How to Make a Card for Twitter

Want to make your links on X (formerly Twitter) stand out and get more clicks? You’ve come to the right place. This guide walks you through exactly how to create and use Twitter Cards, turning your plain URLs into rich, engaging media previews that demand attention. We’ll show you what they are, the different types available, and how to set them up step-by-step, even if you’re not comfortable with code.

What is a Twitter Card, Anyway?

A Twitter Card is a media-rich preview that appears when someone shares a link from your website on X. Instead of a plain, uninspiring blue link, you get a beautiful "card" complete with a title, a brief description, and a clickable image or video. It’s what separates professional, eye-catching posts from ones that get scrolled past.

Think about it. When you see a bare link, you have no real reason to click it. You have to trust that it’s worth your time. But when you see a card with a bold headline and a compelling image, you instantly get the context. That context is what boosts trust, adds a layer of professionalism, and significantly increases your click-through rate (CTR).

The "magic" behind these cards isn't complicated. It’s a few lines of simple code - called meta tags - that you add to the <,head>, section of your website's HTML. This code acts as a set of instructions, telling X precisely which image, headline, and text to display when your link is shared. Getting this right is one of the easiest ways to improve your social media game.

The Four Main Types of Twitter Cards

X offers four distinct types of cards, each designed for a different kind of content. While you might not use all of them, understanding your options is helpful. For most marketers and creators, one type stands out far above the rest.

1. The Summary Card

This is the workhorse of Twitter Cards. It’s the default option, featuring a title, description, your site’s name, and a small, square thumbnail image on the left. It’s clean, simple, and provides all the necessary information without taking up too much feed space.

• Best For: News articles, blog posts, and e-commerce product pages where the text is the primary focus. It's a great all-rounder when you're not trying to lead with a big visual splash.

2. The Summary Card with Large Image

This is the fan favorite for a reason. Functionally, it's the same as the regular Summary Card but with one major difference: the image is huge. It’s presented front and center above the title and description, creating a billboard-like effect in the feed. This is the card you see powerhouse brands and creators using most often because visuals drive engagement.

• Best For: Visually-driven content like photo galleries, tutorials, recipes, landing pages, portfolio pieces, or any blog post with a strong hero image. If you have a good visual, this card is nearly always the best choice.

3. The App Card

If you have a mobile app, this card is your best friend. It’s designed specifically to drive downloads by displaying your app's name, icon, price, and user ratings. Crucially, it includes a direct call-to-action button that takes users straight to the App Store or Google Play Store to install your app.

• Best For: App developers, software companies, and marketers running campaigns focused solely on increasing mobile app installations.

4. The Player Card

The Player Card allows you to embed playable audio or video directly within a tweet. Instead of linking out to another platform, users can watch your video or listen to your podcast episode right from their feed. It's an excellent way to reduce friction and keep your audience on X.

• Best For: Sharing video clips, podcast episodes, music, or webinar highlights. It makes your content immediately accessible and immersive.

Our recommendation? For over 90% of use cases, the Summary Card with Large Image is the way to go. It offers the best balance of information and visual impact, making it your most powerful tool for capturing attention.

How to Make Your First Twitter Card: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ready to set one up? The good news is you are only adding information to your own website - not building anything directly on X. You're adding the "recipe" for the card into your site’s HTML, page by page. For this tutorial, we’ll use the Summary Card with Large Image as our example.

Step 1: Adding the Basic Twitter Card Meta Tags

You need to add a few special <,meta>, tags inside the <,head>, section of your webpage's HTML. These tags tell X what to show. Here's a template you can copy and adjust:

<,!-- Twitter Card Meta Tags -->,
<,meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image">,
<,meta name="twitter:site" content="@YourSiteHandle">,
<,meta name="twitter:creator" content="@YourPersonalHandle">,
<,meta name="twitter:title" content="The Awesome Title of Your Webpage">,
<,meta name="twitter:description" content="A compelling summary of your content, under 200 characters, goes here.">,
<,meta name="twitter:image" content="https://www.yourdomain.com/images/your-fantastic-image.png">,


Let’s Break Down Each Tag:

• twitter:card: This is where you specify the card type. We're using summary_large_image.
• twitter:site: The X handle for your website or brand (e.g., @_username_). This is optional but highly recommended for branding.
• twitter:creator: The X handle of the content's author (e.g., @_authorname_). Also optional, but great for giving credit to individual creators.
• twitter:title: The headline of your card. Keep it under 70 characters to avoid it getting cut off.
• twitter:description: The snackable snippet of text that appears below the title. Aim for around 150-200 characters to keep it concise.
• twitter:image: This is the absolute URL to the image you want to feature. Make sure it’s a direct link to the image file, not a page that contains the image.

Quick Image Guidelines for Your Card:

• Aspect Ratio: For a large image card, a 2:1 aspect ratio looks best (e.g., 1200x600 pixels).
• Dimensions: Minimum of 300x157 pixels, maximum of 4096x4096 pixels.
• File Size: Keep it under 5MB.
• File Formats: JPG, PNG, WEBP, and GIF are all fine.

Don't Want to Touch Code? Use Your CMS and SEO Tools

If editing HTML sounds intimidating, don’t worry. Most modern website platforms and plugins handle all of this for you in a user-friendly interface. There’s almost no reason to do it manually unless you’re running a custom-coded site.

For WordPress Users (Yoast, Rank Math, etc.)

If your site runs on WordPress, popular SEO plugins like Yoast SEO or Rank Math make this a breeze. When you’re editing a post or page, just scroll down to the plugin’s settings box. You’ll find a "Social" or "Sharing" tab.

In that section, you can:

• Upload a dedicated image specifically for Twitter (and other social platforms).
• Write a custom social media title.
• Craft a unique social media description.

The plugin will automatically generate and insert the correct meta tags into your page’s code for you. Easy peasy.

For Shopify, Squarespace, or Wix Users

These platforms are built with simplicity in mind. They automatically pull information to generate cards for you. Here’s what they typically use:

• Image: The "Featured Image," "Thumbnail Image," or "Social Sharing Image" you set for your blog post or product.
• Title: The page or product title.
• Description: The product description or post excerpt.

Just make sure you fill out those fields when creating content, and the platform will handle the rest.

Testing and Troubleshooting: Make Sure It Works

Once you’ve put your tags in place, how do you know if they're working? X caches (saves) card information for links, so if you update an image, the old one might still appear. To fix this and preview your card, you need X’s official tool.

1. Go to the Card Validator.
2. Paste the URL of your webpage into the box.
3. Click "Preview Card."

The validator will show you what your card will look like and point out any errors (like a broken image link or oversized photo). More importantly, this process forces X to clear its cache and fetch the latest version of your card, so your updated info will appear correctly from now on.

Best Practices for Unstoppable Twitter Cards

Knowing how to make a card is one thing. Knowing how to make a card that people actually click on is another. Follow these tips to get the best results:

• Write Must-Click Headlines: Your title is your first impression. Ask a question, create intrigue, or promise a clear benefit. Give people a reason to stop scrolling.
• Craft a Compelling Description: Think of the description as your sub-headline. It should support the title and add context. Use it to tease the content and include a subtle call to action if it fits naturally.
• Design Attention-Grabbing Images: Your image is the star player. Use vibrant colors, high-quality photography, and consider overlaying text to make your title even more prominent. Match the image to your branding so it’s instantly recognizable.
• Consistency is Key: Make creating a great social image part of your content creation workflow. Treat it just like choosing a title or writing the first paragraph. When every link you share looks fantastic, your brand looks polished and professional.

Final Thoughts

Creating Twitter Cards is a simple way to make your shared links far more impactful. By adding a few meta tags to your site - or using an SEO plugin - you’re turning a plain link into an engaging preview that grabs attention, provides context, and encourages clicks.

While setting up your cards happens on your website, managing how they're shared on social is the other half of the process. At Postbase, we built a tool from the ground up to make this whole process seamless. Our visual calendar lets you plan out your entire content strategy so you know exactly which cards will be showing up and when. Our goal is to take the chaos out of social, letting you focus on what really matters: creating great content to share.