Staying safe and comfortable on social media now requires conscious effort. With more people becoming toxic and unruly online, social media platforms now give users the ability to curate and control their own feed and interactions. One such platform is Twitter, a great place to connect, share ideas, and stay updated but sometimes certain followers can make your experience less enjoyable.
From people sending you unwanted messages, spamming your posts, to simply making you uncomfortable, you have the right to take control of your Twitter space. To do this, you can turn to the Twitter blocking feature. With just a few clicks, you can easily block a follower on Twitter and prevent them from seeing your tweets or interacting with you.
In this post, we’ll guide you step-by-step on how to block someone on Twitter.
How to block a follower on Twitter
Blocking a follower on Twitter is quick and easy. This can be done via the mobile app or desktop website. And regardless of the method you use, the steps are the same.
To block someone on Twitter, follow this simple guide:
- Open the Twitter app on your phone or visit twitter.com in your web browser.
- Next, find the person you want to block. You can search for their username using the search bar, or tap their name if you see them in your followers list, mentions, or timeline.
- Once you’re on their profile, look for the three vertical dots in the top right corner of the screen (on mobile)
- If you are using a desktop, it will be located next to the “Follow”/”Following” button.
- Tap or click on “Block” in the list of options.
- Twitter will show a pop-up message to explain what blocking means and what happens when you block someone.
- Finally, confirm that you want to block the person by tapping or clicking “Block” again.
Once you do this, the follower will no longer be able to follow you, see your tweets, or interact with your account.
What happens when you block someone on Twitter?
Blocking someone on Twitter means you are cutting off their ability to interact with your account. It’s like putting up a digital barrier that prevents that person from seeing or contacting you on the platform.
Below is a full picture of what happens when you block someone on Twitter:
- If the person was following you before, they’ll be automatically unfollowed once you block them. They also won’t be able to follow you again unless you unblock them.
- Your tweets will no longer appear on their timeline, and if they try to visit your profile, they’ll see a message saying they’re blocked.
- Blocking someone stops them from sending you Direct Messages (DMs) completely.
- While they can still type your handle, the mention won’t link to your profile or notify you.
- That includes liking, retweeting, replying to, or quoting your tweets.
Will Twitter notify someone if I block them?
No, Twitter does not send a notification to let someone know they’ve been blocked. However, they may figure it out if they try to view your profile and see that they can’t access it. Blocking is a private action, and Twitter keeps it that way to help users maintain control without starting unnecessary drama.
How to unblock a follower on Twitter
If you’ve blocked someone on Twitter but later decide to give them access again, you have the option of unblocking them.
To do this, follow this guide:
- Open Twitter on your device.
- Tap on your profile picture on the top left corner of the screen
- Scroll down and click on Settings & Support
- In the dropdown menu, click on Settings and privacy
- Next, scroll to and click on Privacy and safety
- Under here, locate and tap on the Mute and block option.
- Next, select Blocked accounts
- From the list of blocked accounts, tap on the red blocked button in front of the person you want to unblock.
- A prompt will appear asking if you’re sure you want to unblock the person.
- Confirm your decision, and they’ll immediately regain the ability to follow and interact with your account.
Unblocking someone does not automatically make them follow you again or restore any past interactions. They’ll have to follow you manually if they wish to do so.
Are there alternatives to blocking on Twitter?
Blocking is a strong action, but sometimes you may want a softer approach. There are a couple of alternatives to blocking on Twitter that allow you to control your experience without completely cutting someone off.
These options can be useful if you want more privacy or less interaction without causing a potential conflict. You can remove a follower from your list as well as use a ‘soft block’ to control your experience.
1. Using the “Soft Block”
Before Twitter introduced the “Remove Follower” feature, users had to get creative. One popular workaround was the “soft block” which is a clever trick still used by many today.
To use the soft block technique, you block someone on Twitter, then immediately unblock them. This removes them from your follower list without sending a notification. It’s quick, quiet, and effective.
When you soft block someone on Twitter, the person is no longer following you and your tweets won’t show up in their feed. That said, they can still visit your profile, search for your posts, and even send you direct messages. Soft blocking is like hitting the reset button on a follower without the full force of a Twitter blocking action. It gives you distance while keeping things low-key.
2. Using the ‘Remove Follower’ feature
Twitter lets you remove followers quietly. This means they won’t be notified and your tweets will no longer appear in their feed. Removing a follower doesn’t stop them from following you again if your account is public or requesting to follow if it’s private.
Here’s how to do it:
- Open your web browser and go to twitter.com, then log into your account.
- Tap your profile picture in the top-left corner to open the menu.
- Tap “Profile” to view your Twitter page.
- Tap your follower count to open the list of followers
- Find the follower you want to remove and click the three-dot icon next to their name.
- Select “Remove this follower” from the dropdown menu.
- Confirm by clicking the red “Remove” button.
The follower will be removed instantly, and they won’t be notified. While you can’t remove followers directly through the Twitter mobile app, you can still do it through your phone’s web browser.
3. Using the ‘Mute’ feature
Muting is a great way to stop seeing someone’s tweets without unfollowing or blocking them. It’s a subtle way to take control of your feed especially if you want less noise.
On the Twitter app (Mobile)
- Open the Twitter app and log in to your account.
- Go to the profile of the person you want to mute.
- Tap the three-dot icon at the top-right corner of their profile.
- Select “Mute” from the menu.
- Confirm your choice.
Once muted, their tweets and retweets will no longer appear in your feed, but they can still follow, message, and interact with your posts.
On Twitter via Desktop
- Visit twitter.com and log in.
- Go to the user’s profile.
- Click the three-dot icon next to the “Follow” or “Following” button.
- Choose “Mute @username.”
- Confirm when prompted.
Also, muting is private as Twitter won’t notify the person, so you can mute freely without worrying about any awkwardness.
FAQs
1. Can someone tell if you’ve blocked them?
Not directly. Twitter doesn’t send a notification when you block someone. However, if they visit your profile, they’ll see a message that says they’ve been blocked. So while they won’t get an alert, they can figure it out if they try to check your account.
2. Will blocking someone remove their likes or retweets?
Yes. When you block someone, any likes or retweets they made on your tweets will disappear from your notifications and your tweet’s engagement count. If you unblock them later, those likes or retweets won’t come back.
3. Does blocking unfollow them too?
Yes. Blocking automatically makes both of you unfollow each other. If they try to follow you again, they won’t be able to unless you unblock them.
In the end
Blocking someone on Twitter lets you set healthy boundaries. And for any serious user of the platform, learning how to block a follower on Twitter is an important step toward creating a safer and more positive space online. Whether you’re dealing with spam, negativity, or simply want more control over who sees your tweets, Twitter blocking is a useful feature.
It removes unwanted followers, stops unwanted messages, and helps protect your peace of mind. Alternatively, you can consider less severe methods by muting, removing or using the soft block technique to control how a follower interacts with you.