How to Mention Someone on Twitter

Mentioning someone on Twitter is one of the platform's most fundamental features, but there's a huge difference between just typing an @ and using mentions strategically. A well-placed mention can start a conversation with an industry leader, delight a customer, or bring your content to a whole new audience. This guide walks you through everything, covering not just the how but the essential why and when, so you can use mentions to build your brand and connect with your community effectively.

What Exactly is a Mention on Twitter (X)?

A "mention" (or a "tag") on X is the simple act of including another user's handle, like @username, in your tweet. When you do this, three key things happen:

• It sends a notification: The person or brand you mention gets a notification, making them aware that you’re talking to or about them.
• It creates a link: The @username in your tweet becomes a clickable link that leads directly to their profile, making it easy for your followers to see who you're referencing.
• It connects your tweet to them: The tweet appears in their "Mentions" tab, creating a public record of your interaction.

This is different from a simple reply. While a reply is a direct response to a specific tweet and automatically mentions the author, a standalone mention happens in a brand new tweet. Understanding this distinction is the first step toward using them with intent.

How to Mention Someone (The Step-by-Step Basics)

Whether you're on your phone or desktop, the core process of mentioning someone is straightforward. Here’s how it works in the most common scenarios.

Mentioning in a New Tweet

This is the most common way to mention an account. You want to share something and reference another user within it.

1. Compose a new tweet. Click the "Post" button on desktop or tap the feather icon on mobile to open the composer.
2. Type the "@" symbol. As soon as you type "@," X will start suggesting accounts to you based on people you interact with often.
3. Start typing the username. As you add letters, the dropdown list will refine to show matching accounts. It shows both their display name and unique @handle, so you can be sure you're tagging the right person.
4. Select the correct account. Simply click or tap on the correct username from the list, and it will be inserted into your tweet.

For example, if you wanted to praise a new gadget, your tweet might look like this:

"This new camera from @Sony is absolutely a game-changer for video quality. Blew my expectations away!"

Mentioning Someone in a Reply

When you hit the "Reply" button on a tweet, X automatically includes the original author and anyone else tagged in that tweet. However, you can easily add other people to the conversation.

While drafting your reply, just type "@" and begin typing the username of the person you want to add. This is great for bringing an expert into a discussion or asking a colleague for their input.

For example, in a thread discussing social media analytics, you could reply:

"Great point about tracking engagement over vanity metrics. I'd love to hear @MarketingPro's thoughts on this too, as they just wrote a great article on it."

Mentioning in Your Bio

A lesser known but powerful place to use a mention is in your profile bio. By adding an "@username" in your bio text, it becomes a live, clickable link. This is a perfect way to cross-promote accounts.

• Founders can mention their company (e.g., "Founder of @CoolSaasCompany").
• Companies can mention their CEO or customer support handle (e.g., "For help, contact @CoolSaasSupport").
• Creators can mention their podcast or newsletter account (e.g., "Host of the @CreatorWeekly show").

The Nuances of Mentions: Visibility and Reach

This is where many people get tripped up. Where you place a mention in your tweet dramatically impacts who sees it. The algorithm views a tweet differently if it begins with an "@" symbol versus having the mention somewhere in the middle.

When Your Tweet Starts with @Username

If the very first character of your tweet is an "@," X treats it like a reply, even if it’s not part of a thread. Traditionally, this meant the tweet would only appear in the main timelines of people who follow both you and the person you mentioned. It’s essentially a more public type of public message or a way to initiate a conversation.

While the algorithmic "For You" tab has changed this a bit, the tweet still gets much lower organic visibility. It's best used when your primary goal is to speak directly to that account.

Example (lower visibility): "@AppleMusic The new 'Discovery Station' is my new favorite feature. Incredible recommendations!"

Placing the Mention Anywhere Else

To ensure your tweet is treated like a regular public broadcast that all your followers can see in their timeline, you just need to put any character before the "@" handle. This tells the algorithm that the tweet is commentary about that person, not a direct message to them.

The old method was the ".@" trick, where people would put a period before the username. This still works, but it looks a bit dated and clunky.

A much better, more natural approach is to simply rephrase your sentence so the mention isn’t at the start.

• Dated Method: ".@AppleMusic The new 'Discovery Station' is my favorite feature."
• Better, Modern Method: "Shout out to @AppleMusic, the new 'Discovery Station' is my favorite feature."

By making this small change, your tweet about Apple Music is now broadcast to all of your followers, increasing its reach and potential for engagement.

Strategic Mentions: Best Practices for Brands and Creators

Once you understand the mechanics, you can start using mentions with purpose. Instead of just sending empty tags into the void, here's how to use them to build your brand.

1. Provide Genuine Compliments and Share User Content

Tagging a brand to show how you use and love their product (User-Generated Content or UGC) is one of the most powerful and positive ways to get their attention. Brands are always looking for authentic content from real users to share.

"Spent the morning re-organizing my workspace with products from @IKEA. Feeling so much more productive now!"

2. Give Credit Where It's Due

Basic social media etiquette requires crediting your sources. If you share a photo, an article, a piece of art, or a helpful statistic, always mention the creator's or source's handle. This not only avoids plagiarism but also builds goodwill and strengthens your network. They may even retweet you, exposing your profile to their audience.

"This analysis of subscriber trends is a must-read for any creator. Awesome work by the team at @TheInformation."

3. Connect with Other People in Your Niche

Mentions can be great conversation starters. Share a helpful resource and tag a few other people in your industry who you think would find it valuable. Don't spam them, but a relevant, genuinely helpful tag can initiate valuable relationships.

"Loved this podcast episode on community building. The points about authentic engagement really resonated. What did you think @CommunityBuilder1 and @NetworkingGuru?"

4. Enhance Customer Service Interactions

For individuals and brands alike, mentions are central to customer service on X. When you need help, tagging a company's main account or a dedicated support handle (@BrandHelp) is the quickest way to get a public response.

And for brands, finding unlinked mentions of your company name ("BrandName" vs "@BrandName") and replying with helpful support can turn a frustrated customer into a loyal fan.

What Not to Do: The Art of Avoiding Spam Mentions

Using mentions improperly can get you muted, blocked, or reported for spam. To build a solid reputation, avoid these common mistakes.

Don't Randomly Tag Influencers

Tagging huge accounts like Elon Musk or Taylor Swift in every single one of your tweets in the hopes you'll get a retweet is a waste of time. Your mentions should be relevant. Instead of tagging a celebrity in your daily thoughts, tag them only when the content is directly related to them, like a review of their new album or a comment on their recent project.

Don't Stuff Tweets with Mentions

A tweet that's just a long list of usernames looks desperate and is practically unreadable. Stick to tagging only the one or two most relevant accounts. If you're praising multiple people, it might be better to create a short thread and mention them in separate replies.

Don't Automate Unsolicited Mentions

Never use a third-party tool or bot to automatically mention new followers or people who use a certain hashtag. It’s an impersonal and spammy practice that will hurt your reputation far more than it could ever help.

Final Thoughts

Getting the hang of the @mention is about more than just knowing how to tag an account. It's about connecting with others, giving credit, providing value, and participating in the wider conversation on X. When used with thought and strategy, it's a simple but powerful tool for growing your audience and building genuine community.

As your network expands, keeping track of all these replies and mentions can quickly become chaotic. We designed Postbase to solve that very problem with a unified engagement inbox. It pulls all your comments, DMs, and mentions from X and your other social platforms into one streamlined view. For us, this makes keeping up with the community a manageable task, not an overwhelming one, freeing up time to create more content.