Can You Know When Someone is Online on Twitter?
Unfortunately, the answer is Yes/No; it’s a two-way response as you can’t specifically figure out if someone is online, but there are ways to tell. Some users are active on the platform, tweeting, commenting, and liking every post they can. These types of users are probably online; you can find this out by paying attention to their activities and when they carry them out. You can check out how to do this in the latter part of the article.
How to Know If Someone is Online on Twitter
There is no direct indication of online presence, but you still have several options to figure out if anyone’s online it not. But it would be best if you remembered that these are merely suggestions and not an insight from Twitter itself. However, if you make the proper connection, you might be able to use them to figure out when someone’s online and when they log out of Twitter. Also, these methods are often complementing one another. So applying one doesn’t give you accurate info, except the part that they reply to your messages, because that’s the only that usually happens in real-time. Otherwise, try checking with all the suggestions and see if you can make a connection between them that indicates when last the person showed up on Twitter.
1. You See Them in A Spaces Chat
Twitter does an excellent job of keeping people’s online presence private unless they want to make it known that they are active. So even though you don’t see a green or blue dot showing they are online and active, you can check where they are and what they are currently doing to know this information. One of the best ways to do it is through Twitter spaces. Although they recently launched the Twitter space, it has begun to gain popularity among users. Many Twitter users now attend more than one Twitter space in a day. This improvement makes it much easier to figure out when someone’s online or not, especially when you’re already following each other on the platform. As followers on Twitter, you’ll notice when one of the people you follow is on a Twitter space. Some of these notifications will appear on your notification page, while others will appear at the top of your Twitter feeds. Once you see recommended Twitter spaces on your feeds, it means someone you follow is on that space too. Logically, anyone on Twitter space is online because there’s no other way they’d be on a space without being online. So once you can find the person on a Twitter space, be sure they are online, and you can proceed with whatever you intend. Likewise, Twitter also has communities, so their activities in the community can help you out. So if you happen to be in the same community and notice any activity from them, it means they are online.
2. They’ve Liked Something Recently
Another way to check is to look at their activities on the app. This might seem a little creepy, but people tend to leave a trail of their activities on Twitter, and the platform allows you to follow them. For example, while going through feeds, you can encounter numerous tweets that someone you’re following recently liked. So, if you’re following someone, you’ll see their activities on your Twitter feeds. If you’re following each other, you can still use this method. On the Twitter profiles, there are four tabs to show activities. These are Tweets, Tweets and Replies, Media, and Likes. So, for example, if you want to know if someone has liked any tweet recently, you can navigate to the Likes section. It will list all the posts and tweets they recently liked. Luckily, the tweets will also carry a date and time stamp, so you can figure out how recent they have been online or if they are still online by checking this. However, this method is not as accurate as of the one above. It’s possible for someone currently online to like a tweet posted the day before, which can appear as the most recent activity. Since the tweet will carry dates and times of the time the user posted it, you’d probably think the person was active the day before. Hence, this method works when you can check on the person’s likes and luckily find them liking a recent post. Someone who liked a tweet posted less than a minute ago is probably still online. So keep note of the like section, too, it might not be accurate every time, but it can tell you if someone’s online on the platform or not.
3. They’ve Tweeted Recently
Checking their tweets is similar to checking the likes, only more accurate. But remember, not everyone that goes on Twitter likes to tweet any update. Most accounts on Twitter barely post; many users prefer reading tweets and engaging with other users’ tweets than posting theirs. So if the person belongs to this category of Twitter users, it might not be easy to fish out when they come online. Your best bet if you’re using this method is for the user to be an active Twitter user who posts frequently. If that’s the case, you’ll be able to pinpoint the exact time they are online and active when you check their tweets. As listed above, there are four sections on Twitter profiles; the first one is where all their tweets and retweets appear. So by going through, you can find the last tweet they engaged and how close the time was. You might be lucky that they liked a tweet less than a minute ago, which means they are probably still online. Remember always to check the retweets too. Sometimes people don’t post but enjoy sharing other people’s posts. The second section on their profile (Tweets and Replies) can also be handy for checking their online presence. If the last time they replied was seconds or minutes ago, it’s safe to believe they might still be online. So checking their comments and replies is also an option to check if they are online. Note: This is not 100% reliable insight. There are auto-tweeting bots on Twitter that help users post at specific periods. Sometimes users also schedule posts for later.
