X (Twitter) Profile Photo Not Uploading or Can’t Edit Profile? Sizes and Fixes

Does this match what you see?

• Your new profile picture or header won’t upload.
• The photo looks set, then reverts to the old one.
• Your header image is cut off at the top or bottom.

iPhone & iPadAndroidComputer (browser)

Based on X Help Center “Help with uploading a profile photo” and “How to customize your profile” (plus “About profile visibility settings” and “About X Premium”), supplied by the site owner, October 31, 2026.

Why this happens: the possible causes

The reasons X gives.

• File format or sizeCheck this first

  X supports JPEG, GIF and PNG, up to 2MB for profile photos.

• Not appliedCheck this first

  X says your image won’t save until you click Apply.

• Browser or computerPossible

  X says the problem may be related to the browser or computer you’re using.

How to fix it, step by step

Work through these in order. They start with the quickest, safest checks and only move to steps that sign you out or remove data later.

Can’t change your display name or bio

• X says during first-time profile set-up, you won’t see the option to change your display name until you’ve uploaded a profile photo and header photo.
• Otherwise, go to your profile > Edit profile, and change your name, bio (X says up to 160 characters), location or website, then tap Save.
• Changing your @username is different: see change your X username.

Birth date: change, hide or remove it

Go to your profile > Edit profile > Birth date. X says your birth date tells it you’re old enough to use X, and it must be the birth date of the person operating the account.

• Who can see it: X has two settings, one for the year and one for the month and day. Click the visibility icon (web) or use Who sees this (app). X says you can only change these settings a few times.
• The choices: Public, Your followers, People you follow, You follow each other, or Only you. X says birth dates entered after January 2022 default to Only you.
• Under 18? X says your birth year visibility is set to Only you, and you can change it after you turn 18.
• Remove it (app): tap Remove birth date.
• Remove it (web): set all three fields (Day, Month, Year) back to their defaults.

X says it also uses your birth date to customize your experience, such as showing more relevant content and ads. Other profile details, like your bio, location, website and picture, are always public; X says anything without a visibility setting is public.

Our note: if X has restricted your account because of the age you entered, see can’t log in to X.

Pin or unpin a post on your profile

• Pin: on your profile, find the post, tap the more icon at the top of it > Pin to your profile > Pin. X says it’ll be the first post people see on your profile.
• Unpin: on the pinned post, tap the more icon > Unpin from profile > Unpin.
• Some posts look bigger? X says posts with more engagement appear slightly larger on your profile.

Wrong country on your account

X has three different location details, and they’re changed in different places:

• Country setting (private): X says it uses your location, such as your IP address (and GPS if Precise Location is on), to set it. If X can’t match your location to a country where it operates, it defaults to the United States. X says your country customizes your experience, may affect what content X can show, and helps confirm you’re old enough to use X there. To fix it: go to Settings > Your account > Account information, enter your password, select Country, pick the right one and click Agree and continue.
• Profile location (public, optional): whatever you type in Edit profile.
• “About this account” (public if your account is public): X says the country or region shown here is inferred only from your IP addresses. It doesn’t come from your country setting. You can choose to show your region or country by clicking the Joined date on your profile and selecting the settings gear. X has a feedback form (external site, opens in a new tab) if it’s wrong.

X says changing your country setting won’t affect content withheld under local law. See content withheld in a country.

Turn precise location on or off

X says precise location (such as GPS) lets it tailor posts, ads and trends to where you are, and lets you add your location to a post if you choose. For it to work, location must be allowed in two places: your phone’s settings for the X app, and Precise location inside X.

• iPhone settings: Settings > Privacy > Location Services (turn on), then find X and choose While using the app, or Never to block it. Our note: on newer iOS this is under Privacy & Security.
• Android settings: Settings > Apps > X > Permissions, then turn Location on or off.
• In X: tap your profile icon (or the navigation menu on Android) > Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety, then under Safety, tap Precise location in the Location section and turn it on or off.

Your location is showing on your posts

• X says once you add a location to a post, the X app on that device automatically adds your current general location to your next posts too.
• X says posts from the iPhone or Android app may also include your precise GPS location, findable through the X API, as well as the place name you chose. If you add a location to a post with a photo taken in X’s in-app camera, X says your exact latitude and longitude are attached.
• To stop (app): tap compose, tap the location icon, then tap the X at the top left to remove your location. X says it won’t be added to future posts until you choose to add one again.
• Remove location from all your past posts (x.com): More > Settings and privacy > Privacy and safety > under Data sharing and off-X activity, Location information > Add location information to your Posts. Uncheck the box to turn it off, then click the red text below it and confirm Delete to remove location from all your posts.
• X says removing location doesn’t guarantee it’s gone from copies on third-party apps or search results, and doesn’t remove locations you’ve shared in Direct Messages.

Our tip: to keep your location private, turn Precise location off in X and set X to Never in your phone’s settings. Your country setting is separate; see wrong country.

Turn off personalized ads

X says it can use information from ad partners (for example, hashed email lists, or pixels on websites you visit) to show you interest-based ads. To stop X combining that with your X activity:

• In X: go to your Ads preferences settings and turn off Personalized ads. X says make sure you’re logged in when changing this on the web; logged out, it only affects that browser.
• On the web: X also points to the Digital Advertising Alliance’s opt-out tool at optout.aboutads.info.
• iPhone (iOS 14 and later): to stop X using your iPhone’s advertising ID, turn off Allow Apps to Request to Track in your iPhone settings.
• Android: turn on Opt out of Ads Personalization in your phone’s settings.

X says opting out won’t stop ads altogether: you’ll still see ads based on your sign-up details and what you do on X, such as what you post, who you follow, your phone type, where you are and links you click. These settings also don’t cover ads that other companies (like Google) show for X.

X is in the wrong language

X has two language settings: the display language (menus and buttons) and your content languages (the posts, people and trends you’re shown). X says changing your display language doesn’t change the language of posts on your Home timeline.

Display language

• On x.com: X says the account display language can only be changed on x.com: More > Settings and privacy > Accessibility, display, and languages > Languages, choose under Display language, enter your password if asked, and click Save.
• In the iPhone app: X says use your device’s settings: Settings > General > Language & Region to set your iPhone language, then go back to Settings > X > Preferred Language > Language and pick the language you want.
• In the Android app: X says open your phone’s Settings > System > Languages & input > Languages (or under Personal if there’s no System), tap Add a language, drag it to the top of the list, then restart the X app.
• X says Arabic (Feminine) is currently available on the web only.

Content languages (posts, people and trends)

• iPhone or Android app: Settings and privacy > Accessibility, display, and languages > Languages > Recommendations, choose the languages you want to see people, trends and posts in, and tap Done.
• x.com: More > Settings and privacy > Accessibility, display, and languages > Language, then Select additional languages or Languages you may know (X says these are inferred from your activity). You may be asked for your password; click Done.

Change your color, font size or background

X says on x.com, click More in the sidebar > Display, then choose your font size, color and background theme.

Header image looks cropped

X says even at the recommended 1500x500 size, parts of a header may be cropped, most likely because of how it’s shown on different screen sizes and browsers; 60 pixels at the top and bottom could be cut off.

Our tip: keep text and faces away from the top and bottom edges of your header.

How to know it worked

• Our check: your new photo and header show on your profile after refreshing.

Still not working? Your next steps

1. x.com not working properly? See x.com not working. On iPhone, see X app not working.

Frequently asked questions