Free tool
Twitter Thread Retention Calculator
Views for each post in a thread, drawn as a curve, with the biggest drop marked.
How it works
What is the Twitter Thread Retention Calculator?
The Twitter Thread Retention Calculator is a free tool that shows how far readers get through an X thread. Enter the views of each post in order, and it charts every post's views as a share of the first, marks the biggest drop between two posts, and reports opening hold, first payoff, middle exposure and end exposure.
How to use the Twitter Thread Retention Calculator
- Open each post of your thread on X and note its view count, from the first post to the last.
- Type the views into Post 1, Post 2 and onward. Press Add post for a longer thread, or Load sample to see a worked example.
- Once every row is filled, read Opening hold, First payoff, Middle exposure and End exposure, each measured against post 1.
- Check the curve and the sentence under the figures, which names the two posts with the biggest drop. Press Copy report to keep the numbers.
What is thread retention on X?
Thread retention is the share of a thread's first-post audience that is still reading further down. X shows views for each post, not a read-through rate, so retention comes from comparing the views on each post with the views on the first.
In the tool's sample thread, post 1 has 48,213 views and post 5 has 10,951, so post 5 reached 22.7% of the people who saw the opening. This calculator calls that share exposure.
What do opening hold, first payoff and end exposure mean?
Opening hold is post 2's views as a share of post 1's: how many people the hook pulled into the thread. First payoff is post 3 against post 1, where most threads make their first real point. Middle exposure is the median of every post between the first and the last, and end exposure is the last post against the first.
The sentence under the figures names the biggest fall between two neighbouring posts. That is the post to rewrite first.
Why do threads lose readers after the first post?
The largest fall is usually between post 1 and post 2, because the first post appears in timelines on its own and many people read it without opening the rest. A steep drop further in tends to point at one post: a slow paragraph, a list that runs long, or a link that sends readers away.
A later post with more views than the one before it is not an error. It happens when a reply or a quote sends people into the thread partway through, and the calculator flags those posts.
Questions
- How to measure thread engagement?
- Measure thread engagement post by post. Note the views, likes, reposts and replies on each post, then compare each one with the first. For read-through, enter the view counts in this calculator, which charts each post's views as a share of post 1's and marks the biggest drop.
- Why did my post stop getting views?
- A post gets most of its views while X is still showing it in timelines, and that fades as newer posts arrive, so the count slows down. A thread post that stops gaining views while the first post keeps going means readers are leaving before they reach it.
- Where do I find the views for each post in a thread?
- Each post on X shows its view count under the text, next to the reply, repost and like counts. Open the thread and read the number under each post in turn, then enter them in order here.
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