How to Temporarily Deactivate Your Twitter Profile Without Permanently Deleting?

Maybe you’re irritated with the constant crazy experiments of Elon Musk after his Twitter acquisition. Or maybe you’re just too busy with your projects and want to get over your Twitter addiction until your deadlines are met. Nevertheless, whatever be the reason, it’s possible to temporarily deactivate your Twitter account. If you do it the right way, you won’t lose any of your tweets, or a large chunk of followers that you’ve gained over years. Let’s begin.

Deactivating Vs Deleting Twitter Account

Deactivation is a less drastic process than deleting a Twitter account. Deactivation temporarily hides your Twitter profile until you reactivate it. Your profile will neither appear in your follower’s Twitter feeds nor will your name pop up when they search for it. While your account is deactivated, others cannot tag you in their tweets or send direct messages. In short, you’ll be able to peacefully focus on your real life without constant buzzing about your Twitter life. Please note that others cannot re-use your Twitter username or handle while your account is deactivated.

Deleting your Twitter account is the nuclear step. Choose it only if you wish to permanently leave Twitter. When you delete your Twitter account, any data associated with your Twitter account is permanently removed from their servers and you’ll no longer be able to access your account ever. Your Twitter data may include your tweets, retweets, your Twitter media (videos, photos), and your direct messages to other individuals or brands. Your profile will be gone forever and others will not be able to view it again. Your followers won’t be able to tag you in their tweets or send any direct messages. Once your Twitter account is permanently deleted, others can re-use your Twitter username or handle.

Deactivating Twitter

WARNING: According to Twitter policies, you must re-activate your account within 30 days of deactivating it, otherwise it will be permanently deleted and you’ll lose your Twitter data forever. There is no way to retrieve your account or recover this data once that happens.

Using Computer/ Mac/ Tablet:

1. Open the Twitter website in your web browser.
2. Sign in to your Twitter account.
3. Click the More icon on the left panel.
4. Select Settings and Privacy from the drop-down menu options.
5. Click the Account tab and then click the Deactivate your Account option.
6. Click on Deactivate.
7. Type in your Twitter password and then click the Deactivate button.
8. You must re-activate your account within the next 30 days, otherwise you’ll permanently lose it.

Using Android/ iPhone App:

1. Open the Twitter app and sign in to your Twitter account.
2. Tap on your profile image.
3. Tap Settings and Privacy > Account.
4. Tap Deactivate your account.
5. Tap the Deactivate button.
6. Type in your Twitter password, and then tap on the Deactivate button again.
7. You must re-activate your account within the next 30 days, otherwise you’ll permanently lose it.

How to Reactivate a Deactivated Twitter Account

1. Open the Twitter app or website and sign in.
2. Twitter will display a message confirming whether you want to reactivate your account.
3. Click the Yes, Reactivate button.
4. That’s it, your account will be reactivated.

Note: It may take some time to load your complete Followers list and other data associated with your Twitter account. While Twitter retrieves this information from its server, your Followers count will appear to be 0 (zero) and no followers will be visible.