Hashtags work a little differently across the main social media platforms.
This is a companion guide to our main post on how hashtags work, with important information specifically on how hashtags work on Twitter. As you'll see, there are some important differences between Twitter and other social platforms.
You can also find links to guides on how to use hashtags on other platforms below.
How to Use Hashtags on Twitter
Searching for Hashtagged Content
Optimal Number of Hashtags to Use
How to Use Hashtags on Twitter
Hashtags can be used anywhere within a Tweet, whether right at the beginning…
At the end…
Or maybe somewhere in the middle by using a hashtag within the normal flow of text.
Finding Trending Hashtags
To find trending hashtags on Twitter, click Explore and then Trending.
However, this only shows trending hashtags based on your geographic location.
GetDayTrends provides a tool to view trending hashtags either worldwide, or in any country around the world.
Some trending hashtags on Twitter recur on a regular basis. For example, there are hashtags that start trending on the relevant day each week:
- #MotivationMonday or #MondayMotivation—used interchangeably
- #TransformationTuesday
- #WednesdayWisdom
Others appear yearly, such as:
- #Valentines
- #Thanksgiving
- #Christmas
Searching for Hashtagged Content
To search for content with specific hashtags, simply use Twitter’s search facility, typing in the hashtag in question.
You can also click on the hashtag from any Tweet that’s using it.
Optimal Number of Hashtags to Use
First off, you should definitely be using hashtags.
That’s because research shows that Tweets with hashtags attract double the engagement rate of those with no hashtags.
Although you can use as many hashtags as you like in a Tweet, Twitter recommends using “no more than 2 hashtags per Tweet as best practice”.
In fact, this is a good guideline to follow—the same research as above shows that:
- By using no more than two, you’ll attract 21% higher engagement than by using three or more.
- If you use more than two hashtags, engagement can drop by as much as 17%.
You should also be aware of Twitter’s guidelines on platform manipulation, which state you should not use “excessive, unrelated hashtags in a single Tweet or across multiple Tweets”.
But in fact a single hashtag is probably optimal—Tweets with only one hashtag are 69% more likely to be retweeted than those with two.
So in general, brevity is the name of the game on Twitter.
Additional Hashtag Tools for Twitter
Hashtagify provides a tool to search Twitter hashtags, and get back data on popularity, trends, influencers using that hashtag, and more.
It’s free for limited use, with paid options available.
Finally…
Of course, the more followers you have on Twitter, the more impact and influence your Tweets will have. See our guide which gives you 10 top ways to grow your Twitter followers.
Remember to consult back with our main post for information on how hashtags work in general:
And then see our separate guides for other social platforms too—as you'll find out, each one has distinct differences that are important to be aware of:
