How much data does X (Twitter) use?
X does not say how much data its app uses. Its help centre does explain the controls: Data saver loads images in lower quality and stops videos playing by themselves, and video autoplay can be limited to Wi-Fi on its own. Both live in the Data usage screen of the app, and x.com has a separate autoplay setting that the app does not change.
Estimate your dataText is cheap, the media around it is not
A timeline on X mixes short text posts, images, GIFs, videos and live broadcasts, and X's help centre gives no consumption figure for any of it. The text itself weighs very little. What moves the counter is media, and above all video that starts on its own: X says native videos and GIFs autoplay in timelines, Moments, the Explore tab and across the service.
That is why two people scrolling for the same half hour can use very different amounts. Someone who follows news accounts that post links and short texts will barely notice X on the bill. Someone whose feed is full of clips, sport highlights or long videos can use far more, because each one starts loading as it reaches the screen. The settings below are aimed at exactly that.
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Will it work on my phone?
On iPhone: Settings → General → About, and scroll to EID. If there is an EID, your phone takes eSIMs. Every iPhone from the XS (2018) onwards does.
On Android: Settings → About phone → Status, and look for EID. If there is an EID, your phone takes eSIMs. Most Galaxy S20, Pixel 3 and later do.
It also has to be carrier-unlocked. If you bought it outright or your contract is over, it almost certainly is.
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How it works
- 1Choose and payCard, Apple Pay or Google Pay. No account.
- 2Install it at homeThe QR arrives by email. Scan it on wifi in a minute.
- 3Connect when you landTurn on data roaming for the eSIM and you are online.
Where X puts the data settings
On iPhone, X's help sends you to Settings and privacy, then Accessibility, display, and languages, then Data usage. That one screen holds Data saver, Video autoplay and, further down, the media storage you can clear when the app takes up too much space.
On Android, X's own pages disagree slightly. Its guide to the Android app places Data usage under General, while its help on videos places it under Accessibility, display, and languages. Menus on X move from time to time, so if one route is not there, try the other. On a computer, x.com reaches the same screen from the main menu: More, then Settings and privacy, Accessibility, display, and languages, Data usage.
What Data saver gives up, and how to get it back for one image
X describes Data saver as a way to control what media is downloaded in real time. With it on, images load in lower quality and videos do not autoplay. On an iPhone, when one picture is worth seeing properly, a map someone shared or a photo of a timetable, long-press it or tap the more icon and choose Load high quality. You download the full version of that image only.
The Android guide adds a detail the iPhone one does not: with Data saver on, you still have options for high-quality images, high-quality video and video autoplay. That lets you build a middle setting, for example sharp images but no video that starts by itself, instead of all or nothing. X does not say how much any of these choices saves, so the honest way to judge them is to measure.
Autoplay: the app and x.com are set separately
- iPhone app: On cellular or Wi-Fi, Only on Wi-Fi, or Never.
- Android app: Mobile data & Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi only, or Never.
- x.com in a browser: On cellular or Wi-Fi, or Never.
X states that autoplay can be adjusted independently on x.com and in the app, so setting the phone to Wi-Fi only does nothing for your laptop. That matters when you share your phone's data with a laptop. To the laptop, the hotspot is just another Wi-Fi network, and x.com has no Wi-Fi-only option, so the only way to stop videos starting there is Never. Change it before you connect; our hotspot guide covers the rest of the laptop side.
Posting video from the trip
Data goes up as well as down. X's help on videos says that without Premium you can upload videos of up to 140 seconds and 512 MB, while Premium subscribers can upload much longer videos, up to 16 GB. Those are limits, not typical sizes, but they show what a single post can weigh: one long clip from a concert can use more than a whole day of reading.
On a trip, the simple habit is to post text and photos as you go and leave the videos for the hotel Wi-Fi. If you prefer to post straight away, record shorter clips. Your phone's counter adds uploads to the X line, so a day with a few videos posted will look much heavier than a day of scrolling.
Measure the same scroll twice
Without an official figure, your own phone gives the only reliable one. Reset the mobile data statistics, use X as you normally would for one commute or one coffee, and note the figure on the X line. Then do the same with Data saver on and autoplay set to Wi-Fi only. The gap between the two is what autoplay and full-quality images cost on your own feed. This guide shows where the per-app list is on iPhone and Android.
If you are working out how much data to take, add that figure to the rest of your day in the data calculator, which brings maps, messaging and video together into one estimate.
Login codes when your SIM is not the one in use
X no longer offers two-factor codes by text message unless you subscribe to Premium, and even then it says availability varies by country and carrier. The other methods it lists are an authentication app and a security key, which do not depend on SMS reaching you. That suits a trip on a data-only travel eSIM, which has no number of its own, and covers you if your home line is switched off to avoid roaming charges.
When you enrol in two-factor authentication, X shows a backup code and recommends keeping a screenshot of it in case you lose your phone. Do that before you leave. This guide covers how other apps handle codes abroad.
How much data does X use per hour?
X does not publish a figure. Text uses very little; what drives it is images and above all autoplaying video, so the real number depends on your feed.
What does Data saver do on X?
X says images load in lower quality and videos do not autoplay. On iPhone you can still load one image in high quality by long-pressing it.
How do I stop X videos playing on mobile data?
In Settings and privacy, Accessibility, display, and languages, Data usage, tap Video autoplay and choose Only on Wi-Fi or Never.
Does the app setting also change x.com?
No. X says autoplay is set independently in the app and on x.com, and the website only offers On cellular or Wi-Fi, or Never.
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Estimate your data