Muting on Twitter: How To Do It & What Happens After

Twitter has become an indispensable platform for sharing thoughts, opinions, and commentary with a global audience. With over 300 million monthly active users, it‘s easy to connect with people from all walks of life.

However, with so many users comes disagreement and unwanted content. You may not want to completely block or unfollow someone, but wish to avoid their irritating or irrelevant tweets showing up in your feed. This is where Twitter‘s mute feature comes in handy.

In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll cover everything you need to know about muting on Twitter, including:

What does muting mean on Twitter?
How is muting different from blocking?
Step-by-step instructions for muting accounts
Managing your muted accounts
Unmuting accounts
Frequently asked questions

Let‘s get started!

What Does Mute Mean on Twitter?

When you mute an account on Twitter, you stop seeing their tweets and notifications in your timeline without unfollowing or blocking them completely.

Muting is useful when you don‘t want to cut off contact with someone entirely but need a break from their content. Their tweets and replies will be hidden from your main timeline and notifications.

Some key things to know about muting on Twitter:

You can mute both accounts you follow and don‘t follow.
Muted accounts will not know you‘ve muted them.
Muted accounts can still view your profile and tweets normally.
You can undo muting at any time to restore their tweets in your timeline.

Overall, muting provides more flexibility than blocking. It reduces someone‘s visibility in your feed temporarily while maintaining a connection.

How is Muting Different from Blocking on Twitter?

Muting and blocking both reduce disruptive content in your Twitter feed, but work differently:

Muting

Hides someone‘s tweets from your timeline.
Maintains followers/following relationship.
Lets you privately manage feed without them knowing.

Blocking

Removes all ability to interact with your tweets.
Unfollows blocked account automatically.
Notifies user that you‘ve blocked them.

In most cases, muting is preferable to blocking since it quietly removes content without severing ties entirely. However, blocking may be necessary for harassment, spam, or abuse situations.

Step-by-Step Guide to Muting Accounts on Twitter

Muting someone on Twitter only takes a few seconds. Here are the simple steps:

Mute from an Account Profile

Visit the profile page of the account you want to mute.
Click on the … icon next to the Following/Follow button.
Select Mute @username from the dropdown menu.
Confirm the mute on the pop-up prompt.

Mute from a Tweet

Find a recent tweet from the account.
Click on the … icon in the top right corner.
Choose Mute @username from the menu.
Confirm the mute.

That‘s it! The account‘s tweets and notifications will instantly disappear from your timeline and alerts.

Mute Words, Phrases, or Conversations

You can also mute specific words or phrases to filter out unwanted content topics from your entire Twitter feed.

On the web:

Go to Settings and Privacy > Content Preferences.
Enter keywords or phrases under Muted Words.

In the app:

Go to your profile icon > Settings and Privacy > Content Preferences.
Add muted words or enable muted conversations.

This can be helpful for eliminating spoilers, politics, or other irritating subjects without targeting individuals.

Managing Your Muted Accounts on Twitter

Wondering how to view a list of accounts you‘ve muted or undo muting? Here‘s how to manage muting settings:

View Your Muted Accounts

On the web:

Click your profile picture > Settings and Privacy.
Go to Privacy and Safety > Muted Accounts.

In the app:

Tap your profile icon > Settings and Privacy.
Go to Privacy and Safety > Muted Accounts.

Your muted accounts will be listed here.

Unmute Accounts

To restore someone‘s tweets in your timeline, you can easily unmute them:

On the web:

Go to their profile page.
Click Unmute @username below the header.

In the app:

Go to their profile.
Tap the Unmute button.

Their tweets will immediately show up in your feed again.

Advanced Muting Options

Under Mute and Block settings, you can also:

Mute new accounts that follow you.
Hide notifications when you‘re mentioned by muted accounts.
Enable quality filters to remove lower-quality content.

Take advantage of these options to customize muting to suit your preferences.

Frequently Asked Questions About Muting on Twitter

Here are answers to some common mute-related questions on Twitter:

Can someone tell if I‘ve muted them?

No. Muting is completely anonymous to the account being muted.

What happens if I mute someone I follow?

Their tweets and replies will no longer appear in your timeline. You‘ll have to manually go to their profile to see them.

If I mute someone, can they still see my tweets?

Yes. Muting is one-sided. Muted accounts can view your profile and tweets as normal.

Can I get notifications if a muted account mentions me?

You can turn off notifications from muted accounts in your Notification Settings.

Is there a limit to how many accounts I can mute?

No. You can mute as many accounts as you like on Twitter.

What‘s the difference between soft and hard muting?

Soft muting just removes someone‘s content from your timeline.
Hard muting also blocks direct messages and notifications when you‘re mentioned.

Can I mute someone without muting their retweets?

Unfortunately no. Muting an account will mute all their original tweets and retweets.

The Advantages of Muting on Twitter

Muting is a simple yet powerful Twitter feature that offers many benefits:

Reduce noise – Eliminate irrelevant or annoying content from your feed.
Avoid spoilers – Mute keywords, phrases, or accounts to avoid spoilers for shows or events.
Improve focus – Remove distractions by muting accounts that constantly pull your attention.
Manage stress – Limit exposure to accounts that cause frustration or toxicity.
Personalize your feed – Curate the content you see by removing unwanted topics or people.
No social impact – Doesn‘t affect your followers/following numbers or notify the muted account.

Overall, don‘t be afraid to mute liberally on Twitter for a more positive experience. It‘s one of the best ways to optimize your feed.

Final Thoughts on Muting Accounts

Muting allows you to silently remove someone‘s content from your Twitter feed without fully blocking them. It gives you more options to manage your Twitter experience on your own terms.

Now that you know how to mute and unmute accounts, keep these tips in mind:

Use muting to temporarily clean up your timeline rather than opting for blocking.
Check your muted accounts periodically and unmute if needed.
Mute preemptively instead of letting frustration build up.
Utilize muted words/phrases to filter subjects and keywords too.

Wield your muting powers wisely, and your Twitter feed will become a much more enjoyable place. Just don‘t go muting everyone you mildly disagree with or you may miss out on valuable perspectives.

How do you use Twitter‘s muting features? Share any other muting tips and tricks in the comments below!