No, you cannot hide your following list on X (formerly Twitter). X does not offer a privacy setting that lets you hide who you follow while keeping your account public. The only way to stop people seeing your following list is to make your account private, which limits your followers to approved people only.
What you're asking
I get this question a lot, so let's deal with it directly. You want to keep your profile public, but you don't want people to see who you follow. On X (formerly Twitter), that specific combination is not possible.
There is no setting buried in your privacy menu that hides your following list on its own. It's an all or nothing situation, which surprises a lot of people when they go looking for it.
Why X works this way
X has always treated your following and followers lists as public information, in the same way your tweets are public by default. The platform is built around visibility and connections, so hiding one part of that while leaving the rest open isn't how the system is designed.
Other platforms let you tweak this kind of thing in more detail. X doesn't. I'm not going to pretend otherwise, because I'd rather tell you plainly than send you on a wild goose chase through settings that don't exist.
The only real option: a private account
If hiding your following list matters enough to you, the one actual route is switching your account to private. When your account is private, only approved followers can see your tweets, your following list, and your followers list.
This is a trade off though. Going private affects everything, not just this one list. Your tweets stop being searchable publicly, people can't retweet your posts, and new followers have to request access and wait for you to approve them.
So before you do this, think about whether that wider change suits what you use X for.
How to make your account private
If you've decided private is the way to go, here's how to do it.
- Open X and go to your profile.
- Tap Settings and privacy.
- Select Privacy and safety.
- Tap Audience and tagging.
- Switch on Protect your posts.
Once that's switched on, your following and followers lists are only visible to people you've approved as followers. Anyone else trying to view your profile will see a locked account with limited information.
What going private changes
It's worth being clear about the knock on effects, because people sometimes flip this switch without thinking it through.
With a private account, new followers must send a request, and you have to manually approve or deny each one. Your existing followers keep their access, so you won't lose people who already follow you when you make the switch.
Your tweets won't show up in public search results anymore, and people outside your approved followers can't quote tweet or retweet your content. If you rely on X for visibility, reach, or growing an audience, this is a real cost to weigh against the privacy benefit.
Other things people try that don't work
I've seen people suggest workarounds like using third party apps, browser extensions, or tweaking specific account settings to selectively hide the following list while staying public. None of these solve the problem, because the underlying setting doesn't exist on X's side.
Third party apps that claim to do this are risky. Handing over your login details to an app promising to unlock a feature X doesn't offer is a good way to get your account compromised. I'd avoid anything like that entirely.
If a tool says it can hide your following list while keeping your account public, that claim doesn't match how X works, so treat it with caution.
Want AI doing the heavy lifting in your marketing?
I build the systems that handle the boring 80 percent, so you get your week back. Done properly, with the human kept in.
A quieter alternative: curb who you follow
If the real worry is that your following list looks odd or reveals something you'd rather not share, there's a simpler fix that doesn't involve changing any settings at all.
Go through who you follow and unfollow accounts you no longer want associated with your profile. This won't hide the list, but it changes what's on it, which for some people solves the actual concern behind the question.
It's a bit of manual work, but it keeps your account public and avoids the bigger trade offs that come with going private.
What I'd suggest
If privacy around your following list really matters, going private is the only way to achieve it on X right now. Just go in with clear eyes about what else changes.
If you mainly want to tidy up appearances rather than lock things down, cleaning up your following list directly might be the better move for you.
Either way, don't waste time searching for a hidden setting or a workaround app. The feature simply isn't there, and it's better to know that now than keep hunting for something that doesn't exist.
If you're adjusting your profile, see the X profile picture size guide.
Frequently asked questions
Can I hide only my following list and keep my account public on X?
No. X does not offer a setting to hide just your following list while keeping your profile public. The only way to limit visibility is to make your whole account private.
Does making my account private hide my following list?
Yes. Once your account is private, only approved followers can see who you follow, who follows you, and your tweets. Everyone else sees a locked profile.
Will going private affect my existing followers?
No. People already following you keep their access when you switch to private. The approval requirement only applies to new follow requests going forward.
Are there apps that can hide my following list without going private?
No reliable ones. Any app claiming to unlock this feature is making a claim that doesn't match how X works, and handing over login details to such apps is risky.
More X and Twitter fixes: the X help guide.
