To get verified on X as an individual creator, subscribe to X Premium at the Premium or Premium+ tier and wait for X's review. According to X's blue checkmark page, the badge appears only if the account has a display name and profile photo, has been active in the past 30 days, has a confirmed phone number, and shows no recent profile changes or signs of deception or spam. A separate ID-verified label is optional and needs a government ID.
Verification on X now means two different things: a paid checkmark that signals a subscription, and an identity check that signals a real person behind the account. This guide compares every badge, lists what to fix before you pay, and explains why checkmarks disappear. Earning thresholds are covered separately in our guide to making money on X and our X Creator Subscriptions explainer.
What the blue checkmark means today
The blue checkmark page says the badge indicates an active Premium subscription that meets X's eligibility requirements, and that it does not mean the account has been ID verified. The old programme, which checked whether accounts were active, notable and authentic, began winding down on 1 April 2023 according to that checkmark page, and X says it no longer accepts applications under those criteria.
In the European Economic Area the wording has changed. The same help page says X stopped calling checkmark holders verified there and now calls them Premium users, after a European Commission decision of 5 December 2025 concluded the checkmark misled users and breached the Digital Services Act; X says it is appealing. The Commission's press release on the decision says anyone can pay for verified status on X without meaningful checks on who is behind the account, which it treats as deceptive design. If you sell to fans in the EU, don't present the checkmark as proof of who you are.
Badge comparison table
Prices are X's published US starting prices on the web; X says local prices, tax and payment method fees vary, and that features differ by platform and location.
| Badge or label | Route to it | Cost, as X states it | Checks before it appears | What it signals or gives access to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue checkmark | A Premium or Premium+ subscription, then X's review | Premium from $8 a month or $84 a year, per the X Premium page | Display name, photo, activity in the past 30 days, confirmed phone, no recent changes, no deception or spam, per the checkmark rules | An active subscription; larger reply prioritisation and access to apply for Creator Subscriptions and Original Content Rewards |
| No badge on the Basic tier | A Basic subscription | From $3 a month or $32 a year, per the X Premium page | Phone confirmation during sign-up | Editing, longer posts and some reply prioritisation, but no checkmark or creator programme access |
| ID verified label | An optional flow for Premium subscribers, run by Persona or Stripe | Listed as a Premium feature on the X Premium page | Activity in the past 30 days, compliance with the Terms of Service, a government ID and a selfie, per the ID verification policy | That a real person with valid ID owns the account; X says it is not an endorsement |
| Gold checkmark with a square avatar | A Premium Business subscription for an organisation | Basic tier $200 a month and Full Access $1,000 a month in the US, per the Premium Business page | Approval of the organisation's subscription | An official business or non-profit account |
| Grey checkmark | Premium Organizations or recognised government status | No public price; X points governments and multilateral bodies to specialised packages on the Premium Business page | Representing a government or multilateral organisation, or serving as an official, per the profile labels page | Official government or multilateral presence |
| Affiliation badge | An invitation from an organisation on Premium Business Full Access, which you must accept | Paid by the organisation, $50 a month per extra affiliate in the US, per the Premium Business page | A genuine relationship with the inviting organisation | Connection to that organisation, shown with its profile picture beside your checkmark |
| Legacy blue checkmark | Closed to new applications | Not sold since the 2023 wind-down | None any more | Nothing; legacy holders kept a badge only by subscribing |
X's own answers disagree about non-profits. The Premium page says the gold checkmark marks an official business or non-profit through Premium Business, while its answer on Premium Organizations describes that package, with a grey checkmark, as a subscription for governments and non-profits. Few individual creators will need either badge, but agencies and creator-led charities should confirm which applies before paying.
Pre-application profile checklist
X reviews the account after you pay, and some edits restart that review, so settle these first.
- Fix your display name, profile photo and @handle before subscribing. The Premium help page says accounts that changed any of them within the previous 3 days may be unable to sign up, and changes after subscribing remove the checkmark until X re-reviews the account, with further changes blocked meanwhile.
- Confirm a phone number you control. Every subscriber must confirm one at sign-up, and the checkmark rules list it under security.
- Use the account normally beforehand; the checkmark rules require activity within the past 30 days.
- Remove anything that could read as misleading: borrowed or stock photos, someone else's name, or a bio implying an affiliation you don't have. X's Authenticity policy bans fake personas and impersonation.
- Stop follow-for-follow trains, engagement swaps and bought followers. Signs of platform manipulation and spam disqualify an account from the checkmark.
