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Adding your phone number to your account

Adding a phone number to your account is a great step toward a better Twitter experience. If you’re thinking about adding your number, here are a few benefits:

  • Keeping your account secure. With a phone number on your account, you’ll be able to enroll in security features like login verification.
  • Faster account recovery. If you ever lose access to your account, having a phone number attached can make it easier for you to get back in to Twitter.
  • Use Twitter via SMS text message. With a phone number on file, you’ll be able to text Tweets and receive Twitter updates via SMS texts, as long as your phone uses a supported carrier.
  • Connect with friends and contacts. With a phone number on your account, you can easily connect with people you know. Read more about allowing others to find you by your phone number in this article.

Where are you using Twitter?

Find instructions for adding your phone number to your account using:

Twitter for iPhone app
Twitter for Android app
Web on a desktop or laptop computer
SMS text message (using a short code)
SMS text message (using a long code)

Add your phone number via Twitter for iOS:

  1. On your profile, tap the gear iconand select Settings.
  2. Tap Account.
  3. Tap Phone Number. If you haven’t previously added a phone number, tap Add.
    Note: If you have already added a phone number, tapping this button will give you an option to remove this number and add a new one. Find instructions here.
  4. Enter your phone number in the empty field and tap Add phone.
  5. Twitter will then send an SMS text message with a verification code to the phone number you added.
  6. Open the Twitter app again and enter the verification code. Tap Verify.

Add your phone number via Twitter for Android:

  1. In the top menu, you will either see a navigation menu icon  or your profile icon. Tap whichever icon you have.
  2. Tap Settings.
  3. Tap Account, then tap Phone Number. If you haven’t previously added a phone number, tap Add.
    Note: If you have already added a phone number, tapping this button will give you an option to remove this number and add a new one. Find instructions here.
  4. Enter your phone number in the empty field and tap Add phone.
  5. Twitter will then send an SMS text message with a verification code to the phone number you added.
  6. Open the Twitter app again and enter the verification code. Tap Verify.

Add your phone number from the web:

  1. Log in to your account at twitter.com from a desktop or laptop computer.
  2. Go to your Settings by clicking your profile icon at the top right of the navigation bar and selecting Settings from the drop-down menu.
  3. Click on the Mobile tab.
  4. Select your country/region from the drop-down menu.
  5. Enter your phone number. No need to include your country code or leading zero; we handle these automatically. Click Continue.
  6. We will send a code (via SMS text message) to your phone number. Enter it in the Verification code box and click Activate phone.
  7. You’ll see a Your phone is activated! message to confirm your updated number.
Note: In some situations, you may be able to request a voice call to verify your phone number.

Add your phone number via SMS text message to a short code:

Note: If your mobile operator is one of our supported carriers, you can use a short code with your Twitter account to post Tweets, receive notifications and enroll in security features like login verification. Here's how:
  1. Send a text to your Twitter code with the word START.
  2. We'll reply and ask you to text YES to the Twitter short code.
  3. Text your username to the same number. Do not use the @ symbol or quotation marks. Send your username ONLY, for example: larrybird
  4. Next, text your password. This is case sensitive, so be sure you are sending your password correctly.
  5. You're ready to go! Now you can post Tweets, receive notifications about your account, and enroll in security features like login verification.

Add your phone number via SMS text message to a long code:  

Note: If your country and carrier are not listed as having a short code, it may be possible for you to post a Tweet using any of our Twitter long codes.

If you have to use a long code, note that it is one-way only. You will not be able to receive Tweets or other Twitter notifications to your phone through this channel, and you may be charged international message rates when using these codes. For these reasons, we do not recommend features such as login verification for long code users, as the experience may be less than optimal.

  1. Begin by sending two separate text messages to the long code with the word STOP.
  2. Wait two to three minutes before proceeding.
  3. Send a text message to the long code with the word START.
  4. Wait two to three minutes before proceeding.
  5. Text YES to the Twitter long code.
  6. Wait two to three minutes before proceeding.
  7. Text your username to the same number. Do not use the @ symbol or quotation marks. Send your username ONLY, for example: larrybird
  8. Wait two to three minutes before proceeding.
  9. Text your password. This is case sensitive, so be sure you are sending your password correctly.
  10. You’re ready to go!
Note: Make sure to wait a few minutes between each step to make sure Twitter is receiving your messages correctly.

To test if you have correctly added your phone, send a test Tweet to your long code number (just like sending a normal text message). Then, log in to www.twitter.com via the web to make sure your Tweet shows up on your Twitter profile. If it does, you have correctly added your phone. Once again, you will not be able to receive any texts back from a long code.

Adding your phone number to multiple accounts:

You can have the same phone number associated with up to 10 Twitter accounts. It’s important to note that only the account most recently linked to this phone number can receive SMS notifications (for account activity like Direct Messages, new followers, Retweets, etc.) or perform SMS commands (such as sending (D [username] + message) for DM or RETWEET [username] for Retweets). You can adjust these notifications in your Text notifications settings. Instructions for adjusting your SMS notification settings can be found here.

You will not be able to edit Text notifications settings for any other accounts you have previously associated with your phone number. If you attempt to edit your settings on an account that isn’t your primary account, you’ll receive a message letting you know that the account cannot get these notifications because it shares a phone number with another account.

Note: If your phone number is linked to multiple accounts, you will not be able to choose which account can edit the SMS notification settings. Only the most recently linked account has the ability to change these settings. Each account that has your phone number associated with it will still receive SMS text messages for password reset requests or security features like login verification.

Additional resources

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