X made its feed code open source. This book reads every line of it, every month.
Who sees your post is decided by that open-source code. It scores every action a reader might take, hides posts for reasons it never shows you, and changes without notice. The X Algorithm Book is built from three things: every line of that code; X's written rules and the Original Content Rewards Program's terms; and real numbers from live accounts, every post measured through the X API and X Analytics. It turns all of it into what to post, what never to post, and how to get paid.
Every guess you've made about X has an answer in the open-source code, and in real numbers.
What the feed rewards
The exact weight of a like, a reply, a share, a follow, and a report. Why questions beat statements three to one. Why one "not interested" tap cancels 86 likes. Why the same post scores four times higher for some readers than for others.
What can silence you
The visibility rules in the order X runs them. Every label X can put on a post or an account, in X's own words, and what each one does. The spam rules that catch repeated text, machine-sounding text, and posting on a timer. How to read the monthly report X gives you.
How to get paid
The Original Content Rewards Program rule by rule, the legal terms clause by clause, what each account type gets, what counts as an impression and what doesn't, and a plan in phases to reach the threshold and apply.
The whole book in four pages, up front.
Chapter 2 is the card you keep next to the keyboard: what each action is worth in likes, what to do before you post, the Do list, the Don't list, and what to do after you post. The other 33 chapters explain why every line is true.
Stop guessing what the feed wants.
First edition, September 2026. Updated monthly. $25 once, twelve months of revisions included.
What changed
X changes its open-source code and its rules. Each month the book is read against both again, and the numbers are re-measured from live accounts through the X API and X Analytics. This is the record.
- First edition.
Chapter 2: The short version, how to post
The opening of Chapter 2, exactly as it is printed. Read it and you will know within a page whether this is your kind of book.
This chapter is the whole book in five pages. Each line points to the chapter that explains it in full. If you read nothing else, read this.
The one idea
X does not show your post to all of your followers. X guesses which people are likely to do something with your post, and shows it to those people. The thing X wants most is a reply. Every rule below comes from that one fact. (Chapter 4)
What each thing is worth
When somebody sees your post, they can do things with it. They can like it, reply to it, repost it, send it to a friend, or hide it. X keeps score of those things. Each one is worth a set number of points. A like is worth 1 point. A reply is worth 10 points, because X wants replies most. Hiding your post, muting you, or reporting the post takes points away, shown below with a minus sign. The more points X expects your post to earn from a person, the higher your post appears in that person's feed.
| What a viewer might do | Points | What that means |
|---|---|---|
| Reply to your post | 10 | One reply is worth as much as 10 likes |
| Reply to your original post, when you follow each other | 40 | One reply from a mutual follower is worth 40 likes |
| Send your post to somebody by copying the link | 40 | One share by link is worth 40 likes |
| Quote your post | 10 | One quote is worth 10 likes |
| Follow you from the post | 8 | One follow is worth 8 likes |
| Repost | 2 | One repost is worth 2 likes |
| Like | 1 | The base unit |
| Open a link in your post | 0.4 | Less than half a like |
| Open a video | 0.1 | Almost nothing |
| Expand a photo | 0.1 | Almost nothing |
| Stop and read the post | 0.1 | Almost nothing |
| Tap "not interested" | -86 | One tap cancels out 86 likes |
| Mute you | -118 | One mute cancels out 118 likes |
| Report the post | -468 | One report cancels out 468 likes |
Two things to remember. A reply is worth ten likes, so a post that gets people to reply beats a post that gets people to like it. And the negative actions cost far more than the positive actions earn. A post that reaches the wrong people, who then hide it or mute you, does worse than a post that reaches nobody. (Chapter 6)
Before you post
- Decide whether it will be a question or a statement. In the live accounts measured for this book, questions got three times as many impressions as statements. The best questions are not general survey questions. They ask about one exact thing that happened to the reader. A general question gets a "yes." An exact question gets the story, and the story is the reply. Two examples. A gym account: "What was the first lift you ever failed in front of other people?" A mechanic: "What's the noise your car made right before the most expensive repair of your life?" Chapter 23 has examples for seven more subjects. (Chapter 23)
- Start the sentence with the reader, not the subject. "Has anybody ever…", "What did you…", "When did you first…". A post that starts with "Sourdough…" is about bread. A post that starts with "What did you…" is about the person reading it, and people answer questions about themselves.
- Say one thing. One question, or one idea. Two questions get half-answers. Three ideas get none. (Chapter 24)
- Make sure it can be answered in one sentence, because one sentence is what people will type on a phone.
Before you buy
What do I get?
The book to read online here, a PDF, and an EPUB for any reader app. All three are the current edition, and all three are replaced when a new edition is published.
How do the monthly updates reach me?
You get an email each time a new edition is published, with what changed and a link. Your copy here is already the new edition. On Apple Books, Apple delivers the new edition to the Books app.
Is there a subscription?
No. One price. Monthly revisions are included for twelve months from the day you buy. When they end, you keep the last edition you received, and you can add another twelve months for $12 whenever you like. Nothing renews on its own.
Why isn't it on Amazon?
Because it is updated monthly and Amazon can't deliver that. When a Kindle book is revised, only new buyers get the new version; people who already bought it keep the old one. Here and on Apple Books, every buyer gets every revision.
Where does the information come from?
Three places. X's open-source feed code. X's help center and the program's legal terms. And live accounts, with every post published for real and its impressions and engagement read back through the X API, plus X Analytics and the monthly Under the Hood reports for those accounts.
Is anything guaranteed?
No. The book explains how X's published code and rules work. It does not guarantee reach, followers, or admission to the Original Content Rewards Program. X decides who gets in and who gets paid. The book is not made or endorsed by X Corp. The full terms and disclaimer are printed at the back of the book.
Do I need a Premium account?
To read the book, no. To join the Original Content Rewards Program, X requires Premium, Premium+, or Premium Business. The book explains exactly what each account type gets.
Is it technical?
No. It's written for people who have never read a line of code. Every term is defined the first time it's used, and every number says where it came from. 41 chapters across 13 parts, with a glossary and three appendices.
Here, or on Apple Books.
Here
- Read online, always your current edition.
- PDF and EPUB, replaced with each revision.
- An email each month with what changed.
- Twelve months of revisions, $12 for each further twelve.
Apple Books
- In the Books app on iPhone, iPad, and Mac.
- Apple delivers each new edition to your library.
- "What's new" notes with each revision.
- Revisions for as long as the book is on Apple Books, $35.
Why not Amazon?
Because the book is updated monthly, and Amazon can't do that. When a Kindle book is revised, only new buyers get the new version. People who already bought it keep the old one; Amazon does not send them the update. This book changes every month, so it is sold only where every buyer gets every revision: here, and on Apple Books.
Not affiliated with X Corp. No result, number, or admission to any X program is guaranteed. Monthly revisions are included for twelve months from purchase; further revisions are a separate purchase. Terms and disclaimer.