Short answer
A good muted words list is short, specific and reviewed often. Mute exact spam phrases and slurs rather than broad words, add the variants people actually use, choose timed mutes for temporary floods, and mute from accounts you don't follow when you still want to hear from your community. X adds muted words one at a time under the Mute and block settings.
Key takeaways
- Muted words affect only your own view: Home timeline, notifications or both.
- Durations are 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days or forever; timed mutes suit temporary floods.
- Short, specific phrases beat single common words, which hide too much.
- Test a list against real replies first so you know what it will hide.
Where are muted words on X?
In Settings and privacy, under Privacy and safety, then Mute and block, then Muted words; you add one word or hashtag at a time.
For each entry you choose where it applies (Home timeline, notifications or both), who it applies to in notifications (everyone, or only people you don't follow) and how long it lasts: 24 hours, 7 days, 30 days or forever. The remaining time shows next to each entry.
What should I mute?
Mute phrases that are always unwanted in your context, and leave out words that also appear in normal conversation.
| Mute this | Not this | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "free followers" | "free" | "Free" is in half your legitimate replies |
| "check my bio" | "bio" | People ask about your bio |
| "seed phrase" | "wallet" | Your customers may discuss real wallets |
| "dm for promo" | "dm" | Customers DM support |
| #followback | #follow | Hashtag spam vs. normal use |
| a specific slur | "hate" | Context matters |
How do I handle spelling variants?
Add the variants you actually see, one per entry, after testing which ones your list already misses.
Spammers swap letters for numbers (fr33), add dots (f.r.e.e) or stretch words (freeee). Paste a batch of real replies into the profanity filter tester with the "catch tricks" options on, and it highlights every variant your base word would catch with smarter matching. Each one it finds is a candidate muted word, since X's muting doesn't do that kind of matching for you.
When should I use timed mutes?
Use a timed mute when the unwanted wave is temporary: a meme, a spoiler, a pile-on, an outage.
If a service outage has your mentions full of the same angry phrase, a 24-hour mute on that phrase in notifications lets the team find the replies that need an answer, while the timeline still shows everything. For spoilers during a live event, a 7-day mute on the episode or match hashtag is enough. Keep "forever" for spam phrases and slurs.
Should I mute from everyone or only people I don't follow?
For notifications, mute from people you don't follow if you still want your community's messages to reach you.
Accounts you follow are usually your team, partners and regulars. Muting only non-followed accounts keeps the noise down without silencing people you trust. For slurs and scams, mute from everyone.
A starter list for brand and support accounts
Start with about 20 entries like these, then add what your own replies show you.
free followers
gain followers
check my bio
link in bio
dm for promo
promote your
seed phrase
recovery phrase
connect your wallet
claim your airdrop
account will be suspended
verify your account
#followback
#f4f
#followforfollow
#giveaway
crypto signals
work from home
Test this list in the filter tester against your recent replies before you add it, or build it in the rule builder and use the X muted words export. Revisit it every month. Spam vocabulary moves, and a list nobody reviews slowly hides things it shouldn't.
Common questions
Is there a limit to how many words I can mute on X?
X's help pages don't publish a number. In practice a long list is hard to maintain anyway; most accounts are well served by a few dozen entries reviewed monthly.
Does muting a word also mute its hashtag?
X's current help page doesn't say. To be safe, add both forms, for example "giveaway" and "#giveaway". The rule builder's muted words export writes hashtags with the
Do muted words work on the people who reply to me?
They change what you see in your timeline and notifications. Other people still see those replies under your posts. To act on replies for everyone, use hidden replies or reply controls.