Whether you retweeted something by accident, forgot to ‘Quote Tweet’ and add your own caption, or have since changed your mind about your interaction with any given tweet, here are the simple tutorials to follow in order to learn how to delete a retweet on the Twitter desktop website, as well as the Twitter app for mobile phone.
Table of Contents
How to delete a Retweet on the Twitter website
- Open up your preferred web browser, and navigate to the Twitter website. If prompted, sign-in.
- From the left-hand menu, select ‘Profile’
- Scroll-down through your profile until you locate the Retweet you wish to delete
- Below your Retweet, you’ll see the recycle-like Retweet icon highlighted green, indicating your interaction with the original post. In order to delete your Retweet, click this icon again, and from the drop-down options, hit ‘Undo Retweet’
- The Retweet will disappear from your profile, and your interaction with the original tweet will be erased
How to delete a Retweet on the Twitter mobile app
- Open up the Twitter app on your mobile, and if prompted, sign-in
- Tap the hamburger menu icon (three horizontal bars) in the top-left of the screen
- Tap ‘Profile’
- Scroll down until you locate the Retweet you wish to delete
- Beneath the Retweet, you’ll see the Retweet icon highlighted green. To delete your Retweet, tap this again, and from the pop-up menu, tap ‘Undo Retweet’
- The Retweet will disappear from your profile, and your interaction with the original tweet will be erased
And there you have it. Whether on desktop or mobile, you can quickly and easily delete your Retweet, removing all evidence that you engaged in that way with the original post. For more information, see the FAQs below.
Frequently asked questions
What is Twitter?
Twitter is one of the world’s most popular social networking platforms. Unlike Facebook or Instagram, which lean much more into the ‘social’ side of ‘social networking’, Twitter is utilised by its millions of users as much as a platform for news sharing, creating, marketing and advertising, and socio-cultural-political discussion, as it is as a mode of social interaction. The basic premise of Twitter is that each and every post (called a ‘tweet’) made in the platform must conform to its strict 280 character-per-tweet limit. This enables a fast-paced, short-form style of social networking, unique to Twitter.
What is a Retweet?
A ‘retweet’ is the primary method of sharing content on Twitter, and it is only through retweets that any individual tweet becomes ‘successful’ (i.e. extends its reach, and accrues lots of online interaction). For example, if a news network tweets the latest headline, it is through the retweeting of this initial post, by hundreds, thousands, maybe millions of people around the world, that this headline is able to reach so many people. Retweeting is a great way of networking with like-minded individuals, businesses, and enterprises, and is as simple to do as one click or tap of your finger! When retweeting, you can decide either to ‘Quote Tweet’ and add your own caption or comment onto the initial tweet for your followers to see, or just straight ‘Retweet’ the original content without altering it at all.
What happens when I delete a Retweet?
When you delete a retweet, you remove your interaction with the original tweet from your feed and from the original post. In other words, your followers will no longer be able to see your retweet, and it will not count toward the number of retweets the original tweet is accruing. However, if one of your followers has retweeted your retweet, deleting it will not affect them, as technically they have interacted with the original content through you.
Can I reverse my deletion?
No. However, if you accidentally deleted your retweet, you could always just return to the original source (where you discovered the tweet in the first place) and retweet it again. Sure, the original poster will be notified twice about your retweet, but that’s the only difference.
