts on those platforms.
- Inform followers and friends – Notify any close Twitter connections that you plan to delete your account so they are not surprised when your profile vanishes.
- Consider alternatives—Instead of fully deleting your account, options like temporarily deactivating it or increasing privacy settings may work better for your needs.
Taking these preparatory steps allows you to safely and completely close your Twitter account with minimal later surprises.
How to Download Your Twitter Archive
Before your account and tweets are gone forever, be sure to download an archive of your Twitter data:
- Go to your Twitter account settings.
- Select “Your account” from the menu.
- Choose “Download an archive of your data”.
- Enter your password when prompted to confirm your account.
- You can select what types of data you want to download—Tweets, Direct Messages, ephemeral tweets, profile data, etc.
- Click the blue “Request archive” button.
- Twitter will prepare and email you a link to download your archive. This may take 24 hours or longer.
- When the email arrives, click the provided link and download your Twitter data archive.
- Access and review your Twitter data one last time before your account is deleted.
Saving this Twitter archive gives you a permanent record of your tweets, messages, connections, and profile details after the account is gone.
How to Deactivate Your Twitter Account
Before requesting permanent account deletion, the first step is to deactivate your Twitter account:
- Log in to Twitter and go to your account settings.
- Click on “Account” in the left menu.
- Select “Deactivate your account” and then click “Deactivate.”
- Twitter will now display the deactivation confirmation screen. Click “Deactivate” again to confirm.
- Enter your account password when prompted. This verifies you want to proceed with deactivation.
- Your account is now deactivated. Your profile and tweets will disappear from Twitter until you decide to reactivate.
Deactivating your Twitter account temporarily hides your presence on the platform. However, Twitter stores your data during deactivation in case you later choose to reactivate your account.
How to Permanently Delete Your Twitter Account
Once your account is deactivated, follow these steps to delete your Twitter account permanently:
- Submit an account deletion request—Send an email from your account address to privacy@twitter.com requesting that your account be permanently deleted. Twitter does not allow users to delete their accounts.
- Receive an automated ticket response—Twitter will send an automated email response with a support ticket number regarding your deletion request.
- Wait for account review—Twitter support will review your account and may contact you with additional verification questions. This may take up to 48 hours.
- Allow 30 days for deletion – After Twitter approves your request, your account enters a 30-day pending deletion period before being permanently deleted. This allows time to reactivate your account if you change your mind.
- Confirm account deletion – Twitter will email you confirmation once your account has been fully deleted from their systems, usually around 30 days after initial approval.
- Account permanently deleted—Your Twitter account, tweets, media, profile, and all other personal data are now permanently gone and non-recoverable. The deletion process is complete.
Twitter needs to make account deletion more straightforward. But following this process correctly will eventually result in the full and permanent deletion of your Twitter account and data after about 30 days.
Security Related Heading
Here are some security and privacy best practices when deleting your Twitter account:
- Reset passwords – Change passwords on any accounts formerly linked or connected to your Twitter account to maintain security.
- Remove Twitter app permissions—To limit data exposure, Revoke access to any apps or sites that were granted permission to your Twitter account.
- Beware of password reuse. Avoid repeating the same password across multiple accounts or sites so that deleting one does not compromise others.
- Enable two-factor authentication – Use two-factor or multi-factor authentication where possible on your important accounts for better protection.
- Review account connections – Check all your social media accounts and remove or reset any connections to the Twitter account you are deleting for privacy.
- Delete unused logins – Remove any old or unused social media accounts to minimize your overall internet footprint and secure data.
Taking these key security steps helps protect your identity and data when eliminating your Twitter presence.
What Happens When You Deactivate Your Twitter Account?
Deactivating your Twitter account temporarily hides your profile and removes your public visibility without deleting any data. Here is what happens when you deactivate a Twitter account:
- Your username, tweets, media, and profile are hidden from search engines and public view on Twitter.
- You stop showing up in people’s follower lists or as a follower of other accounts.
- Others can no longer view, search for, or interact with your account.
- New account registrations cannot use your deactivated username.
- Your Direct Messages and conversations remain intact but inaccessible during deactivation.
- Twitter continues storing all your account data, tweets, followers, etc., in case you reactivate.
