After downloading your X account archive, keep the original ZIP and inspect a working copy. This guide focuses on organizing and analyzing that download. For the request and download procedure, use the archive download guide.

Keep an unchanged original

Store the ZIP privately with its download date and account. Make a working copy before conversion. Account archives can contain private messages, contacts and other personal information; do not publish the whole folder as a convenient way to share one post.

A checksum can help you detect later file changes. It does not prove that every source statement was true or that the archive contains every historical item.

Inspect files before choosing an analysis

Open the included viewer if available and inspect the data directory. File names and structure can vary. Record what files are present rather than assuming every download uses one fixed schema.

Some export files wrap JSON data in JavaScript assignments. Do not run arbitrary downloaded scripts as a conversion shortcut. Use a parser that handles the known wrapper and fails clearly on unexpected input. See the format guide.

Choose an analysis the data supports

  • Search your captured post text for a topic or phrase.
  • Group posts by publication date and inspect changes in activity.
  • Review repeated topics, links and media references.
  • Keep post IDs as strings when converting to a spreadsheet.
  • Check whether each metric exists before calculating a rate.

An account content archive does not automatically contain full private impression, click or historical follower analytics. Missing fields cannot be reconstructed by changing file format.

Use imports and exports carefully

Tweet Archivist supports an account ZIP upload and separate public-profile collection. Confirm the workflow and accepted files before uploading private data. Profile analytics describe the captured dataset rather than guaranteed complete lifetime history.

For a local table, see safe Excel conversion. Keep the original ZIP alongside any cleaned table and document exclusions, renamed fields and date/time conversion.

Sources and checks

Reviewed October 16, 2026. How to download your X archive.