As X aims to further monetize its business model, including through new features like “Boosts,” the platform is increasingly leaning on its paid subscription service.

A recent study conducted by Buffer has revealed a significant insight: users subscribed to X Premium experience far greater visibility than those with free accounts.

Premium Accounts Significantly Favored by the Algorithm

For several months, Buffer has reported that X has significantly altered its algorithm to favor those subscribed to its paid plans. Besides benefits like identity verification, the ability to edit posts up to five times, and posting longer videos, these users also see a direct increase in reach.

According to Buffer’s analysis, which looked at over 18.8 million posts from 71,000 accounts, Premium subscribers average 10 times more impressions per post than non-paying users.

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This finding further confirms what X’s official documentation had already suggested: being verified, and thus subscribed, now acts as a positive signal for visibility.

On the other hand, posts from free accounts seem to be increasingly pushed to the bottom of the news feed, or even go unseen when they include links.

Varying Reach Across Three Subscription Levels

The Buffer study also highlights a variance in reach among the three Premium tiers:

  • Basic accounts ($3/month) barely surpass 100 impressions per post.

  • Premium subscribers ($8/month) achieve around 600 impressions.

  • Premium+ users ($40/month) peak at over 1,500 impressions per post.

This system has transformed X into a space where content distribution is now directly tied to subscription level. This development raises concerns as while brands and creators may see it as an effective way to reach more audiences, free users might find themselves increasingly sidelined.

A Marketing Tool, But Not a Guarantee of Engagement

For businesses and content creators, these figures also underscore the benefits of investing in X to maximize organic reach. However, this increased visibility does not necessarily translate to higher engagement.

Buffer notes that engagement rates remain modest: about 0.5% for paid accounts, while half of the free accounts do not register any visible reactions.