To leave Twitter/X, you may want to keep a copy of your data before departing.
- Either because some messages or threads you’ve posted are important to you.
- Or because you want to reconnect with your contacts (followers/followed) on one or more new social networks.
Twitter/X, in compliance with European law [1], allows users to easily request a copy of their data.
Twitter explains this process on its website, but here’s a step-by-step guide:
Accessing My Twitter Data
Log in to your Twitter/X account. In the left-hand column, scroll to the bottom and click on "More" and then "Settings and Privacy". Next, in the central column, click on "Your Account" and in the right-hand column, click "Download an archive of your data".
Twitter will then require strong authentication: first by asking you to re-enter your password, followed by sending you a SMS or email to confirm your identity.
Once authenticated, you will see a "Request Archive" button in the right-hand column. Click on that button.
At this point, you’ll need to wait 1 to 3 days for Twitter to prepare your data. Once it’s ready, you’ll receive an email notification. Return to the same location ("Download an archive of your data") and click on the archive available there to download it in .ZIP format.
And that’s it! You now have an archive of your tweets, followers, and followees.
