How to Mass Unfollow on X (Twitter) in 2026: Every Method Compared

You followed 2,000 people over the last three years. Half of them haven't posted in months. A quarter are bots. And the rest are drowning out the handful of accounts you actually care about.

Cleaning up your X (Twitter) following list manually means clicking "Following," confirming "Unfollow," scrolling, and repeating — hundreds of times. At 5 seconds per unfollow, clearing 500 accounts takes over 40 minutes of repetitive clicking.

There are faster methods. But not all of them are safe. X actively monitors for "follow churn" — aggressive following and unfollowing — and will restrict or suspend accounts that trigger their spam detection.

Here's every method available in 2026, ranked from slowest/safest to fastest/riskiest, with the rate limits and safety guidelines you need to avoid getting flagged.

Method 1: Manual Unfollowing (Slowest, Safest)

The default approach. Go to your profile, click "Following," and unfollow accounts one at a time.

How it works:

1. Navigate to x.com/[your-username]/following
2. Click the "Following" button next to each account
3. Confirm the unfollow
4. Repeat

Pros:

• Zero risk of detection — you're using X exactly as designed
• Full control over every decision
• No third-party tools required

Cons:

• Excruciating at scale. 100 unfollows takes 8-10 minutes of focused clicking.
• No filtering. You have to visually scan each account to decide.
• Easy to accidentally unfollow people you want to keep.

Safe limit: Unlimited, but X may rate-limit the UI if you click too fast. Keep it under 200/hour to avoid temporary blocks.

Best for: Fewer than 50 unfollows.

Method 2: Browser Console Scripts (Free, Risky)

Open DevTools, paste a JavaScript snippet, and let it click "Unfollow" buttons programmatically. Multiple scripts exist on GitHub for this approach.

How it works:

1. Open x.com/[your-username]/following
2. Open browser DevTools (F12 → Console)
3. Paste a script that finds and clicks unfollow buttons
4. The script scrolls the page and clicks at set intervals

Pros:

• Free
• No extension installation required
• You can read the code before running it

Cons:

• Breaks constantly. X changes their CSS class names and DOM structure regularly. A script that works today may fail next week.
• No filtering. Most scripts unfollow everyone — no "not following back" or "inactive" filters.
• No whitelist. You can't protect specific accounts from being unfollowed.
• Detection risk. If the script clicks too fast, X's anti-automation detects the pattern. The timing between clicks is usually uniform (a dead giveaway).
• No undo. If you accidentally unfollow someone important, you have to remember who they were and re-follow manually.

Safe limit: Use random delays of 15-40 seconds between actions. Limit to 100 unfollows per session.

Best for: Developers who can read and modify the script, and who don't mind losing filtering capabilities.

Method 3: Free Chrome Extensions (Moderate Risk)

Several free mass unfollow extensions exist on the Chrome Web Store. They add an interface on top of X's following page.

How it works:

1. Install the extension
2. Navigate to your Following page
3. Use the extension's UI to select accounts and unfollow

Pros:

• Easy to use — no code required
• Some offer basic filtering (not following back, inactive)
• Free

Cons:

• Privacy risk. Free extensions monetize through data collection. A 2026 Incogni study found that 52% of AI Chrome extensions collect user data, and the pattern extends to automation tools. Free tools with broad permissions can read your entire X activity — DMs, tweets, follower lists.
• No guaranteed maintenance. Free tools get abandoned. When X changes their interface, the extension may break with no update coming.
• Limited filtering. Most free tools offer basic "not following back" detection but lack advanced filters like inactivity period, keyword matching, or account age.
• Sleeper extension risk. The DarkSpectre campaign infected 8.8 million browsers through extensions that stayed clean for years before activating malicious code. Free extensions from unknown developers are a prime vector for this attack.

Read our full analysis of AI Chrome extension privacy risks before installing any free automation tool.

Safe limit: 50-100 unfollows per day with built-in delays.

Best for: Users who want a quick cleanup and are comfortable with the privacy trade-offs.

Method 4: Dedicated Local Automation (Fastest, Safest at Scale)

Purpose-built tools like X Unfollow Pro combine speed with safety features designed for large-scale cleanup.

