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Twitter… sorry, X is one of the many social media platforms that has a subscription service. Previously called Twitter Blue, X Premium gives you a collection of added perks and functionality that you don’t get with a free account. Unlike with other platforms, X Premium has three tiers that you can pay for, and they offer different perks, and it can be tough keeping up with all of them.
Well, we’re here to answer any questions that you might have about these three tiers. In this piece, we’re going to go through what each of the payment tiers offers and other useful information that you might be pining for. This article will constantly be updated, so we’ll add to it whenever new information is added.
What is X Premium?
Before Elon Musk took over the platform, it was called Twitter Blue. The point of Twitter Blue was to offer Twitter users a way to test out new and experimental features early. It was like a paid beta program. Some of the features eventually made it down to free users. Along with letting users try out new features, it also offered some exclusive perks.
Now, things are different. X Premium is more of a revenue stream for the company. It’s the first and only place where new features land. New features don’t really make it to free users. So, if you’re on the platform, and you want a more robust experience, X Premium might be the right way to go.
What are the three X Premium tiers?
X Premium is a little different from other platforms because it has three different payment tiers. They’re called Basic, Premium, and Premium+. They cover a pretty wide price range, and there’s a range of what you can do with them. Here’s a rundown of what you can do with them.
Basic plan
Starting off with the cheapest plan, it has the least number of perks, but that doesn’t mean that it’s not feature-packed. This plan costs around the price of Twitter Blue when it first came out. Getting it will set you back $3/month ($32/year) if you sign up using the web version and $4/month ($41.99/year) if you’re on mobile. We explain why the prices are different depending on where you sign up below.
Post and profile features
You can edit your posts. This lets you make changes to your posts for up to one hour after you post them. You’re able to make changes to the text and the content you added to it. When you edit a post, the original post isn’t technically altered. X will just make a copy of the post and post the new version. The app will then create a link in the new post that links back to the original.
Also, you’re able to undo your posts. This gives you a limited amount of time to take back what you’re saying.
Longer posts are a feature that all X users have been barking about for years. Well, the company decided to answer users’ prayers in a big way. If you have this plan, you can make posts as long as 25,000 characters long. To put that into perspective, this post up to this point is about 11% the length of a 25,000-character post.
The Reader mode lets you read long threads without any breaks in between posts.
If you are in the NFT community, you can use NFT profile pictures. You can take your minted NFT and display it in a hexagonal frame.
Videos
If you’ve been pining for longer videos on X, then pine no more. You’re able to post videos up to three hours in length, up to 8GB in size, and at up to 1080p resolution. This feature is only available on the web and iOS for the moment. Android users are once again left in the dust.
Next, you can play videos in the background. This lets you play videos while you navigate through the rest of the interface.
Other features
The remaining features are some smaller perks added in. You can customize your app icon, add bookmarks to folders, change the navigation bar at the bottom, hide your likes, hide your subscriptions, and view a highlights tab on your profile. The highlights tab is a tab that has all of your most popular posts.
When it comes to safety and security, this plan brings encrypted DMs and 2FA through SMS.
Messaging
[Updated Jan 19th, 2024] Having a, X Premium subscription means that you can make voice and video calls to other users. In order to call another user, that user needs to have messaged you in the past. To make a call, just go to the DM conversation with the person you want to call and tap on the Audio call or Video call button. Then, the call will connect.
Premium plan
Now, we’re moving onto a more advanced plan. This is the middle child of the X Premium tiers, and it’s the baseline payment that you could get before X debuted the other two. This plan costs $8/month ($84/year) if you buy it through the web version. If you’re paying on your phone, it will cost you $11/month ($114/year).
Ads and monetization
For starters, you get all of the perks present in the Basic plan. You also don’t get any more advanced versions of the basic plans.
One of the most sought-after features is creator subscriptions. If your posts are so hot that you want people to pay you just to read them, then you can set up creator subscriptions. People will pay a monthly fee to view the posts that you choose to put behind the paywall.
