X does not have a button that exports your followers as a spreadsheet. The nearest thing is your data archive, which does include your followers, but lists them by numeric account ID and profile link rather than by username. To get a CSV of names and handles you can actually use, you need either a follower tool with an export option or an export service that builds the file for you. Here is how each route works and when to use it.

Why you might want the list

People export their followers for a handful of reasons, and the reason changes which method makes sense.

To message them. The most common one. A file of followers can be uploaded to a mass DM tool, so an announcement reaches the people who already chose to follow you.

To keep a record. Accounts get locked, hacked or suspended. A dated copy of your follower list is a sensible backup for anyone whose business runs partly on X.

To analyse them. Who your followers are, what they do, which ones are active. A spreadsheet is easier to sort and filter than a scrolling list.

To move somewhere else. If you are building an email list or a community elsewhere, knowing who follows you on X is the starting point.

Option 1: X's own data archive

Every X account can request an archive of its data. It is free, it comes directly from X, and it includes your followers.

To request it:

Go to Settings and privacy, then Your account.
Choose Download an archive of your data.
Confirm your identity when X asks you to.
Wait for X to tell you the archive is ready, then download it.

The archive arrives as a zip file containing many data files. The one you want is called follower.js, and there is a matching following.js for the accounts you follow.

What you actually get: for each follower, a numeric account ID and a link to their profile. You do not get their username, display name, bio or follower count. Turning the IDs into names means opening each profile link, or running them through something that can look accounts up for you.

Good for: a free, official backup. Not good for: a list you can use straight away.

Option 2: an export service

An export service takes your username, builds the list for you and sends you a file. It saves you from dealing with account IDs at all.

Tweeksocial offers this on the download Twitter followers page. You give your name, email address and X username, and the export is emailed to you within 24 hours, as a file you can upload straight into Tweeksocial to send DMs.

What you get: a ready-made file of your followers. Good for: anyone who wants a usable list without a spreadsheet project. Worth knowing: like any export, it is a snapshot of your followers on the day it was made.

Option 3: a follower tool with an export option

Many follower tools, the kind that track who follows and unfollows you, can export what they show you. Fedica, for example, lists CSV export among its follower features.

What you get: usually a richer file than the archive, with handles, names and often extra details such as follower counts. Good for: people who already use such a tool and want regular exports. Worth knowing: most require a paid plan, and each tool decides which details it includes.

The three options side by side

Option	Cost	Usernames included?	How quickly	Best for
X data archive	Free	No: account IDs and profile links	When X has prepared it	An official backup
Export service	Varies	Yes	Within 24 hours for Tweeksocial's	A usable list without the work
Follower tool export	Usually part of a paid plan	Yes, plus other details	Straight away, once set up	Regular exports and analysis

What to do with the file

A raw export is rarely ready to use as it is. Ten minutes of tidying makes it far more useful.

Remove the accounts you cannot reach. Deleted, suspended and deactivated accounts sometimes linger in exports. Any you cannot open are not worth keeping.

Split it into groups. Recent followers are warmer than people who followed years ago. Followers in your niche matter more than the rest. A column or two for these makes every later step easier.

Decide what it is for before you use it. A backup can sit in a folder. A list you intend to message deserves more thought: who on it would actually want to hear from you, and about what?

Using the list to send DMs

If the goal is to message your followers, the file becomes the audience for a campaign. In Tweeksocial, you upload the CSV to the Twitter/X mass DM tool, write your message with the person's name in it, and set how many messages go out each day. The campaign then sends one message at a time, spread through your active hours, at up to 300 a day per connected account.

A few things make that go well:

Message people who follow you. Messages to followers go straight into their inbox. Messages to people who do not follow you become requests, and some will not send at all. The guide to why you cannot DM some people on X explains why.
Send something worth receiving. A launch, a genuinely useful resource, a real question. Our Twitter mass DM templates show what that looks like.
Pace it. X's published limit is 500 DMs a day, and there is more to pacing than the limit. The guide to how many DMs you can send per day covers the rest.

Keeping the list fresh

Your followers change every day: new people arrive, some leave, and some accounts disappear altogether. An export is out of date the day after it is made.

For a backup, a fresh export every month or two is plenty. For a list you message, export close to the date of the campaign, so you are not writing to people who have already left. If you want to see those changes as they happen rather than in snapshots, the Twitter unfollower tool tracks who unfollowed you and when.

Looking after the data

A follower list is personal data about real people, so treat it with some care.

Keep it private. Do not share it, sell it or publish it.

Store it safely. A spreadsheet of thousands of handles in a shared folder is easy to forget about and easy to leak.

Use it for the reason you exported it. A list exported to keep in touch with your followers should not end up in someone else's marketing.

Frequently asked questions

Can I download a list of my Twitter followers?

Yes. X's data archive includes your followers, although as account IDs and profile links rather than usernames. For a list with handles, use a follower tool with an export option or an export service.

Does the X data archive include usernames?

No. The follower and following files list each account's numeric ID and a profile link, not its handle, so you would need to look each one up to see who it is.

How long does it take to get an X data archive?

It is not instant. You request it, X prepares it, and X lets you know when it is ready to download.

What format is the X archive in?

A zip file containing many data files. Your followers are in a file called follower.js, and the accounts you follow are in following.js.

How do I send a DM to everyone on my follower list?

Upload the list to a mass DM tool, write a message that uses each person's name, and let it send individually through the day. Messages to people who follow you go straight into their inbox.

How often should I export my followers?

Every month or two for a backup. For a list you plan to message, export close to the date of the campaign, because followers change every day.

The short version

X has no export button. Your data archive is free and official, but lists followers as account IDs. For a usable CSV with handles, use a follower tool with an export option or an export service. Tidy the file before you use it, keep it private, and if you plan to message the people on it, send them something they will be glad to receive.

Get your follower export, then send personalised messages with the Twitter/X mass DM tool, from $27 a month with a 3-day free trial.

How to Export Your Twitter/X Followers to a CSV (and What You Actually Get)