The end of an era: Likes on X are anonymous now (2024)

When you post, X will show you metrics such as the like count in your notifications, but you won’t be able to see who tapped the little heart. People can still revisit posts they’ve liked under the “likes” tab on their profiles. And you can still like other people’s content.

This latest adjustment is part of a series of changes Musk and his team have made to the app since he bought the platform in 2022. Most notably, he introduced a paid tier that gives subscribers access to more direct messages and the illustrious blue check mark. If you want a check, you usually have to pay. Last week, X changed its policies to officially allow adult content after years taking a laissez-faire approach to p*rn.

X’s mention of privacy may seem confusing — until you remember past scandals when powerful people have liked something they probably shouldn’t have. For instance, an account linked to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) liked a sexually explicit tweet in 2017. Cruz ended up blaming it on a staffer. It’s one of many public-relations gaffes that may help explain why public figures include the phrase “likes and retweets aren’t endorsem*nts” in their X bios.

The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the change.

Reactions on X were mixed, with some users saying the platform had bigger fish to fry and others celebrating the end of “gotcha” news stories when a public figure likes something offensive. One person lamented the loss of a favorite hobby — checking likes on X accounts, even those of “random folks.” Another noted that it’s a win for partnered people who sneakily like sexual content on the app.

Michael Chau, a 34-year-old from Los Angeles who shares cartoons on X, said he “doesn’t really care” if people can see what he has liked — though being unable to see likes from potential professional contacts might be annoying.

Amelia Elizalde, 30, a comedian who shares jokes on X, said anyone who claims they don’t care who likes their posts is lying, because “being a creep” is a foundational part of using the site.

Both Chau and Elizalde blamed Musk for the changes they don’t like. Chau compared the trajectory of X to “slowly removing parts from a car while you’re trying to drive it.” Elizalde called the app a “sinking ship.”

The Twitter (now X) like has long held a weird little place in our hearts. Getting a like from your crush or a celebrity was big news. Ending an awkward threaded conversation with an easy “like” was even better. Twitter got rid of its “favorite” thumbs-up icon in 2015 in favor of the like, symbolized with a heart. It’s an easy way to tell when something is going viral — part of the game of posting online.

X has trailed other platforms in hiding or deprioritizing the like. Instagram started letting users opt into hiding like counts on their posts in 2021, a change aimed at decreasing social pressure on the app, the company said. On TikTok, users get to decide whether other people can see which videos they’ve liked.

YouTube took a different tack, hiding the “dislike” count on videos in 2021 to, it said, protect smaller creators from harassment campaigns.

The pursuit of likes can take a genuine psychological toll, research has shown. David Yeager, who studies adolescent development at the University of Texas at Austin, co-wrote a paper showing that, especially for vulnerable young people, not getting what they perceive to be “enough” likes can fuel poor self esteem and depression.

“Online or offline, teens aren’t just trying to maximize the number of people they’re connected to; they’re trying to impress certain types of people,” Yeager said.

Anonymizing likes could take some pressure off, he guessed. Or it could keep people wondering and make them more anxious.