How it works:

1. Install the extension from the Chrome Web Store
2. Navigate to your Following page on X
3. Open the extension sidebar — it detects your session automatically
4. Apply filters (not following back, inactive for X months, keyword filters, account age)
5. Whitelist accounts you want to protect
6. Click "Start Unfollow" — the extension processes the filtered list with human-like timing

Pros:

• Advanced filtering. Filter by reciprocity (not following back), inactivity threshold, bio keywords, account age, and verification status. Don't just mass-unfollow — surgically remove the accounts dragging down your feed.
• Whitelist protection. Mark friends, collaborators, and high-value accounts as protected. They'll never be unfollowed, no matter what filters you apply.
• Human-like timing. Built-in random delays between actions that mimic natural browsing patterns, not the uniform 3-second intervals of a script.
• Local-first architecture. Runs entirely in your browser. Your session cookies, following list, and account data never leave your device. No cloud servers, no third-party databases.
• Runs in background. Start the unfollow process and switch to another tab. It keeps running.

Cons:

• Paid tool (one-time purchase, not subscription)
• Chrome-only

Safe limit: The extension enforces its own safety limits with randomized timing. For large cleanups (500+ unfollows), spread across multiple sessions over 2-3 days.

Best for: Anyone cleaning up more than 100 accounts, or anyone who wants filtering and whitelist features.

X's Rate Limits and Safety Guidelines (2026)

X doesn't publish an official unfollow-per-day limit. But their enforcement behavior is well-documented:

Action	Limit	Notes
Follows per day	400 (unverified) / 1,000 (verified)	Hard limit enforced by X
Unfollows per day	No hard limit	But aggressive unfollowing triggers "follow churn" detection
Safe unfollow range	50-200/day	Community consensus for avoiding flags
Follow churn threshold	Undefined	Following and unfollowing in rapid succession triggers restrictions

What gets you flagged:

• Unfollowing more than 200 accounts in a single hour
• Following and unfollowing the same accounts repeatedly (follow churn)
• Uniform timing between actions (indicates automation)
• Unfollowing at unusual hours combined with high volume

What keeps you safe:

• Random delays between actions (15-45 seconds)
• Spreading large cleanups across multiple days
• Unfollowing only — don't follow new accounts in the same session
• Staying under 200 unfollows per day for unverified accounts

The Recommended Approach

For most users, the optimal strategy combines methods:

1. Start with filters. Use X Unfollow Pro to identify non-followers, inactive accounts, and low-value follows. This usually cuts the list by 40-60%.
2. Whitelist first. Before unfollowing anyone, mark the accounts you want to keep. It's easier to protect 50 accounts than to manually review 500.
3. Process in batches. Run 100-150 unfollows per session, once or twice a day. A cleanup of 500 accounts takes 3-4 days at a safe pace.
4. Audit monthly. Don't let the problem rebuild. Set a monthly reminder to scan your following list for new dead weight.

For a deeper strategy on maintaining your follow/unfollow ratio long-term, see our guide to optimizing your X follow/unfollow strategy.

Also on Instagram?

The same problem exists on Instagram — accounts you followed for a follow-back that never reciprocated, brands you forgot about, inactive accounts cluttering your feed.

Instagram Unfollow Pro uses the same local-first architecture as X Unfollow Pro: advanced filtering, whitelist protection, human-like timing, and zero data leaving your device. If you're cleaning up your X following list, it's worth doing Instagram at the same time.

Key Takeaways

• Manual unfollowing works for small cleanups (under 50) but doesn't scale.
• Browser console scripts are free but break often, offer no filtering, and carry detection risk.
• Free extensions solve the UI problem but create privacy and maintenance risks.
• Dedicated tools like X Unfollow Pro offer the best combination of speed, safety, and filtering for large-scale cleanup.
• Stay under 200 unfollows/day and use random timing to avoid rate limits.
• Always whitelist before you unfollow. It's easier to protect accounts than to remember who you accidentally removed.

Your feed is only as good as who you follow. Clean it up.