> **For coding agents and LLMs:** This is one page from the Social Fetch docs (markdown export). For curated orientation and workflow guidance, start with [`/llms.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.txt); for agent onboarding and crawl rules, use [`/agents.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/agents.txt); for the full endpoint list with links to pages like this one, use [`/llms-endpoints.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms-endpoints.txt); for one platform's parameters and curls, use [`/llms-{platform}.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms-tiktok.txt); use [`/llms.json`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.json) when you need structured JSON for tool registration.

## This page

- **On-site (HTML):** <https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/tools/follower-tracker>
- **Markdown (.mdx) URL:** <https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/tools/follower-tracker.mdx>

## API base URL and authentication

- **API origin (from OpenAPI `servers`):** `https://api.socialfetch.dev`
- **Authentication:** send `x-api-key: sfk_...` on `/v1/**` and `/v2/**` routes unless the operation is explicitly anonymous (check OpenAPI `security`, the [API reference hub](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/api.mdx), [`/llms.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.txt), or [`/llms.json`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.json) for each route).
- **OpenAPI JSON:** <https://www.socialfetch.dev/openapi.json>

## Recommended docs entrypoints (this site)

- [Documentation overview](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs.mdx) — top-level orientation (markdown).
- [Quickstart](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/quickstart.mdx) — authenticate with `x-api-key`, validate auth with `whoami`, and understand the JSON envelope.
- [SDK](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/sdk.mdx) — official TypeScript SDK guide, including `SocialFetchClient`, `Result`, and `unwrap()`.
- [Capability matrix](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/capability-matrix.mdx) — every operation with identifiers, pagination, outcomes, media download, credits, and its SDK method. Generated from OpenAPI, so use it for route selection instead of scanning individual pages.
- [Recipes](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/recipes.mdx) — copyable workflows (brand monitoring, transcripts, Ad Library, creator scoring, Reddit research) with credit callouts and SDK examples.
- [Integrations](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/integrations.mdx) — MCP for AI clients, n8n verified node, Apify Store Actors, Make custom app, SDK, and REST API connection paths.
- [MCP product page](https://www.socialfetch.dev/mcp) — hosted MCP overview, OAuth, Skills install.
- [MCP integration](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/integrations/mcp.mdx) — hosted `/mcp` server, OAuth, Cursor/VS Code/Claude install snippets, 264 endpoint tools, plus docs_search/docs_read for implementation help.
- [n8n integration](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/integrations/n8n.mdx) — install `n8n-nodes-socialfetch`, credentials, and workflow examples.
- [Apify integration](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/integrations/apify.mdx) — Store Actors under @social-fetch, PPE billing, dataset export, and quick start.
- [Make integration](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/integrations/make.mdx) — custom app modules for Make scenarios, API key credentials, and module catalog.
- [`/llms-endpoints.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms-endpoints.txt) — every documented operation with a direct link to that route's agent-readable markdown page (prefer this over parsing OpenAPI).
- [`/llms-{platform}.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms-tiktok.txt) — per-platform endpoint files generated from OpenAPI (parameters, credits, curls).
- [`/agents.txt`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/agents.txt) — agent crawl/onboarding file with capabilities, auth rules, and allowlist.
- [`/llms.json`](https://www.socialfetch.dev/llms.json) — structured machine-readable operation inventory with parameter names, pagination, outcomes, credits, and SDK mapping.
- [API reference hub](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/api.mdx) — human-friendly index of operations with links into generated pages.
- [Errors](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/errors.mdx) — shared error envelope and HTTP status guidance.
- [Credits](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/credits.mdx) — metering, `402`, and planning batch jobs.
- Outcome semantics such as `found`, `not_found`, and `private` are documented in [Errors](https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/errors.mdx) and on operation pages when present in the OpenAPI contract.

## Markdown docs convention

- Every docs page has a markdown twin: append **`.mdx`** to the docs pathname (for example `/docs/quickstart` → `/docs/quickstart.mdx`).
- Agents that send `Accept: text/markdown` on `/docs/**` HTML URLs may receive markdown directly (same URL, `Vary: Accept`).
- Published blog posts use the same convention: `/blog/{slug}` → `/blog/{slug}.mdx`, or `Accept: text/markdown` on the HTML URL (`Vary: Accept`).

---
# X Follower Tracker (https://www.socialfetch.dev/docs/tools/follower-tracker)

{/* Credit figures follow estimateCost in packages/follower-tracker/src/model.ts. Update them here if prices or the page size change. */}

The **X Follower Tracker** watches a public X (Twitter) account for you. It records the account's whole audience once, then checks it on a schedule and shows what changed: who followed, who left and who came back, with the follower count charted over time.

