New users may not be aware but established twitter users who follow large numbers of tweeters usually hit a wall when they attempt to add follow number 2001.
So, how do you get past the twitter follower limit of 2,000? Well the only way to do it is to grow your own follower list.
You don’t however have to have 2,000 followers; the magic number is in fact 1,819. Twitter lets you follow the number of followers that you have plus 10%. When you hit the figure of 1819 you are allowed to follow that number plus a further 182. Your follower limit is now 2001 and you have broken through the barrier, just.
For every ten new followers you gain you can follow eleven new tweeters, and so on. Using that formula Ashton Kutcher would be allowed to follow over 5 million users, slightly more than the 320 currently on his radar. So now you know.
PR and the Social Web 
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This post was mentioned on Twitter by robbrown: How to break through the twitter 2000 following limit http://is.gd/9sgZm…
Why you would want to follow 2000 is beyond me. Imagine your timeline, all the good stuff would pass by too quickly. For some accounts it is good though, i.e. @decappeal, as they want to engage as many people as possible. The same be said for political parties.
Sadly I’m nowhere near that limit, yet I can’t follow anyone else…
That doesn’t make sense? I have 1,092 followers and followed 2003 before I hit the barrier?
Anon – you can follow 2001 accounts from day one. Follow/follower fluctuations on Twitter occur. If Twitterers follow you beyond the 1819, then some unfollow, your account can increase, and will stay there, but you won’t be able to follow more right away after that.
Hi, i have now 1827 followers and i can’t seem to get past the 2001 friends mark!? Is there a particular reason…..Twitter account is @golfyah
There’s sometimes a time lag but it shouldn’t be more that 24 hours maximum for you to get past the 2000 limit now you have more than 1,819 followers.
Thank you for this information I’ve just picked up my 1824th follower.
It is best to not fret about numbers.
Slowly building up your followers it the way; rather than following vast numbers to start with.
This is DJ Paulie @djpaulie from Internet Station http://djpaulie.com I am brand new to Twitter believe it or not and I love it. I am always looking for new music to play to my many fans on the website and I love talking to people to get views on what they find interesting. Twitter allows me to learn from people all over the world. I too am approaching my limit and hope the ratio is true because I want to continue to keep the thousands of listeners I have on the website. Many don’t use Twitter like I did but hope they will all try it and I will have no problem.
Thanks for the help.
DJ Paulie
Thank you so much. Follow me and i will follow back – http://twitter.com/kashishkumawat
nice info, thanks
[…] https://prandtheweb.com/2010/03/01/breaking-the-twitter-2000-follower-limit/ […]
[…] 2,001 people and you have just broken the 2,000 limit– hurray! This (as Rob Brown mentions on this post) means for every 10 people that follow you, you can follow 11.Personally, I think this is […]
For those followers you can’t follow, perhaps you might create a personal waiting list on your own Twitter account. You can make up to 20 Lists on your account. I created a waiting list on my account, and added people when things changed. In the meantime, I go to the list, click onto a listed person, and read some of the tweets.
This is an excellent idea!
when could i start following other people again?
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Are there any exceptions to Twitters 10% formula?
It’s a rule rather than a formula so no not really.
I believes it depends on the age of the twitter account
Not as far as I’m aware. I think you will find that the rules outlined hold good irrespective of the age of the account.
Hi, I follow 1826 people, but have 2611 followers, but I am on follow limit. Why is that?
Interesting post. I did always wonder what, if any, threshold there was for following vs followers.
For business reasons you may want to follow a lot of people – also, people who enter large numbers of competitions have thousands upon thousands of companies, brands, blogs and so on to follow…and 2k is nowhere near enough for that. I can follow 2200 at the moment, but haven’t worked out how many more before I hit the limit again. A good thing that FB raised their 5k limit – I don’t see the point in a twitter limit at all, it should just be lifted.
Hi,my twitter followers will reach 3000 this time (2,999) but when somebody follows and I’ll follow them back,my followers will suddenly turn to 2,101 from 2,999. And I am following 1,979 people. Am I in the limit? Why is this happening to me over and over again? :( HELP.