The ranking signals in X's algorithm, and what each one is worth

The ranker doesn't score your post on a single "engagement" number. It predicts the probability of each action a viewer might take, multiplies each by that action's weight, and sums them. Understanding those weights tells you exactly what to optimize for.

The positive signals (earn these)

• Copy-link shares (+20) - someone copies your link and pastes it somewhere else. The heaviest positive weight in the table.
• Replies (+5, or +20 from a mutual follow) - conversation is worth far more than a passive like, and 4× more again between accounts that follow each other back.
• DM shares and quote posts (+5 each) - forwarding in private counts as much as quoting in public.
• New follows (+4) - the post converted a viewer into a follower.
• Reposts (+1) - the post is worth spreading to someone else's audience.
• Continuous read time (+0.004 per second, unbounded) - and only that. The threshold dwell head and the profile-click head both ship at 0.
• Likes (+0.5) - positive, but a small fraction of a reply's value.

The negative signals (avoid these)

• Reports (-234), mutes and blocks (-90), "not interested" (-43.2) - large negative weights that can sink a post fast.
• Spam and low-quality classifiers - patterns that look automated or engagement-baiting.
• Muted keywords - posts matching a viewer's muted words are removed outright, before scoring even starts.
• Hashtag stuffing - three or more reads as spam to the classifier that screens posts before ranking.

One thing that is not on that list: external links. The published ranker carries no link penalty - a link open scores +0.2. What a link costs you is the read time that ends the moment someone clicks away.

Probability times weight is the whole game

A draft that slightly raises the chance of a heavily-weighted action (a reply-back) beats one that chases a lightly-weighted one (a like). This is why "write to start a conversation" consistently outperforms "write to get likes" - the math literally favors it.

How to use this when you write

Before you post, ask: does this invite a reply? Is it worth stopping to read to the end? Would someone repost it to their own audience? If yes, you are pointed at the heavy weights. Scoring a draft against the real signals turns that gut check into a number you can improve.

X Radar drafts every post in your cloned voice and scores it against these exact signals in under a second, before you ever hit post. Sign in with X to try it free.