If you are like most people, then you probably have thought about what your favorite social media platforms know about you.
Whether you’re thinking of leaving Twitter or just curious about what the social network has collected on you, you might want to download a copy of your Twitter data.
You can download a copy of your data on the Twitter website as well as on its mobile app. This tutorial will cover how to download your data on both platforms.
How to Download Your Twitter Data on Your Mobile
The process for downloading your Twitter data on the platform's app is pretty simple.
Just follow these steps:
- Sign into your Twitter account on your mobile phone.
- Swipe to the right or tap on the navigation menu.
- Tap on Settings and Privacy.
- Select Account.
- Tap on Your Twitter Data.
- Under Data and Permissions, select Download Archive.
You’ll be asked to confirm your password. After confirming your password, tap the Request archive button.
It takes a while (sometimes 24 hours or longer) for the data to be prepared. But not to worry, you’ll get an in-app notification when it's ready to download. If you’ve verified your email, you’ll also receive a mail with a link to download your Twitter archive.
How to Download Your Twitter Data on the Web
The process for downloading your data through the Twitter website is the same as the app, but with a slightly different UI.
Follow these steps to request your data:
- Log into your Twitter account on your browser.
- Click More on the navigation menu to the left of your feed.
- Choose the Settings and privacy option.
- Select the Your Account tab on the left if it's not already highlighted.
- Click on Download an archive of your information.
- Click on Request Archive.
- Wait until your data is ready to download. You will receive a notification (and an email) when it's done.
Getting the Actual Data File
So what does this data package include?
Just about everything you’d expect. Your data archive will include your profile information, Tweets; Direct Messages; Moments; images, videos, and GIFs you’ve uploaded; a list of your followers and accounts you’re following; your address book; Lists you've created, follow, or are a member of; and your interests and ads data.
As soon as Twitter is done processing your data, it will send you a notification. Clicking on this notification leads to your Privacy page. On your Privacy page, click on the download archive. There you’ll find your download-ready data file.
Your data will be presented to you in ZIP format. Open the file and click on Your archive.html to see all that Twitter knows about you. The file opens as a webpage, like the one displayed in the image above. You can access the file even if you're offline.
Understand What Social Media Companies Know About You
Getting a copy of your data helps give you insight into just how much information social media companies gather about you.
They can also serve a practical purpose if you want to transfer the data or back it up.
