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Twitter SMS commands

You can perform certain actions, like following a user or marking a friend's update as a favorite, by using the designated Twitter commands below.

When using these commands, do not append an @ symbol along with the command text. If you send these commands with an @ symbol, your commands will be read as a username and will not be executed as expected.

Example: If you want to turn on device notifications, send only "ON" and not "@ON."

Turning mobile Twitter updates OFF and ON:

  • ON: turns ALL your authorized Twitter updates and notifications on.
  • OFF: turns ALL phone notifications off.    
  • ON [username]: turns on notifications for a specific person on your phone. Example: ON alissa
  • OFF [username]: turns off notifications for a specific person on your phone. Example: OFF blaine
  • FOLLOW [username]: allows you to start following a specific user, as well as receive SMS notifications. Example: FOLLOW jerry, or F jerry, for short.
  • UNFOLLOW [username]: allows you to stop following a specific user.
  • STOP, QUIT, END, CANCEL, UNSUBSCRIBE, or ARRET: will deactivate your account if you are an SMS-only user. If you completed the sign-up flow on the web, sending any of these commands to your Twitter short code will simply remove your phone number from your Twitter account.

Fun stuff – friends, favorites, and stats:

Use the commands below to send direct messages, mark Tweets as favorites, and more.

  • @[username] + message - shows your Tweet as a reply directed at another person, and causes your Tweet to save in their mentions tab. Example: @meangrape I love that song too!

  • D [username] + message - sends that person a Direct Message that goes to their device, and saves in their web archive.
    • You can also use M [username] + message to send a private message!
    • Examples: d krissy want to pick a Jamba Juice for me while you're there? or m krissy wanna pick up a Jamba Juice for me while you're there? performs the same action.
Note about DM fails: Your service provider may split SMS messages greater than 160 characters into multiple messages. In this case, the second message will post as a normal Tweet because it doesn't begin with d+username, as the first message did. Please be careful to ensure that your messages are under 160 characters.
  • RETWEET [username] - sends that user's latest Tweet to your followers (also known as a Retweet). Example: RETWEET Charles or  RT Charles
  • SET LANGUAGE [language name] - selects the language you'd like to receive notifications in. Example: set language German
  • WHOIS [username] - retrieves the profile information for any public user on Twitter. Example: whois jack or w jack, for short.
  • FAV [username] - marks that user's last Tweet as one of your favorites (reply to any update with FAV, FAVE, FAVORITE, FAVOURITE, or * to mark it as a favorite if you're receiving it in real time). Examples: fav crystal, fave crystal, favorite crystal, or *crystal
  • STATS [username] - this command returns the given user's number of followers, how many people they're following, and their bio information.
  • HELP - texting help, info, or aide to Twitter will bring up helpful tips.
  • SET DISCOVER ON - by using this command, you opt-in to receive SMS notifications for top Tweets related to your interests. Please know that this feature is automatically enabled for all Twitter via SMS users. Note: this feature is only available in certain locations.
  • SET DISCOVER OFF - turns off delivery of top tweets to your device.

A few notes on SMS commands:

  • Using ON/OFF [username] from your phone only stops notifications coming to your mobile phone; you'll still collect a person's updates on the web since you're still following them.
    • Use UNFOLLOW [username] to unfollow a user via SMS.
    • Use BLOCK [username] or BLK [username] to block a user via SMS. 
    • You can also use UNBLOCK [username] or UNBLK [username]
    • Use REPORT [username] or REP [username] to report a user as spam.
  • The following commands perform the same actions: FOLLOW = ON. And LEAVE = OFF.
  • Following someone from a phone for the first time will also cause you to follow them on the web.
  • You don't have to use ON/OFF [username] from your phone, you can also set individual notifications from a person's profile page on the web, or check your following page and manage all phone notification settings there.

Need help?

Visit our SMS Troubleshooting article for more information and tips.

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