Twitter stops showing you recent tweets by default in a change that most users despise

Twitter has stopped showing you a chronological timeline by default, but you can still manually switch to displaying recent tweets first if you like.

Two iPhone screenshots showing switching between the chronological timeline and the algoithmical feed in the mobile Twitter app
Image credit: Twitter
  • Twitter has enraged users by switching from chronological feed ordering to an algorithmically-served one, designed to show suggested tweets first.
  • There used to be an option to always use the chronological feed by default, but that’s no longer the case in a new update to Twitter’s mobile app.
  • Twitter for iOS and Android no longer lets you access the chronological timeline by default, but you can still switch between the chronological timeline and seeing suggested tweets first if you know how to do it.

How to quickly switch between suggested tweets and recent tweets on Twitter

The micro-blogging service quietly announced the change in a post on Twitter, saying the app no longer takes you to the chronological timeline when you launch it. The company has acknowledged that customers using the mobile app are no longer permitted to pin the “Latest” feed first by default. At the same time, Twitter is assuring customers that they still have the option to switch between the chronological feed and suggested tweets. Read: How to pin a list on Twitter

Now the “Home” and “Latest” timelines function as follows:

  • Home: This timeline features algorithmically served tweets
  • Latest: This is your classic reverse-chronological timeline

Switching between “Home” and “Latest” by way of swiping is now available for everyone on iOS. The same feature is coming soon to Twitter for Android and the web version of the service at twitter.com. You can pin both the “Home” and “Latest” tabs to the top of the app by hitting the sparkle icon in the top-right corner.

Why this Twitter change is a major step back

The Verge explains why this change is a step back:

To my great disappointment, however, I’ve found that after testing the feature, now I can’t make the chronological feed the default. Instead, I can only have “Home” as my default or set up the two “Home” and “Latest” tabs and swap between them as needed.

[…]

This feels like a big step back to me. Now, on iOS, any time I want to scroll through a reverse-ordered feed like I always did before, I’ll have to check first to see if I’m looking at the right feed.

Dislike the change? Well, at least you can set “Latest” as your default in Twitter’s web interface on desktop and mobile—that is, until this update reaches twitter.com.

It’s not all bad. When jumping between Twitter and other apps on my phone, if “Latest” was the column I was looking at, it will be the focus when I return to Twitter. But when I force close and re-open the app when looking at the “Latest” column, the “Home” feed is what Twitter shows first.

According to Twitter spokesperson Shaokyi Amdo, the “Home” feed in the mobile app will be pinned first by default “for now,” indicating Twitter could change its mind if faced with strong negative feedback. Read: Tips for using Twitter search