How you can get more followers on X (Twitter)

First published in 2013, rewritten in 2026 so the advice holds today.

In 2013 it was still common to see accounts running follow/unfollow scripts or buying batches of followers to look bigger than they were. That approach was already unreliable then, and X has since closed most of the loopholes that let it work at all.

Why the old tricks fail even harder now

If you're tempted by a shortcut, it's worth knowing what's changed on the platform since automation was last a viable option.

• X's recommendation algorithm, parts of which were open-sourced in 2023, is built to spot and downrank automated or low-quality activity.
• Rate limits on following and unfollowing make rapid-fire automation impractical.
• Since 2023, third-party API access has been priced in tiers that made the cheap automation tools common a decade ago financially unworkable for most operators, which is one reason follower-farming services have largely dried up.
• The blue tick is no longer a free verification mark. It's part of the paid X Premium subscription, so it now signals willingness to pay rather than confirmed identity or trust in the way it did in 2013.

None of this makes growth impossible. It means growth now has to come from the same place it always should have: content worth following, and genuine interaction with real people.

Build content people actually choose to follow

Accounts with a clear niche that post consistently continue to outperform generalist accounts that post erratically. What's changed since 2013 isn't the principle, it's the tooling: scheduling, drafts and X's own analytics (now folded into X Pro, the replacement for TweetDeck) make it far easier to plan content in advance rather than posting on impulse.

• Pick two or three content types you can sustain: educational explainers, behind-the-scenes updates, customer stories, opinion threads.
• Use X Pro's analytics to see which posts get read to the end, not just which get a quick like.
• Keep a rolling content calendar so posting doesn't depend on remembering to do it that day.

A financial adviser, for example, might mix market updates, short educational threads, client outcome stories and opinion pieces, then check analytics after a month to see which category actually drives profile visits and do more of that.

Your profile still matters more than most people think. A bio that states what you do, who you help and what makes you different outperforms one that just states a job title. "Digital marketing agency" tells a visitor nothing; "we help small UK businesses grow website traffic through SEO, content and PPC" gives them a reason to follow.

Hashtags are worth less than they were in 2013. X's ranking now leans more heavily on relevance and engagement signals than on tags, so use one or two where they genuinely group your post into a relevant conversation, rather than stacking several in for reach that won't materialise.

Engage, don't just broadcast

Accounts that reply, join conversations and show up in other people's threads tend to hold onto followers better than accounts that only post and never interact. Set aside a fixed slot each day to reply to comments, join a Space relevant to your industry, or comment thoughtfully on other accounts' posts rather than simply reposting them.

It's still worth pointing traffic in from other channels: an X handle in your email signature, on your website and on other social profiles, and the odd mention of your X presence in podcasts, webinars or newsletters. This brings people who already know and trust you to a platform where they might not otherwise find you.

Partnerships remain one of the most efficient ways to reach a new but relevant audience. A joint thread, a shared Space, or a simple content swap with a complementary account exposes both of you to followers you'd otherwise have to earn one at a time.

Measure more than the follower count

A rising follower number that never engages, clicks or converts isn't worth much. Watch instead:

• Engagement rate relative to impressions, not just raw likes
• Profile visits and click-throughs to your website
• Who is amplifying your content, and whether they're relevant to your business
• How many followers actually take part in replies or polls, versus silently following

If growth has stalled, that's usually a sign to refresh your content mix or posting times rather than a sign the platform has turned against you. Review your last few months of performance, test a different format such as a longer post, a thread series or video, and give it a few weeks before judging the result.

Growing on X in 2026 is slower and less flashy than the shortcuts that circulated in 2013, but it produces a following that actually reads what you post, clicks through and refers others. Automation and bought followers still fail. A clear niche, a real posting rhythm and genuine engagement still work, and they remain the only approach that reliably does.