How to Add a Label to Your X (Twitter) Account
X has two labels you can switch on yourself, one for parody, commentary and fan accounts and one for bots. Everything else on a profile is put there by X.
How to label a Twitter account on X: open Settings and privacy, then Your account, then Account information, and choose Parody, commentary and fan account if the profile depicts someone else. A bot uses the Automated label instead, which also names the human-run account managing it. Other badges on a profile are applied by X, not chosen.
So there are two labels you control and a set you don't. The two you control exist to stop confusion: one tells people an account isn't the person or brand it talks about, the other tells people a human isn't typing the posts. Both are explained below, with what X's help center says about each as of October 2026.
A profile label on X is a small line of text under an account's name and handle that tells visitors what kind of account it is. X's help center describes labels and checkmarks as visual identity signals that give more context about an account, and it separates them into two groups: some are applied by X, and some are triggered by the account holder's own action.
The second group is what people mean when they search for how to label a Twitter account. It has two members: the Parody, Commentary and Fan label, usually shortened to PCF, and the Automated account label. Neither one is a badge of status. They're disclosures, and they protect an account that might otherwise be reported as impersonation or spam.
Labels also change how a visitor reads the follower count on a profile. A fan account with a clear PCF label and a large following reads as a popular fan account, not as a fake of the real person. Accounts building a new PCF or commentary profile sometimes add Twitter followers so it doesn't start at zero; the label stays the part that keeps it within X's rules.
How do you add a parody label on X?
From the account you want to label, in the app or on the web:
- Open Settings and privacy.
- Tap Your account, then Account information. The same screen holds your username, which changing your X name and handle covers.
- Choose Parody, commentary and fan account and turn it on.
- Check your profile: the label appears under your name and handle.
What are profile labels on X?
They're the short descriptions under a profile's name. X's help page on profile labels and checkmarks says PCF labels are selected by people on X to show that an account depicts another person, group or organization in order to discuss, satirize or share information about it, so the account doesn't cause confusion or imply an affiliation it doesn't have.
Is a parody label required?
X introduced the PCF label in January 2025. TechCrunch's report at launch, on January 9, 2025, said the label was voluntary for the time being and that X would share details about when it would become mandatory.
What has always been required is not impersonating anyone. X's rules allow parody, commentary and fan accounts as long as they make clear they aren't the person or brand they depict, and impersonation remains against the rules. In practice, the label is the clearest way to make that disclosure, and an unlabeled parody account is the one most likely to be reported.
Policies on X change often, so if you run a PCF account, read the current parody and impersonation policy in X's help center rather than relying on an old screenshot of it.
What is the automated account label?
It's the label for bots. X's help page on automated account labels, updated in September 2026, says these labels give transparency by helping people tell whether an account is a bot, and that X's Automation rules require automated accounts to display the label and remain connected to a human-run account.
When the person managing a bot sets it to display the label, X also links their human-run account to it, so visitors can see who's behind the automation. The label shows under the bot's name and handle, and it may also appear on its posts.
To set it up, sign in as the automated account and look in Account information for the Automation option, where you connect the managing account.
Which labels does X apply on its own?
Everything that isn't PCF or Automated. Checkmarks and affiliation badges are applied by X based on its own programs and checks, not switched on in settings. You can't add them by editing your profile, and a profile that imitates one with an emoji in the display name is the kind of thing X's impersonation rules exist for.
X can also place notices on accounts and posts when it limits them. Those aren't profile labels you choose; they're enforcement, and they follow their own process for appeal.
What does a temporary label on X mean?
A temporary notice on an account usually means X has limited it for a while, often after unusual activity, and may be asking the owner to complete a step such as confirming a phone number. It's not a label anyone can add or remove from settings, and it typically disappears once the restriction ends or the step is done.
The different kinds of limitation, where each notice appears and how to contest them, are covered in is my X account limited. If the account has been suspended rather than limited, what to do when your X account is suspended covers the appeal.
Does a label affect reach?
X doesn't say that the PCF or Automated label reduces how often posts are shown, and its help pages describe both as transparency features. What labels do change is how people react. A clearly labeled parody gets read as a joke instead of being reported as a fake, which protects the account; an unlabeled bot that gets reported for spam is the account at risk.
What drives distribution on X is engagement from people who see a post, explained in how the X algorithm ranks posts. A label sits outside that. It answers who the account is, not how far a post travels.
Labels for accounts that grow
If you run a commentary, fan or bot account, the label is part of the brand rather than a disclaimer to hide. Name the account so the label isn't a surprise, write the bio so it says the same thing, and keep the profile picture from looking like the real person or company.
The follower count is the other thing a visitor reads in the same glance. Twitter followers adds to that public number on X; it doesn't change what the label says, how X ranks posts, or whether the account follows X's rules. Every X service is on the X page.
X profile label questions
How do I label my Twitter account as parody?
Go to Settings and privacy, then Your account, then Account information, and choose Parody, commentary and fan account. The label then shows under your name and handle.
What is the PCF label on X?
PCF stands for Parody, Commentary and Fan. X describes it as a label people select to show an account depicts another person, group or organization to discuss, satirize or share information about it.
Do bots on X have to be labeled?
Yes. X's help center says its Automation rules require automated accounts to display the automated label and stay connected to a human-run account.
Is the parody label mandatory on X?
At launch in January 2025 it was voluntary, and X said it would announce when it becomes mandatory. Impersonation is against X's rules either way, so parody accounts should use it.
Can I add a checkmark or affiliation badge myself?
No. Checkmarks and affiliation badges are applied by X. The only labels you can switch on yourself are Parody, Commentary and Fan, and Automated.
Does a parody label hurt reach on X?
X doesn't say it does, and describes labels as transparency features. Reach on X depends on how people engage with posts, not on the profile label.
Keep reading
- Twitter followers — A label tells visitors who an account is; Twitter followers adds to the follower count they read next to it.
- Is my X account limited? — Temporary notices, read-only mode and how to appeal.
- What to do when your X account is suspended — Suspension, the appeal and what comes back.
- How the X algorithm ranks posts — What actually decides how far a post travels.