There’s another way that you can earn income from X, and that’s through revenue sharing. X displays ads throughout the platform. This includes showing ads on users’ posts. Well, X splits the revenue it makes from those ads with the creators who made the posts.
Speaking of ads, you’ll see reduced ads at certain points on the platform. You’ll see 50% of the ads while on the For You and Following tabs. While this is the case, you’ll see the usual number of ads in other corners of the platform.
Verification
Firstly, you get the coveted blue checkmark. It will sit beside your username and show people that you’re verified. With your subscription, you can also hide your blue checkmark.
With your subscription, you’ll be able to see verified-only posts. There are some posts on the platform that are only for verified users (those with the blue checkmark), and you’ll be able to see them with your subscription.
If you want to make it impossible for other people to emulate you, then you can use I.D. verification. You’ll use your state-issued I.D. to verify you so that no one else can make an account pretending to be you.
Tools
Your subscription to the Premium plan will give you access to the Media Studio platform. This is a one-stop shop where you can access and manage all of the media that you’ve uploaded to X.
Finally, your subscription will give you access to the X Pro feature. This was previously called Tweet Deck. It allows you to view multiple timelines at once. Along with that, you can add contributors and admins to your account and use advanced search.
Premium+
This is the most advanced of the X Premium tiers, and it offers all of the perks present in the others. Along with that, it has a few more. Premium+ costs $16/month ($168/year) if you sign up through the web and $22/month ($229.99/year) if you sign up through mobile.
Starting off with the ads, this tier will give you even fewer ads compared to Premium. You will see zero ads in the For You and Following tabs. However, you’ll still see ads everywhere else on the platform.
With the highest payment tier, you’ll have a large reply boost. This means that your replies on other posts will be easier to see than other people’s.
Rounding out the list, you’ll have access to Grok. This is the company’s generative AI model that you can use like ChatGPT.
Why do I pay more if I sign up using the app?
You may have noticed that the monthly/yearly prices are higher if you sign up for X Premium using the app. The thing is that, when you sign up using the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store, you’ll use those companies’ respective billing systems. Well, Google and Apple charge developers a 30% fee for every transaction that happens through their billing system.
Some companies, like Amazon, have opted to only offer their services through their own websites, thus eliminating their fee. X, on the other hand, has opted to offer their services through the web and through their mobile apps. However, they’re more expensive so as to offset that 30% fee.
If I sign up through the web, can I still use the perks on the mobile app?
Yes. All of the features will be the same no matter what platform you sign up with. The only difference is which service is going to process your payment.
How to sign up for X Premium
If you’re sold on getting one of the X Premium tiers, then here’s how to sign up for the service.
Signing up through the web
You’re more likely to sign up through the web to save you a few dollars every month. Go to the browser of your choice and open the X website. Look on the left side of your screen at the panel. Near the bottom of the panel, you’ll see the X Premium button.
When you click on it, you’ll see a popup appear asking about what account you have. If this is your personal account where you post on your own behalf, then click on the I am an individual button. If this is your company account, then click on the I am an organization button. Once you choose the type of account you have, click on the Subscribe button.
In the next popup, choose the tier you want. It will automatically show you the Premium+ tier. On the top of the popup, you’ll see a left-facing arrow. Click that to navigate to the other tiers. On the bottom of the screen, you’ll see the option to either pay monthly or yearly. Once you’ve found the one that will suit you, click on the Subscribe & Pay button.
The next screen you see will be the page to type your credit card information. Just add that information and pay.
Signing up through the app
The process of signing up through the app isn’t all that different. Open the app and tap on your profile picture on the top left of the screen. You’ll see the left panel slide out. Right under the Profile button, you’ll see the Premium button. Tap on it, and you’ll see a page show up with the three tiers. Just swipe left or right to see the tier that you want to select.
To choose the one that you want, tap on the price at the bottom of the screen. When you do so, you’ll see a panel pop up with the monthly and yearly options. Be careful at this point because the yearly option is selected by default. If you only want to pay monthly, be sure to choose that option. When you do that, you’ll see your app store’s checkout screen. From there, you’ll pay.