It works on any public account, yours or someone else's, so you can follow a competitor's growth as easily as your own. It runs inside the [Social Fetch app](https://app.socialfetch.dev/tools/follower-tracker) on your credits. There's no code to write and nothing to connect: you don't log in to X or give the tracker access to anything.

## What you'll need

* A **Social Fetch account**. [Sign up free](https://app.socialfetch.dev); new accounts get free credits to try things out.
* **Credits**, the units Social Fetch charges in. The tracker spends them on each lookup it makes. See [Pricing](/pricing) for what credits cost, and [Credits](/docs/credits) for how they work.
* The **handle** or profile link of a **public** X account, such as `@biomejs` or `x.com/biomejs`. Protected (private) accounts can't be tracked.
* If you share a workspace with your team, a role that can spend credits. Owners, admins and members can; billing-only users can't open the tracker. See [Teams and workspaces](/docs/teams).

## How it works

1. **You look up the account.** The tracker shows its profile and what tracking it will cost.
2. **The first check records the audience.** It collects every follower as a starting point, called the baseline. Nobody in it counts as new, because the tracker can't know when they followed.
3. **Later checks compare.** Daily by default, or every six hours or weekly. Each check lists new followers, people who left and people who came back.

When someone is missing from a check, the tracker looks up that one relationship separately to confirm they really stopped following before it counts them as gone. Suspended or hidden accounts stay unconfirmed instead of being counted as lost, so the numbers you see are real departures.

The tracker can only show changes from the first check onwards. Nothing can tell you who unfollowed an account before something was watching it.

## What it costs

The tracker uses your credits at the normal price of each lookup. A regular check costs 1 credit for the profile plus 1 credit for every 500 or so followers. The first check costs more, because it also fills in the followers' names, bios and pictures.

For example, with the default settings, an account with 10,000 followers costs:

* up to about 130 credits for the first check;
* about 22 credits for each check after that, or about 665 credits a month checked daily;
* a few more credits as people leave (1 credit to confirm each departure) and as new followers' details are filled in.

Tracking your own account and a competitor of the same size costs about twice that. The set-up screen shows the estimate for the account you choose before anything runs, and each check stops at limits you set. [Costs and limits](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/costs-and-limits) explains it all, including how to cap a month's spending.

## Words you'll see

| Word                              | What it means                                                                                     |
| --------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **Check**                         | One visit to the account: the tracker collects its followers and compares them with last time.    |
| **First check** (or **baseline**) | The first full collection of the audience. It's the starting point for every comparison after it. |
| **Follower list**                 | Everyone who follows the account.                                                                 |
| **Following list**                | Everyone the account follows. Collecting it lets you see mutual follows.                          |
| **Profile details**               | A follower's name, bio, picture, location and follower count.                                     |
| **Watchlist**                     | People you've starred, so you can keep an eye on them.                                            |
| **Segment**                       | A saved set of filters, such as *verified followers*, that you can come back to.                  |

## Guides

- [Track your first account](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/track-your-first-account) — From the Tools menu to a collected audience, step by step.

- [Read your results](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/read-your-results) — Growth, highlights, new followers and confirmed departures.

- [Explore the audience](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/explore-the-audience) — Search, filters, profiles, a watchlist, segments and mutuals.

- [Costs and limits](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/costs-and-limits) — What uses credits, the limits on each check and a monthly cap.

- [Alerts and exports](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/alerts-and-exports) — Email digests, watchlist alerts and CSV downloads.

- [Use cases](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/use-cases) — Competitor research, growing your account, partnerships and more.

## Common questions

### Do I need to connect my X account?

No. The tracker reads public data, so you only need the handle. It can't post, follow or see anything private.

### Can I see who unfollowed before I started tracking?

No. The first check records the audience as it is. Every check after it compares against that, so you see changes from then on.

### Can I track a competitor?

Yes. Any public account works the same way. See [Watch a competitor's audience](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/use-cases#watch-a-competitors-audience).

### Will the account or its followers know I'm tracking them?

No. The tracker only reads public information and doesn't interact with X as you. Nobody is notified, and your own X account isn't involved.

### What does the tracker store, and for how long?

It stores the tracked account's follower and following lists, the public profile details of the people in them, and recent posts if Post context is on. It keeps them while the account is tracked or paused, and deletes them 30 days after you remove it. Your notes and tags stay in your workspace and are never exported. Use the data in line with our [Terms of Service](/terms) and [Privacy Policy](/privacy), and the privacy laws that apply to you, especially if you contact people you found through it.

### Can my team see the same accounts?

Tracked accounts belong to your workspace. Owners and admins see every tracked account; members see the accounts they added. Private notes and tags are visible to anyone who can open the account, and are never included in exports.

### Which platforms does it track?

X only. To watch other platforms for new posts, use [Monitors](/docs/monitors).

- [Troubleshooting](/docs/tools/follower-tracker/troubleshooting) — Every message the tracker shows, and what to do about it.