How to Clean Up Your X (Twitter) Feed

You open X to check one thing. Twenty minutes later you are deep in an argument between strangers about a topic you never chose.

That is not a personal failing. It is how a recommendation feed works. The good news: X gives you more control than most people use. To clean up your X feed, switch to the Following tab, mute the words and accounts you don't want to see, tell X when a post is "Not interested", and filter your notifications. This guide walks through each step.

Key takeaways

• The For You tab is chosen by X's algorithm; the Following tab is built from accounts you chose.
• Muted words and muted accounts quietly remove content without unfollowing or confronting anyone.
• "Not interested in this post" is a direct signal to the recommendation system. Use it often at first.
• Notification filters decide what can interrupt you, which matters as much as what the feed shows.
• Menu names on X change over time. If a setting looks different, search for it in X's settings.

What is the difference between For You and Following?

For You is a recommended feed. It mixes posts from people you follow with posts X predicts will hold your attention: trending topics, viral replies, accounts you have never heard of. The algorithm learns from what you pause on, reply to and click, not only from what you say you want.

Following shows posts from accounts you follow. At the time of writing, X lets you sort it by recent posts or by popular posts, depending on your version of the app. It is the closest thing X has to a feed you designed yourself.

If you want to understand why recommended feeds behave this way, our guide on how recommendation algorithms shape your feed explains the basics.

How do I clean up my X feed? A step-by-step guide

1. Make Following your default tab

Open the home timeline and tap Following at the top. On many versions of the app you can also pin it, so X remembers your choice when you return. If X switches you back to For You after an update, switch again.

2. Review who you follow

A Following feed is only as calm as the list behind it. Open your profile, tap Following, and scroll through the list. Ask one question for each account: "Do I want this in my day?" Unfollow the ones that no longer fit.

If you want to keep an account but see it less, use Lists instead. A List is a separate feed of accounts you group together, such as "Design" or "Local news". You visit it when you choose, rather than having it mixed into your main feed.

3. Mute words, phrases and hashtags

Muted words are the most useful tool most people never open. At the time of writing, you find them under Settings and privacy → Privacy and safety → Mute and block → Muted words. Menu names vary slightly between the app and the website.

When you add a muted word, X usually lets you choose:

• Where it applies: your home timeline, your notifications, or both.
• From whom: anyone, or only people you don't follow.
• For how long: a day, a week, a month, or until you turn it off.

Good candidates: spoilers, a news story you have followed enough, or a topic that keeps pulling you into arguments. For events, mute a match or a launch for a week, then let it go.

4. Mute or block accounts

Mute hides an account's posts from your timeline without unfollowing or notifying them. It is the quiet option, useful for people you know personally or accounts you sometimes want to check.

Block stops an account from following you or seeing your posts while you are logged in, and removes them from your view. Use it when someone repeatedly lowers the quality of your time.

Both are available from the three-dot menu (…) on any post or profile.

5. Use "Not interested in this post"

When For You shows something you didn't want, tap the three-dot menu on the post and choose Not interested in this post (the exact wording may differ). This tells the recommendation system to show fewer posts like it.

One tap changes little; repeated taps over a few days usually do. Treat the first week as training.

6. Adjust your content preferences

X keeps a list of topics and interests it has inferred about you. At the time of writing, it lives under Settings and privacy → Privacy and safety → Content you see, with options for Topics, Interests and Explore settings. You can unfollow topics you never chose and turn off location-based trends if they aren't useful to you.

7. Filter your notifications

Your feed is only half the picture. Notifications decide when X interrupts you. Look under Settings and privacy → Notifications → Filters. Depending on your version, you can turn on a quality filter and choose to mute notifications from accounts you don't follow, new accounts, or accounts without a confirmed email or phone number.

Then check your phone's own notification settings for X. Many people keep direct messages on and turn the rest off. The feed will still be there when you choose to open it.

How long does it take for X's feed to change?

Muting and unfollowing work immediately. Changes to the For You recommendations take longer, because the algorithm keeps learning from what you actually watch and tap. Give it one to two weeks of consistent signals. If For You still feels noisy, staying on Following is a perfectly good answer.

A short routine that keeps it clean

Once the first cleanup is done, maintenance is light:

1. Once a week, review muted words. Remove ones that expired and add new ones.
2. Once a month, scroll your Following list and unfollow what no longer fits.
3. Each session, decide why you are opening X before you open it.

Small, deliberate choices add up. Our guide to using the internet intentionally has more ideas for setting a purpose before you scroll, and how to stop mindless scrolling covers habits that work across apps.

Conclusion

A cleaner X feed is less about willpower and more about settings. Choose the Following tab, mute what drains you, tell the algorithm what you don't want, and decide what can interrupt you. The platform will keep suggesting. You get to keep deciding.

If you'd like a hand with this, the BOSLA AI browser extension works on X and helps you choose what you see there. The FAQ has the details.

Frequently asked questions

Can I turn off the For You tab on X completely?

At the time of writing, X doesn't offer a setting to remove For You entirely. You can switch to Following and, on many versions, pin it so it stays your default.

Does muting someone on X notify them?

No. Muting is private. The account isn't told, and they can still see and reply to your posts.

What is the difference between muting and blocking on X?

Muting hides an account from your view without them knowing. Blocking also stops them from following you or seeing your posts while logged in.

Why does my For You feed still show unwanted posts?

Recommendation systems learn slowly and weigh what you watch, not only what you mark. Keep using "Not interested" and muted words, and use the Following tab when you want a calmer view.