How to Fix "Cannot Retrieve Tweets at this Time. Please Try Again Later" on Twitter

Have you ever tried to view tweets on Twitter, only to be confronted with the dreaded "Cannot retrieve Tweets at this time. Please try again later" error message? As a heavy Twitter user myself, I totally get how frustrating this can be.

But don‘t worry – in this detailed guide, I‘ll walk you through exactly why you‘re seeing this error, and provide multiple proven solutions to get your Twitter feed working again.

Why You‘re Getting the "Cannot Retrieve Tweets" Error

This error happens when you‘ve exceeded Twitter‘s rate limits for viewing tweets during a certain period of time.

Here‘s a quick overview of how Twitter‘s rate limits work:

Twitter sets daily viewing limits based on your account type
Once you hit the limit, you‘ll start seeing the "cannot retrieve tweets" error
Limits reset after 24-48 hours so you get fresh views again

Elon Musk recently implemented tightened rate limits to combat bots and scraping activity. Here are the current limits:

Account Type	Daily Tweet View Limit
Verified accounts	6,000
Unverified accounts	600
New unverified accounts	300

So if you have an unverified account and view over 600 tweets in a day, you‘ll hit the limit and start seeing errors.

The good news is there are several proven ways to get around this limit so you can resume viewing tweets again.

Fix 1: Upgrade to Twitter Blue

Hands down, the easiest fix is to upgrade to a Twitter Blue subscription. This immediately raises your rate limits substantially.

According to Twitter, Twitter Blue offers up to 5x more Tweet access and 50% fewer ads. Specific numbers haven‘t been shared publicly, but users report limits around 50,000 tweets per day for Twitter Blue subscribers.

Upgrading is simple:

Open the Twitter app and tap your profile picture
Choose "Twitter Blue" from the menu
Select either the monthly ($4.99) or annual ($49.99) plan
Enter your payment details to complete the upgrade

Once your upgrade is processed, your higher rate limit kicks in right away so you can resume browsing tweets without limits.

Twitter Blue also gives you access to premium features like tweet editing, 1080p video uploads, reader mode, and customizable app icons. So there are definitely some nice perks beyond just the increased rate limits.

Fix 2: Use Twitter‘s Web Version

Here‘s a clever trick you may not have considered – use twitter.com to view tweets instead of the mobile app.

Twitter‘s web version and mobile apps have separate rate limits, so switching to the web can reset your limits.

To access twitter.com:

On iPhone:

Open Safari in private browsing mode
Go to twitter.com and log in to your account
View tweets from the web interface

On Android:

Open Chrome in incognito mode
Go to twitter.com and log in
View tweets from the web interface

On PC:

Open Chrome in incognito mode
Go to twitter.com and log in
View tweets from the web interface

This method works best if you primarily use Twitter‘s mobile app. If you already use twitter.com regularly, try switching to the mobile app instead.

Fix 3: Use a VPN

Connecting to Twitter through a VPN assigns you a different IP address, which essentially tricks Twitter into thinking you‘re a new user and resets your rate limits.

Here‘s how to use a VPN to get around rate limits:

Force quit the Twitter app
Download and connect to a free VPN app like ProtonVPN or Ultrasurf
Reopen Twitter – you should now have fresh rate limits

The advantage of using a VPN is you can resume viewing tweets immediately without having to wait for your limits to reset. Just connect to the VPN whenever you hit your limit.

Some good free VPNs to try are ProtonVPN, Windscribe, Hide.me, and Ultrasurf. Make sure to choose a server located in your country for the fastest speeds.

Fix 4: Wait 24-48 Hours for Limits to Reset

If you‘ve exhausted all your other options, the nuclear option is to simply wait 24-48 hours for your rate limits to reset.

According to Twitter, rate limits are imposed on a 24 hour rolling basis. So if you hit your limit at 8PM on Monday, you should regain access by 8PM on Tuesday.

I‘d recommend periodically trying to load your feed every few hours. Once your limit resets, Twitter will work normally again.

The good news is Elon Musk has suggested these rate limits are only temporary. Twitter is likely to keep increasing limits over time to reduce disruptions.

Switch Accounts

If you have multiple Twitter accounts, try switching to an account you haven‘t used recently. Each account has separate rate limits, so your other accounts probably haven‘t hit their limits yet.

Log out of your main account that‘s getting errors, and log into your secondary account instead. You should now be able to view tweets normally again.

Use Third-Party Apps

Popular third-party Twitter apps like Tweetbot and Echofon have their own rate limits separate from the official Twitter app. So you may be able to access tweets through those apps if the main Twitter app stops working.

However, third-party apps can also get rate limited if used excessively. So this isn‘t a permanent fix, but could get you quick access if you‘re locked out of the main Twitter app.

Contact Twitter Support

If you‘re still unable to view any tweets after trying all troubleshooting steps, you can reach out to Twitter support for assistance.

To contact support:

On twitter.com, click your profile icon > Settings and privacy > Contact Us.
Click the topic "Something‘s not working".
Select the sub-topic "I can‘t see or access certain features".
Choose the option "I can‘t access my timeline or view Tweets".
Complete the form providing details about your rate limit issue.

Keep in mind Twitter support is notoriously slow, so this should be used as a last resort. But for a persistent rate limit problem, it can help get your account back to normal.

Summary

I hope this guide has armed you with several effective solutions for getting past the "cannot retrieve tweets" error caused by hitting Twitter‘s rate limits. Here‘s a quick recap of the top fixes:

Upgrade to Twitter Blue for higher limits
Use Twitter‘s web version instead of the mobile app
Connect through a VPN to reset your IP address and limits
Wait 24-48 hours for your rate limits to automatically reset
Switch to an alternate Twitter account
Use third-party Twitter apps like Tweetbot
Contact Twitter support if all else fails

With the recent rate limit changes, running into this error is pretty common. But now you‘re equipped to get your full Twitter access back quickly! Let me know if you have any other tips for bypassing Twitter‘s rate limits.