Deactivate a Twitter Account on a Mobile Phone
If you're trying to deactivate your Twitter account, you'll usually need to use a desktop computer to access the Twitter website. It's not possible to deactivate your account through the Twitter app, but you can use your mobile device's browser to load the desktop version of the Twitter site. Doing so will allow you to deactivate your account from a mobile device.
Steps
Deactivating Your Account
- Open your device's web browser. Twitter only allows you to deactivate your account through the website. You cannot use the Twitter app, and you can't use the mobile version of the site either. This means you'll need to request the desktop version of the site when you open your account settings in your mobile browser.
- Type twitter.com/settings/account into your browser's address bar. When you load this page, you'll be informed that the page doesn't exist. This is normal. You can ignore this message as the page will load properly when you switch to the desktop version.
- Open your browser's menu. The process for this varies depending on the browser you're using:
- Chrome - Tap the ⋮ button in the upper-right corner of the screen.
- Safari - Tap the Share button, which looks like a box with an arrow coming out of the top. On an iPhone, you'll find this at the bottom of the screen. On an iPad, you'll find it at the top next to the address bar.
- Select "Request Desktop Site" from your browser's menu. This will reload twitter.com/settings/account so that it displays as if you were on a desktop computer.
- In Safari, scroll through the second row of options in the Share menu to find "Request Desktop Site."
- Log in if you aren't already. The address you entered will take you directly to your account settings. If you aren't logged into Twitter yet, you'll be prompted to do so.
- Tap the "Deactivate my account" link. You'll find this at the very bottom of your Twitter account settings menu.
- Review the deactivation policy. Twitter will keep your account data stored for 30 days, then will permanently delete your account. You can reactivate your account by logging in anytime before the 30 days are up.
- Tap the "Deactivate @username" button. This button will not appear until you've been on the page for a few moments.
- Enter your Twitter password. As a final precaution, you'll be asked to enter your Twitter password to confirm that you want to deactivate your account. Tap the "Deactivate account" button after entering your password.
- Wait for your account to be deactivated. Your account will be removed from Twitter after a few minutes, but some information may still be visible for a few days.
Undoing the Deactivation
- Make any decision about reactivation within 30 days. Once you deactivate your account, Twitter will store your account data for 30 days. After 30 days passes, your data is permanently deleted and you will not be able to reactivate your account no matter what. Thus, if you have second thoughts about deactivating your account, you'll need to make a decision before the 30 day waiting period is done or you'll have to sign up for an entirely new account.
- If you miss the 30 day window, see our article on making a Twitter account to create a brand-new one.
- Log into the Twitter website or mobile app. All you need to do to reactivate your old account is simply sign in with the username and password associated with that account. Once you do this, you'll be brought to the Twitter home page once again.
- Wait for your old data to restore. As soon as your account is reactivated, you'll be able to use it to read and write tweets just like before. However, it may take a few minutes for certain account content (like old tweets, followers, and more) to be restored. Be patient — this should happen automatically.
- File a support request if you can't reactivate your account. In the rare event that you are unable to reactivate your account, don't hesitate to contact Twitter via the official Twitter help site at support.twitter.com. Here, you'll find forms for reporting all sorts of technical issues — for reactivation problems, you'll want to click the "Account restoration" option.
- Some users occasionally report problems with the reactivation process not working on mobile devices. If this happens to you, you may want to try again on a computer or via the Twitter app.
