About different types of Tweets

Longer Tweets

• Definition: A Tweet that extends beyond the typical 280 character limit. Longer Tweets can have up to 4,000 characters and like a normal Tweet can contain text, photos, a GIF, and/or video.
  
• Where it appears for the sender: On the sender's profile page and timeline.
• Where it appears for the recipient: In the timeline of anyone who is following the sender.
• Who can see it: Anyone on Twitter who is following the sender of a longer Tweet will see the Tweet in their timeline.
• Who can send it: Longer Tweets are a feature of Twitter Blue and require a subscription in the US to create. You can learn more about Twitter Blue here.
• Limitations: Currently you cannot save a draft or schedule a longer Tweet on web. If you mention an account in the first 280 characters of your Tweet they will be notified. If you mention an account after the first 280 characters of your Tweet, currently they will not be notified. Additionally, if you adjust the conversation controls so that only those you mention can reply, you must mention those accounts in the first 280 characters.

Status Tweets

• Definition: A simplified Tweet sharing what you’re up to, and a way to add new context to your Tweets and build connections between what you’re doing and other people who also care about what’s happening.
  
• Where it appears for the sender: On the sender's profile page under Tweets and on the timeline.
• Where it appears for the recipient: In the timeline of anyone who is following the sender. Just like with general Tweets, the recipient will be able to see other people’s Status Tweets that the sender replies to, Retweets, Quote Tweets, or likes.
• Selecting a Status Tweet: You’ll be able to see Tweets associated with the Status after selecting it. You can also send a Tweet with the same Status. Please note that we show content based on your sensitive content preferences. You can change your sensitive content preferences by going to your Privacy and safety settings and/or your Search settings. Learn more about how to control whether you see sensitive media in Tweets. You can also enable safe search to filter your search results.

Note: Currently, Status Tweets is only available to people using Twitter in the US and Australia. In those countries, people will be able to post their own as well as see other people’s Status Tweets on iOS for Twitter and Android for Twitter. People using the web to access Twitter will be able to see Status Tweets, but will not be able to compose them. 

• Definition: A Tweet containing another account’s Twitter username, preceded by the "@" symbol. For example: “Hello @TwitterSupport!”
• Where it appears for the sender: On the sender's profile page of public Tweets.
• Where it appears for the recipient: In the recipient's Notifications tabs, which is accessible only by them. Additionally, mentions will appear in the recipient's Home timeline view (not on their profile) if they are following the sender.
• Who else sees it? Anyone on Twitter who is following the sender of a mention will see the Tweet in their Home timeline.
• Places it will never appear: On anyone's profile page, unless they wrote the message.

Note: When you post a Tweet beginning with a username, only people who follow both you and the account you are mentioning will see the Tweet in their Home timeline. If you’d like all of your followers to see the Tweet, the best way is to Retweet or Quote Tweet.

Replies

•  Definition: A reply is when you respond to another person's Tweet.
•  Where it appears for the sender: On the sender's profile page.
•  Where it appears for the recipient: In the recipient's Notifications tab. Like mentions, replies will also appear in the recipient's Home timeline if they are following the sender.
•  Who else sees it? Anyone following the sender and the recipient of a reply will see it in their Home timeline.
•  Places it will never appear: On anyone's profile page, unless they sent the reply.
   

Additional types of Tweets

About Retweets

You'll find Retweets in your timeline, your profile, and other profile pages on Twitter. Learn more about where Retweets (and your Tweets that have been Retweeted by others) appear on Twitter.
 

About Retweets with comment

The Quote Tweet feature allows you to Tweet another person's Tweet with your own comment added.
 

About replies sent from accounts with protected Tweets

By protecting your Tweets (making them private), you're telling us that you don't want anyone to see any of your Tweets unless you've accepted their follow request. If your Tweets are protected and you send a reply or mention, only those you've approved to view your Tweets will ever be able to see them. If you want to send Tweets such as mentions or replies to people who are not following you, unprotect your Tweets to make them public.
 

Where replies between other people appear

If you're not the sender or recipient of a reply, you may still see a reply to someone else in your timeline.

You will see replies in your Home timeline if you are following both the sender and the recipient of the reply, or if we think the reply is relevant to you. Otherwise, you won't see the reply unless you visit the sender's profile page.

If you send a reply to someone, it does not show on their profile page. Only replies that person has sent will show on their profile.

About content you may see from outside your network

Additionally, when we identify a Tweet, an account to follow, or other content that's popular or relevant, we may add it to your timeline. We select each Tweet using a variety of signals, including how popular it is and how people in your network are interacting with it. We make recommendations to make it easier and faster to find content that contributes to the conversation in a meaningful way, such as content that is relevant, credible, and safe. This means you will sometimes see Tweets from accounts you don't follow. We recommend Tweets to you based on who you already follow and Topics you follow, and don’t recommend content that might be abusive or spammy. We share recommendations via push notifications, your Notifications tab, and by adding them to your Home timeline.

What are Promoted Tweets?

Learn about Twitter's Promoted Tweets.