Feed & Attention
Links are dead on X for free accounts. Do this instead
Buffer found median engagement on link posts from non-Premium X accounts stuck at zero since March 2025. Why, and the workaround that costs nothing.
The Surfolks editorial team writes and reviews every guide, comparison and tool page on this site, and cites the primary source behind each claim.
If you posted a link on X from a free account and nothing happened, it is probably not your copy. Buffer's analysis found median engagement on link posts from non-Premium accounts has been stuck at zero since March 2025, while Premium accounts managed about 0.28%. The link is the problem, and there is a workaround that costs nothing.
The short answer
Put the link in a reply to your own post rather than in the main post. You keep the text post's distribution, and the people who want the link can still get it. This is not a growth hack; it is working around a real penalty.
The data
| Format | Median engagement rate on X |
|---|---|
| Text-only | 3.56% |
| Images | 3.40% |
| Video | 2.96% |
| Link posts | 2.25% |
Those are Buffer's 2026 format numbers across 45M+ posts. They already show links trailing every other format. For free accounts the separate link study across 18.8 million posts is blunter still: median engagement at zero, while Premium link posts reached about 0.28%.
Two effects, not one
Links underperform for everyone, and then there is a second, larger gap between free and Premium accounts. Buffer measured roughly 10x the median reach for paying accounts overall, so the two penalties stack.
Why this matters more than it looks
Almost every content strategy ends in a link. A guide, a tool, a signup page. If the platform quietly costs you the distribution of the post that carries it, the last step of the funnel is the one being penalised — and most teams never notice because they measure the post, not the click.
The workaround, and its limits
- Post the text, then reply to your own post with the link. The main post gets ranked as a text post.
- Give the reason to click in the text, not in the card. A bare link in a reply still needs a reason to be opened.
- Check the preview before you rely on it — a missing card image makes a weak click even weaker.
- If you publish links constantly and it is core to your work, Premium is the honest answer. Buffer's data says it amplifies posts people already want to engage with; it does not rescue a dull one.
The lesson underneath
Platforms change what formats cost, silently, and your distribution strategy inherits the change. The only defence is to own the asset the post points at — in our case, a collected archive of the people you chose, which does not depend on a ranking system deciding to show anyone anything. For the ranking mechanics behind this, see X's ranking weights.
Common questions
Why do my tweets with links get no engagement?
Link posts underperform every other format on X, and for non-Premium accounts Buffer found median engagement on them stuck at zero since March 2025. Post the link as a reply to your own post instead.
Should I put links in the main post or a reply on X?
A reply, for free accounts. The main post is then ranked as a text post, which Buffer's 2026 data shows performs best (3.56% vs 2.25% for link posts).
Does X Premium fix link reach?
Partly. Premium link posts reached about 0.28% median engagement against zero for free accounts, and paying accounts saw roughly 10x the median reach overall. It amplifies posts people already engage with.
What content format performs best on X?
Text-only, at 3.56% median engagement — about 20% ahead of video. X remains a text-first platform, which is unusual among the major networks.
Own the thing the link points at
Surfolks builds a collected archive of the people you choose on LinkedIn and X, so what you read does not depend on a ranker.
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