- Switch on two-factor authentication with an authentication app or security key; our X account recovery checklist explains the options and why they beat text messages.
- Check the price where you will pay. X says pricing is localised, and purchases made in the iOS or Android app follow Apple's or Google's refund processes.
- Read the refund rule first. X says Premium subscriptions are non-refundable unless the law requires otherwise, including when an account is later suspended.
- Decide whether you also want ID verification, and read what it collects before starting it.
How the review works
Every Premium feature except the checkmark switches on straight away; the checkmark appears after X's team reviews the account, according to the Premium help page. X doesn't publish how long that review takes, and its own answer to why a checkmark hasn't appeared simply points back to the eligibility criteria, so if nothing happens, re-read the checklist above rather than resubscribing.
Paying doesn't change how rules are applied. The same page says enforcement issues for subscribers go to the existing enforcement teams under the current review process, that the X Rules won't apply differently to subscribers, and that dedicated support covers subscription-specific issues only.
ID verification: what you hand over
ID verification is a separate, optional step. X's ID verification policy, dated February 2025, says X uses Persona and Stripe, that the option is available globally for Premium, with Stripe offered to US creators first, and that the elective check requires activity in the past 30 days and compliance with the Terms of Service. Once you pass, an ID-verified label shows in the pop-up people see when they click your checkmark.
The data side deserves a minute of attention. The same policy says the flow collects an image of your ID and a selfie, including face data and data extracted from the ID; Persona deletes those after 30 days, Stripe keeps its data for as long as you remain a creator, and X keeps your full name, your address where possible and a hash of the document number for creator payout checks. X may ask you to verify again if the account name changes, ownership transfers or the account's purpose changes.
Two parts of that page are out of step with X's newer pages. It says ID verification is required for creators paid through Ad Revenue Sharing, a programme the current Premium page no longer lists, naming Original Content Rewards instead. It also promises prioritised support for ID-verified users, while the Premium FAQ limits dedicated support to subscription issues and says enforcement works the same for everyone. Treat the label as proof of identity, not a fast lane to support.
Where verification matters for creators
- Payouts. X's ID verification policy says it requires ID verification for creators receiving funds through Creator Subscriptions; the follower and impression thresholds are in our Creator Subscriptions guide.
- Programme access. The Premium page puts access to apply for Original Content Rewards and Creator Subscriptions in the Premium and Premium+ tiers only, so a Basic subscription won't do.
- Replies. X's conversations page lets authors limit replies to verified accounts, and lists Premium among the factors that rank a reply higher; our X visibility self-check shows how reply ranking affects reach.
- Impersonation. An ID-verified label gives fans a way to tell your account from copies, which matters most once lookalike accounts start appearing.
- Brand deals. A checkmark proves only a subscription. If a brand needs to confirm the account is yours, link it from your own website or email the brand from an address on your own domain.
Why checkmarks get removed
The blue checkmark page and the Premium page give these reasons:
- Changing your profile photo, display name or @handle: the checkmark disappears until X confirms the account still qualifies, and no further edits are allowed during that review.
- Breaking the X Rules, which X says can cost the checkmark on its own.
- Suspension of the account, after which X says it may remove the badge without a refund.
- Manipulating X's processes or getting around enforcement actions, which can lead to loss of the checkmark or suspension.
- Cancelling the subscription: the checkmark stays until the end of the paid term unless the account is suspended or X removes it first.
- X's discretion: under its Terms of Service and Purchaser Terms, X says it may remove a checkmark at any time without notice.
- Sanctions law: X says people it can't deal with under US and other economic sanctions may not buy Premium at all.
If the checkmark went with a suspension, deal with the suspension first using our X suspension appeal guide; the badge can only come back after a fresh review.
Deciding whether to pay for it
Start from what you will actually use. If you plan to apply for Creator Subscriptions or Original Content Rewards, Premium is a prerequisite rather than an option. If impersonators are the problem, the ID label does more than the checkmark alone. If most of your fans are in the EU, remember that X no longer calls the badge verification there. For a wider view of paid verification, compare our analysis of whether Meta Verified is worth it and our guide to verification on Instagram.
Limitations of this guide
Prices, tiers and eligibility rules here are X's own published figures as read on 1 October 2026; X says features and prices vary by country and platform and can change without notice. Several X pages contradict one another, as noted above, and where they do this guide says which is newer rather than guessing which is right. We don't know how X's reviewers weigh the deception and spam criteria or how long reviews take. Nothing here is legal advice on consumer law, sanctions or data protection, so speak to a qualified adviser if those questions apply to you.