4. They’re Replying to You
If you’d decide to take the bull by the horn, you can leave them a message. The users are certainly online when they reply to you, and that’s definitive enough. However, Twitter DMs are ineffective compared to other platforms like Instagram and Facebook. That’s because the platform thrives on user engagements on tweets rather than sending messages to one another. But if your person is a fan of Twitter DMs, then you can beep them with a message. If they are online, you’ll get a response immediately. If they aren’t online, you’ll know when they are online by the time log of their reply to your message, even if you weren’t online. There is also a blue tick when anyone reads your message, so if you drop a message and you notice the blue tick a few minutes later, the user is active online. Once again, this method is inaccurate because someone could ignore your message or be too busy to reply to them. So even though the users are online, they can’t see your message or aren’t responding, which might give you the notion that they are not online. It also defeats the purpose if the person is hell-bent on avoiding you, and you want to know when they are online. Regardless of how many messages you send, they can choose not to reply to you.
5. If They’re In A Group Chat With and A Message Was Sent Recently, There’s A Blue Tick Underneath
In a group chat on Whatsapp, you know when every member is active because it shows a green tick at the bottom of the message. Likewise, when you see a blue tick on Twitter, rest assured that the user has seen your message, and you not getting any reply means they are busy or ignoring your message. So if you send a group message to some accounts and are waiting for replies, check underneath your message to see if they’ve viewed it. Otherwise, they are not online or too busy to check and reply to their DMs.
Twitter Online Status?
For a social platform that loves interaction and engagements, it’s strange that Twitter doesn’t have an online status indicator. Users can easily see what others are doing through their feeds. Whenever a user likes or comments on a tweet, all his followers will be able to see this and also see the specific tweet. So, you might wonder why the platform has had no online status since its inception. There were reports that Twitter would be rolling out an online status indicator pretty soon, but the updates date back to 2018, which means users could be in for a long wait. The initial design was to have the online status added to every user’s profile picture when you try to message. So anytime you wish to check up on a user or engage them in a conversation, you’d be sure they are online with the little blue bubble that indicates they are active. But until this feature comes aboard, users should know there isn’t any online status indicator on the platform.
Can Someone See When You’re Active on Twitter
Technically, your active status on Twitter is hidden, and no one can tell if you have even been online for as long as you want if that’s your intention. Furthermore, Twitter does not have a shiny blinking red light to point out when you’re online to your followers, nor does it display any other features to make this known. So you’re safe to keep your privacy intact if that’s what you wish for on Twitter, unlike many other social platforms. However, it is still possible for others to know if you’re online if you trigger the wires. Think of Twitter as a collection of wire alarms that go off anytime you step on them. But these wires are not everywhere; you can go your way without triggering the alarm. So if you don’t want to attract unnecessary attention to your presence online, you can avoid the wires (avoiding Twitter activities that make your presence known).
How to Stop People From Knowing When You’re Active on Twitter
The best way to maintain a low profile on Twitter is by doing nothing on the platform. Unlike some other platforms where you can choose to see your account to private or hide your updates from certain people. You don’t have this option here, so everything you do on the platform is visually available to followers and non-followers who come across it on their feeds or check your profile page. All the suggestions below are practical steps to remain incognito on Twitter. But they are mutually inclusive, so forfeiting them renders the others ineffective. So, for example, if you keep to the instructions about replying to people, but go ahead and join a Twitter space, defying the first suggestion. Then your bid to keep things private is already ineffective.
