• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Tech

Twitter Said to Be Considering Changes to the 140-Character Limit

By
Mathew Ingram
Mathew Ingram
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Mathew Ingram
Mathew Ingram
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 16, 2016, 3:43 PM ET
Twitter IPO Raises $1.82 Billion With Value Topping Facebook
A Twitter Inc. tweet regarding the company ringing the opening bell on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is displayed on an Apple Inc. iPhone arranged for a photograph in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2013. Twitter Inc. surged 85 percent in its trading debut, as investors paid a premium for its promises of fast growth. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty ImagesPhotograph by Andrew Harrer—Bloomberg via Getty Images

Twitter is planning to make changes to its 140-character limit, a restriction the service has had since its inception in 2006, according to a report from Bloomberg. Sources told the financial wire service that Twitter is expected to announce sometime in the next two weeks that photos and links included in tweets will not count towards the 140-character limit.

Links currently take up 23 characters of the total 140 available, and it doesn’t matter how short the links are because Twitter “wraps” every link with its own auto-shortened URL. Twitter says it does this so that it can cut down on malicious links and also track how many times people click on them. Photos also take up 23 characters worth of the 140 limit.

The Bloomberg report is just the latest in a series of rumors about Twitter expanding its character limit that have swirled around the company over the past six months or so. In January, for example, the news site Recode said Twitter was planning to expand the number of available characters for a tweet to 10,000 in an attempt to appeal to new users.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

In March, Twitter co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey said that the 140-character limit was not going away.

“It’s staying. It’s a good constraint for us, and it allows for of-the-moment brevity,” Dorsey said. But at the same time, Dorsey’s comments (posted as a screenshot) seemed to leave the door open for a feature that would allow people to post longer chunks of text but still only show 140 characters in the Twitter timeline.

Twitter users have already found a number of ways around the 140-character limit, including posting screenshots of text. Media companies are also given the ability to implement “expanded tweets” or Twitter “cards,” which allow them to include links that automatically expand within the Twitter stream to show an excerpt from the story and an image or video.

The 140-character limit was designed in the early days of Twitter because Dorsey expected most people to send tweets using the SMS text-messaging function on their phones, and many carriers at the time restricted text messages to 160 characters. Twitter declined to comment on the Bloomberg report.

About the Author
By Mathew Ingram
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

dees
CommentaryNational Security
A retired general’s warning: America can’t fight the AI arms race on tech it doesn’t control
By Robert F. DeesApril 15, 2026
4 minutes ago
Mike Horton poses with his arms crossed.
NewslettersTerm Sheet
Exclusive: Hyfix raises $15 million to build a U.S. alternative to DJI’s drone dominance
By Lily Mae LazarusApril 15, 2026
2 hours ago
A ULA Atlas V-551 rocket lifts off with 27 new Amazon Leo satellites from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on December 14, 2025. (Photo: Manuel Mazzanti/NurPhoto/Getty Images)
NewslettersFortune Tech
Why Amazon bought Globalstar for $11.6 billion
By Andrew NuscaApril 15, 2026
2 hours ago
Jeremy Renner
AIHealth
Exclusive: Jeremy Renner bets on the tech that could have saved his life faster: ‘There’s 150 people that are responsible for me not dying’
By Catherina GioinoApril 15, 2026
3 hours ago
The hidden menace behind Big Tech’s AI arms race: Meta, Amazon and others are spending billions on hardware that’s worthless in 3 years
AIFinance
The hidden menace behind Big Tech’s AI arms race: Meta, Amazon and others are spending billions on hardware that’s worthless in 3 years
By Shawn TullyApril 15, 2026
5 hours ago
The billionaire Anthropic cofounder who majored in literature says knowing how to ask the right questions beats knowing how to code
SuccessTech
The billionaire Anthropic cofounder who majored in literature says knowing how to ask the right questions beats knowing how to code
By Marco Quiroz-GutierrezApril 14, 2026
15 hours ago

Most Popular

Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated again—a week after gifting millions to a college, she's just given $70 million to Meals on Wheels America
Success
Billionaire philanthropist MacKenzie Scott has donated again—a week after gifting millions to a college, she's just given $70 million to Meals on Wheels America
By Fortune EditorsApril 13, 2026
2 days ago
Retirees are facing a $345,000 bill they never saw coming — and most aren't prepared
Commentary
Retirees are facing a $345,000 bill they never saw coming — and most aren't prepared
By Fortune EditorsApril 14, 2026
1 day ago
He was coding at 12 like Elon Musk and became one of Google’s youngest-ever CMOs—but now says Gen Z is better off ice skating than learning to code
Success
He was coding at 12 like Elon Musk and became one of Google’s youngest-ever CMOs—but now says Gen Z is better off ice skating than learning to code
By Fortune EditorsApril 14, 2026
1 day ago
Anthropic is facing a wave of user backlash over reports of performance issues with its Claude AI chatbot
AI
Anthropic is facing a wave of user backlash over reports of performance issues with its Claude AI chatbot
By Fortune EditorsApril 14, 2026
1 day ago
Palantir CEO says working at his $316 billion software company is better than a degree from Harvard or Yale: ‘No one cares about the other stuff’
Success
Palantir CEO says working at his $316 billion software company is better than a degree from Harvard or Yale: ‘No one cares about the other stuff’
By Fortune EditorsApril 14, 2026
23 hours ago
Current price of oil as of April 14, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of oil as of April 14, 2026
By Fortune EditorsApril 14, 2026
24 hours ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.