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TEXXR

Chronicles

The story behind the story

days · browse · Enter similar · o open

X adds a $16/mo. Premium+ plan with no ads in For You or Following and the “largest reply boost”, and a $3/mo. Basic plan with a “small boost” but no checkmark

X, the platform previously known as Twitter, has introduced a new $16 per month Premium Plus plan …

The Verge Emma Roth

Context & Ripple Effects

The launch implements X’s previously outlined lower-cost and ad-free subscription tiers, turning ads, verification, and reply prominence into separately priced product attributes.

Later coverage shows X continuing to reshape subscription entitlements, from free Premium access for some large accounts to narrower access to X Pro for the highest-paying tier. This makes the initial tier split important as an early step in a more fluid paid-access model.

First-order effects

  • Users can choose between a low-priced plan that offers limited ranking help without a checkmark and a higher-priced plan that removes ads from the main feeds and offers the strongest reply boost.
  • X gains a clearer way to charge separately for two scarce benefits: reduced advertising exposure and greater visibility in reply threads.

Second-order effects

  • Creators, brands, and heavy users seeking attention face a more explicit pay-to-prominence ladder, while non-subscribers and Basic subscribers may find themselves comparatively less visible in replies.
  • Separating the checkmark from the entry tier weakens its role as a simple subscription marker and gives X more flexibility to distribute or withhold verification independently of price.

Third-order effects

  • If X keeps moving features between tiers—as in its later restriction of X Pro to Premium+—subscription status can become an increasingly important determinant of both reach and professional workflow access.
  • The broader structural shift is toward social platforms treating advertising load, distribution, verification, and power-user tools as configurable paid entitlements rather than a single premium bundle.

The trend: Social platforms are evolving from one-size-fits-all subscriptions toward tiered monetization of attention, ad avoidance, and account privileges.

Discussion

  • X X on x
    About X Premium  —  X Premium is our premium subscription service that elevates quality conversations on the platform.
  • @epro.social Emil Protalinski on bluesky
    I have no interest in paying for X.  —  That said, I can see some X users seriously considering Basic over other plans, simply for that “no checkmark” option.  —  No ads would be great, if X's blue checks weren't posting so much spam and toxic content that makes the whole platfor…
  • @premium @premium on x
    introducing Premium+ - no ads in For You or Following - largest boost for your replies (vs other Premium tiers or unverified users) - access to our full suite of creator tools now available on Web ✌️ subscribe here → https://twitter.com/...
  • @premium @premium on x
    we're also launching a new Basic tier for $3/month (when signing up via Web) that gives you access to the most essential Premium features
  • @lindayax Linda Yaccarino on x
    we've added more ways for you to enjoy a premium X experience...
  • @zpostfacto Fletcher Dunn on x
    “largest boost for your replies (vs other Premium tiers or unverified users)” This monetization strategy is known as “pay to win” in videogames
  • @oalexanderdk Oliver Alexander on x
    So $16 a month now for this or $3 a month for a “basic” premium subscription. I guess the whole $8 a month genius business plan didn't work out so well after levelling off at around 1 million subscribers. Now it is time to try to milk the simps some more. [image]
  • @billym2k Shibetoshi Nakamoto on x
    much confuse [image]
  • @david_leavitt @david_leavitt on x
    Why don't you make the creator tools available for free to everyone so that more people can create content for your website? 🤔
  • @liuyuxxd @liuyuxxd on x
    great teamwork! had so much fun working on this - mobile clients on the way - better upgrade/downgrade coming soon - and more to come
  • @tailosivetech @tailosivetech on x
    To be clear $16 a month and there's still ads in replies and videos
  • @harrymccracken Harry McCracken on x
    I still find it odd that the Twixter* feature I most crave, and would pay for, doesn't even seem to be on anyone's radar screen: Being able to share more than 4 photos in a tweet. (* Henceforth, that is what I'm going to call this service.) https://www.theverge.com/...
  • @xdaily @xdaily on x
    NEWS: In the coming weeks, X will be launching the ability to easily upgrade or downgrade your subscription tier. If you're interested in subscribing to a new tier, they recommend waiting till then. [image]
  • @hughrbrechin Hugh Brechin on x
    ‘you too can recover some of the functionality you once took for granted by directly funding a far-right billionaire manchild as he continues to make this site worse’
  • @adamscochran Adam Cochran on x
    Eventually they will launch TwitterUltraPremium+++++ which just lets you finance the purchase of Twitter via Affirm in 42069 payments (because you know Musk would absolutely price it that way...)
  • @minimaxir Max Woolf on x
    “largest boost” so the replies will get EVEN WORSE
  • @x @x on x
    new Premium tiers just dropped
  • @tomwarren Tom Warren on x
    X (Twitter) has a new Premium+ tier that boosts replies even more and no ads on your timeline. More pay to win over here...
  • @wazzcrypto @wazzcrypto on x
    Lmao boosted replies Twitter taking the same monetization strategy of P2W chinese MMOs Just give up man, u ruined it
  • @ptraughber Patrick Traughber on x
    @greg16676935420 This page shows the features behind each tier: https://help.twitter.com/... For now, you'd need to cancel your current subscription to upgrade to Premium+. Soon we'll support upgrading without needing to first cancel your current subscription. You'll briefly lose…
  • @functi0nzer0 Laurence on x
    Twitter is going to cost a hundred dollars per month by next Christmas
  • @ptraughber Patrick Traughber on x
    New Premium tiers are now live. You can subscribe to the new tiers on web, with iOS and Android support coming very soon.
  • r/Twitter r on reddit
    X launches two new subscriptions to boost your replies, Premium Plus and Basic