1. Don’t Join Spaces Chats
If you are a fan of Twitter spaces but don’t want to get attention drawn to you, then don’t join any more spaces. The Twitter algorithm pairs users that follow one another in a close relationship. So you barely have enough privacy to do things without others knowing. Of course, if you prefer not to alert anyone about your online presence, it’s better to stay off social media. But since you’ve decided to get on the platform, the best way to keep things private is to avoid joining Twitter spaces. The reason is that when you join a Twitter space, the algorithm keeps your followers notified indirectly. So if you host a Twitter space, be ready to get as much publicity as you’d like because the update will appear on their notification pages that you’re hosting a space and if they would also like to join. It’s rare to see someone hosting a Twitter space offline, so everyone knows you’re online. The reason for the update is that Twitter believes people who follow one another have mutualistic views so that they can connect with some tweets and spaces. So when one joins a space, the other gets a notification to join too if they are interested. Same way, when they host a space, they’ll get notified. So stay away from Twitter spaces if you don’t want anyone to know you’re active online.
2. Don’t Reply to People
Also, refrain from replying to people when you’re active. Even though it sounds rude, no one knows you’re online until you give yourself away. So if you must keep your online presence private, it’s best to keep your replies to yourself. Going through your Twitter feeds will not alert anyone of your presence, but you give this away when you drop a comment in one of those tweets. Anyone can know if you’re online or not when you do this because they will probably come across your comment in their feeds too. That’s why it’s not advisable to drop comments you’re not proud of on Twitter since all your followers will come across it in their feeds and see the exact comment you made on the tweet. If someone tags you to a tweet or mentions you in the comment section, don’t reply to them. Instead, when you get a direct message, keep your replies to yourself until you’re confident it’s time to come back from the incognito mode and let everyone know you’re active. This privacy is probably why Twitter doesn’t allow other users to know when you’re online, and sadly, you also don’t get to know when anyone’s online until they decide to let you know. So Twitter can be an interesting game of hiding and sometimes seeking, though you don’t have to be paranoid that someone’s always watching you.
3. Don’t Tweet or Like
As earlier discussed, users practically get notifications when they do something on Twitter. Not an alert or pop-up, of course, but they can run into your activity on every part of their feeds. You also leave a digital footprint for almost every activity you engage in. So your tweets and likes are the perfect indications of your online presence if anyone’s trying to figure it out since you can’t be tweeting and liking tweets from your offline status. Suppose a user sent you a message a few hours or days earlier and you’re yet to reply; they can check your profile page to see what you’ve been up to lately. If they notice no activity from you over the past few days, they’ll probably believe you’ve been offline for that period. But when they see you tweeting every minute and liking comments, you give the impression of being active but unable to reply to them. They might send you a follow-up message and see if you respond. If you still don’t respond and the users can see you make more tweets, it’s safe for them to conclude that you’re ignoring their messages. So If you intended to keep things private, you have indeed failed at it since everyone now knows you’re active and not replying.
4. Don’t Open Messages
Twitter might not have an online status indicator, but it has a message ticking system that logs you when someone views your message. You get a colorless tick when you send a message, and it delivers to the person you sent it to. This tick turns blue as soon as they view the message, so you know when someone’s online and not replying or if they are yet to open your message. You can use this knowledge to your advantage if you want to keep your presence unknown. Don’t open messages when you know you won’t reply yet. If you observe a clean tab with all the other suggestions, you must stick with this too, or you risk alerting people that you’re online because you’ve left a trail online.
5. Don’t Make Obvious Changes
Suppose someone’s going through your profile, and there’s a sudden change in your profile picture; they’ll know you are currently making changes to it. Similarly, if you change your Twitter bio, and someone had been there a few minutes or hours ago, they’ll probably be able to tell the difference and therefore figure out you’ve been online to make those changes. Now, this doesn’t always mean everyone notices and doesn’t give you out that much, but you’re better off keeping your profile than editing and allowing people to notice any change. So, it still depends on how much privacy you want. Because if you don’t want to let people know your online presence at a specific time or you don’t mind letting them know you’ve been active recently, then you don’t have to add this suggestion to your list.
