You checked your follower count.
It went down.
Again.
A big drop usually isn't you. It's X clearing out bots and locked accounts.
(Sometimes it is you. Let's find out which.)
Why am I losing followers on X?
Usually it's one of two things.
X removed some accounts that followed you. Or some people unfollowed you.
X doesn't tell you about either one.
1. X is taking out the trash
X removes fake, spam and bot accounts all the time.
When one that followed you goes, so does the follower.
You didn't lose a person. You lost a robot. 🤖
(It was never going to buy your course anyway.)
Sometimes X does it in one big sweep. In April 2026 Nikita Bier, then X's head of product, posted this:
Currently identifying and suspending 208 bots per minute and growing.
That week some people said they lost thousands of followers.
Locked accounts go too.
A locked account is one X has frozen until the owner proves they're real (with a phone number, say).
It drops out of your count until it's unlocked.
So a follower can vanish and come back.
2. Some people did leave (sorry)
People unfollow. Even nice people.
And X never tells you when they do.
Kai and 3 others followed you · 2h
Theo liked your post · 5h
Sandwich, day 12. Still a good sandwich.
Freya followed you · 1d
The usual reasons people go:
- You post a lot more than you used to
- You changed topic (from cooking to crypto, say)
- Your posts got grumpy
- They followed you hoping you'd follow back, and you didn't
- They were always going to unfollow. They only wanted your follow back (they're trying to game the system)
If you grew by following back (here on Twiends too), a few will drift off.
Real people change their minds.
A few a day is normal. Every account leaks a little.
3. Some are only hidden from your list
Someone missing from your followers list? They may not be gone.
X hides followers it thinks are spam from your list. (More on hidden followers.)
The switch is in your notification settings (odd, I know).
Go to Notifications, tap the gear, and turn off the quality filter.
Now you see them all. (They're probably still spam.)
And a follower who deactivates disappears too.
If they come back within 30 days, they're your follower again.
4. You bought followers once (didn't you?)
No judgement. OK, a little judgement.
Bought followers are fake or hijacked accounts. X removes the ones it catches.
That's your drop. And your count can keep sliding for weeks.
Here's the truth about buying Twitter followers.
How do I tell which one it is?
Down far more than usual, all at once? Most likely X tidying up.
A few a day, every day? Probably people leaving. Look at what you've posted lately.
Falling ever since you paid someone? You know what it is.
Can I see who unfollowed me?
Not on X. X doesn't show you who left.
Unfollow tracker apps save a copy of your followers list and compare it later.
So they only spot people who leave after you start using one.
Some ask for your password. Never give it. To anyone. (Including us.)
What do I do about it?
For the robots: nothing. You're better off without them.
Don't deactivate your account and come back to fix the count.
For the people: post what they followed you for. And ask things they'll want to answer.
Lost 30 followers overnight. Bots, or my jokes? Be honest.
Need new followers to fill the gap? Here's how to get more followers on X.
(Or get free followers on X from real people, here on Twiends.)
Your count will wobble. Everyone's does. 🎢