You can't set an NFT as your profile picture on X (formerly Twitter) any more. In January 2024 X removed the feature without announcing it, and every description of it disappeared from the X Premium support page. TechCrunch first reported the removal on 10 January 2024. Twitter had launched the feature on 20 January 2022 for paying Twitter Blue subscribers. It linked a crypto wallet to the account and showed the verified NFT inside a hexagon instead of the usual circle. The search for this story found no report of the feature coming back in 2025 or 2026.
Status as of October 2026
- New NFT avatars: not available. X deleted the feature's documentation from its X Premium support page in January 2024 (TechCrunch, 10 January 2024).
- Official explanation: none. TechCrunch's report includes no statement from X, and The Block's report of the same day mentions no comment from the company.
- Hexagons set before the removal: reports differ. On 10 January 2024 TechCrunch said users who already had an NFT avatar still had the hexagon, and it was "not clear if X will eventually remove those as well". The Block reported the same day that "the shape of the display has now been modified back to the standard circle." This article could not check the current behaviour, because X's help pages blocked automated access.
How the feature worked (January 2022 to January 2024)
Who could use it
The launch on 20 January 2022 came through Twitter Blue Labs, Twitter's area for testing features with subscribers. According to Reuters-syndicated coverage and SiliconANGLE (21 January 2022):
- It worked only in the iOS app at first.
- It required a Twitter Blue subscription, then $2.99 a month.
- It worked only with static images minted on Ethereum under the ERC-721 or ERC-1155 token standards.
Setting one up
- Open the profile picture options in the iOS app as a Twitter Blue subscriber.
- Connect a supported crypto wallet temporarily. Launch coverage counted six supported wallets, including MetaMask, Rainbow, Argent and Ledger Live.
- Choose an NFT held in that wallet.
- The avatar then appeared in a hexagon. Tapping it showed the token's details. TechCrunch lists these as the collection, contract address, token ID and the app used to mint it.
What the hexagon proved, and what it did not
The circle-versus-hexagon difference was the whole feature. Anyone could save an NFT image and upload it as an ordinary circular avatar. Only the wallet holding the token could get the hexagon. Launch coverage reported that the avatar went back to a circle if the NFT was sold or transferred. The image stayed, but it no longer showed token details or suggested ownership.
The check was looser than it looked:
- Any NFT counted. Ownership was checked for any NFT in the wallet, not only tokens from verified collections. SiliconANGLE reported that Twitter's head of consumer product marketing, Justin Taylor, said this was intentional.
- Copies could still get a hexagon. PYMNTS noted that someone could re-mint a copied image as a new NFT and get a hexagon for it.
- It depended on a marketplace. Twitter pulled NFT data from an NFT marketplace's API. An outage at that marketplace on launch morning stopped NFTs from loading for several hours.
The hexagon avatar, from launch to removal
Step through how NFT profile pictures arrived on Twitter, how Meta tried and dropped NFTs too, and how X removed the hexagon.
- 20 Jan 2022Hexagon avatars launch for paying subscribersdone
Twitter launched NFT profile pictures through Twitter Blue Labs. The feature worked only in the iOS app at first, needed a Twitter Blue subscription at $2.99 a month, and accepted only static images minted on Ethereum as ERC-721 or ERC-1155 tokens. A verified NFT showed inside a hexagon instead of the usual circle.
- 10 May 2022Instagram starts testing digital collectiblesdone
Meta began testing digital collectibles on Instagram with a small group of US creators and collectors, with Ethereum and Polygon supported at launch.
- Jun 2022Facebook testing beginsdone
Meta extended its NFT test to Facebook. Its feature was mainly about showing NFTs in posts and on profiles, not a verified profile-picture shape.
- Jul 2022Instagram expands to 100 countriesdone
Instagram widened digital collectibles to creators in 100 countries.
- 13 Mar 2023Meta winds down NFTsdone
Stephane Kasriel, Meta's head of commerce and financial technologies, announced that Meta was winding down digital collectibles on Instagram and Facebook to focus on other ways to support creators, people and businesses.
- 9 Jan 2024X posts its plans for 2024done
The day before the removal was reported, X posted its plans for the year, including peer-to-peer payments and AI tools. NFT avatars were not mentioned in TechCrunch's account of those plans.
- 10 Jan 2024X removes NFT profile picturesdone
TechCrunch reported that X had removed the feature without announcing it and deleted its description from the X Premium support page; The Block confirmed it the same day. Neither outlet published a reason from X. Reports differed on hexagons already set: TechCrunch said they remained, while The Block said the display had gone back to the standard circle.
- Oct 2026Still unavailabledone
New NFT avatars cannot be set on X. The search for this story found no report of the feature returning in 2025 or 2026, and X has not explained the removal.
This timeline covers only the dates reported in the article's sources: it cannot confirm whether hexagons set before the removal still display today, and it does not explain why X dropped the feature, since X has given no reason.
The removal in January 2024
TechCrunch's 10 January 2024 report is the main source for the removal, and The Block confirmed it the same day. Neither outlet published a reason from X. TechCrunch gave this context:
- X's stated plans: on 9 January 2024, the day before the report, X had posted its plans for 2024, including peer-to-peer payments and AI tools.
- Meta had already pulled out: Meta had ended NFT support on Instagram and Facebook in March 2023.
- The flagship collection had fallen: Bored Ape Yacht Club token values were far below their peak.
- The market had not disappeared: according to the aggregator CryptoSlam, NFT trading volume had recently topped $1.6 billion.
Any claim that X dropped the feature because of the market, or for a particular strategic reason, is inference. X has not said why.
How Meta's version compared
Meta tried NFTs too, and gave up first:
- May 2022: Instagram began testing digital collectibles with a small group of US creators and collectors. Ethereum and Polygon were supported at launch, according to Meta's 10 May 2022 announcement as reported by The Block.
- June 2022: Facebook testing began (TechCrunch).
- July 2022: Instagram expanded the feature to creators in 100 countries (TechCrunch).
- 13 March 2023: Stephane Kasriel, Meta's head of commerce and financial technologies, announced: "We're winding down digital collectibles (NFTs) for now to focus on other ways to support creators, people, and businesses."
Meta's feature was mainly about showing NFTs in posts and on profiles. Twitter's was a verified profile-picture shape.
What this means if you hold NFTs
The hexagon was a display layer. It was never part of the token, and removing it from X changed nothing on-chain. Your NFT and its ownership record are where they always were. The token's contract address and ID can still be looked up on a public blockchain explorer if you want to show someone you own it.
Limitations: the removal story rests mainly on TechCrunch's 10 January 2024 report, and reports conflict on whether existing hexagons were kept.