- You can easily reactivate your account at any time by logging back in and retaining all your old data.
Deactivation is like putting your account on hold – your public presence is removed, but all history remains available if you later log back in to reactivate your account.
What Happens When You Permanently Delete Your Twitter Account?
Permanently deleting your Twitter account erases all your data from Twitter’s servers and cannot be undone. Here is what happens when your account is permanently deleted:
- All your tweets, media, profile information, likes, followers and other account details are deleted.
- Your old username becomes available for anyone else to claim and register once your account is deleted.
- All connections and conversations you establish on Twitter will disappear when your account vanishes.
- Deleting your account ends your access to Twitter-owned content you posted, like tweets, images, and videos.
- You will stop appearing as a follower or friend in any Twitter connections’ account lists.
- Any logins using Twitter credentials will no longer work, such as commenting privileges on sites using Twitter login.
- There is no method to restore or recreate the deleted account or recover any old tweets, connections, messages, or media.
Permanent Twitter account deletion erases your presence and severs your access to the platform, with no option for retrieving your past content and connections.
Can You Reactivate a Deactivated Twitter Account?
Yes, you can easily reactivate a deactivated Twitter account:
- Go to Twitter (x.com) and log in with your account credentials as usual.
- Twitter will detect your account is currently deactivated and prompt you to reactive your profile.
- Click the “Reactivate” button and enter your account password when prompted.
- Twitter will process the reactivation request and restore your account.
- You may need to refollow any accounts you were previously following.
- Your username, tweets, media, profile, and follower lists will all be visible again as normal.
As long as you have your original login information, you can log back into Twitter and reactivate your account at any time after deactivation. All of your old data will still be present upon reactivation.
Can You Recover a Permanently Deleted Twitter Account?
No, there is no way to recover or restore a Twitter account after it has been permanently deleted:
- Twitter completely removes accounts marked for deletion from their systems within approximately 30 days.
- All account data, including tweets, followers, messages, images, profile details, and usernames, are erased.
- Once permanently deleted, there are no Twitter account recovery or retrieval options available. The deletion is final.
- Twitter generally will not assist with restoring deleted accounts, even if the deletion was accidental or unauthorized.
- New accounts can register your old deleted username after a certain period.
- You cannot use your old username or credentials to log back in after permanent deletion.
Permanent Twitter account deletion is designed to be irrecoverable. Unless an extremely rare data recovery exception occurs on Twitter’s servers, deleted accounts and data cannot be restored.
Final Words
Deleting your Twitter account is a significant decision that requires careful consideration. While deactivation can serve as a temporary break, permanent deletion erases your presence forever. Before initiating account deletion, be sure to download your data, notify connections, and remove linked accounts. Twitter requires contacting support and allows 30 days to reactivate after requesting deletion. Once your account is fully deleted, there is no way to recover your old tweets, followers, or username. Permanently deleting your Twitter account severs your access to the platform’s content and community with no option to restore. Think carefully before taking this irreversible step of removing your Twitter profile for good.
FAQs About Deleting Your Twitter Account
What should I do before permanently deleting my Twitter account?
Before deleting your Twitter account:
- Download an archive of your data for records.
- Remove connected accounts.
- Notify friends you are leaving.
- Consider deactivation instead of permanent deletion in case you change your mind later.
How long does Twitter account deletion take?
Twitter initiates the permanent deletion process within approximately 48 hours after receiving your verified request. However, it may then take up to 30 additional days to fully delete your account data from their systems.
Can someone else delete my Twitter account?
No, Twitter requires account deletion requests to come from the registered email address on file for the account in question. This helps prevent unauthorized or accidental account deletion.
What happens to my tweets when I delete my Twitter account?
When your Twitter account is permanently deleted, all your old tweets and media content are erased from Twitter’s servers and become inaccessible.
Can I temporarily disable my Twitter account?
Yes, using the account deactivation feature temporarily hides your Twitter profile and tweets from public view but retains all your data in case you want to reactivate.
Can closing my Twitter account be reversed?
Deactivating your account can easily be undone by logging back in. However, permanent account deletion cannot be reversed or cancelled once Twitter has fully processed the deletion.
Jinu Arjun
