Free Twitter Card Validator
Enter any URL to see exactly how it will appear when shared on X/Twitter. We fetch and validate all meta tags in real-time.
Paste a URL to preview
See exactly how your link appears when shared on X/Twitter. We check all Twitter Card and Open Graph meta tags.
What happened to Twitter's Card Validator?
Twitter deprecated their official Card Validator tool (previously at cards-dev.twitter.com/validator) in 2022 when the platform rebranded to X. There is currently no official X Card Validator provided by the platform. This tool serves as a free alternative — paste any URL to preview how it will appear when shared on X, and check that your Twitter Card and Open Graph meta tags are set up correctly.
How to Use This X Card Validator
Paste your URL
Enter the URL of the page you want to check. The validator fetches the page and reads all meta tags.
Review the preview
See exactly how your link will look when shared on X — including the image, title, and description.
Check the meta tags
Expand “Detected Meta Tags” to see which Twitter Card and Open Graph tags were found, which are missing, and which are using fallbacks.
What Are Twitter Cards (X Cards)?
Twitter Cards are rich link previews that appear when someone shares a URL on X (formerly Twitter). Instead of showing just a bare link, X displays an image, title, and description pulled from the page's meta tags. This makes shared links more visually appealing and more likely to get clicks.
There are four card types, though two are most commonly used:
| Card Type | What It Shows | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| summary | Small square thumbnail + title + description | Articles, homepages, general links |
| summary_large_image | Large featured image + title + description | Blog posts, landing pages, visual content |
| app | App icon + name + install button | Mobile app promotion |
| player | Embedded video/audio player | Video, podcast, music content |
Required Meta Tags for X Cards
To display a card when your link is shared on X, you need these meta tags in your page's <head>:
<meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image"> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Your Page Title"> <meta name="twitter:description" content="A brief description of your page"> <meta name="twitter:image" content="https://example.com/image.jpg">
Optional tags that add extra information:
<meta name="twitter:site" content="@yourusername"> <meta name="twitter:creator" content="@authorusername"> <meta name="twitter:image:alt" content="Description of the image">
Open Graph Fallback
If X doesn't find Twitter-specific meta tags, it falls back to Open Graph (OG) tags. This means if you already have OG tags set up for Facebook or LinkedIn, your links will still show previews on X — though you won't be able to control the card type without the twitter:card tag.
| Twitter Tag | Falls Back To |
|---|---|
| twitter:title | og:title |
| twitter:description | og:description |
| twitter:image | og:image |
| twitter:card | No fallback — defaults to summary if missing |
Best practice: Include both Twitter Card tags and Open Graph tags. This ensures your links preview correctly on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, Slack, Discord, and any other platform that reads OG tags.
Image Requirements for X Cards
summary (small thumbnail)
- Minimum: 144 x 144 px
- Recommended: 300 x 300 px
- Max file size: 5 MB
- Aspect ratio: 1:1 (square)
- Formats: JPG, PNG, WEBP, GIF
summary_large_image
- Minimum: 300 x 157 px
- Recommended: 1200 x 628 px
- Max file size: 5 MB
- Aspect ratio: 2:1
- Formats: JPG, PNG, WEBP, GIF
Common Issues and How to Fix Them
Image not showing
Check that your image URL uses HTTPS (not HTTP), the image actually loads when you visit the URL directly, it meets the minimum size requirements, and it's not blocked by robots.txt or a CDN rule.
Card not updating after changes
X caches card data aggressively. After updating your meta tags, it can take up to 7 days for the cache to refresh. You can try sharing the URL in a new post — X sometimes fetches fresh data for new shares. There is no way to manually purge X's cache since the official Card Validator was deprecated.
Wrong card type displaying
Make sure your twitter:card meta tag is set to the correct value (summary or summary_large_image). If it's missing entirely, X defaults to summary. Check that you don't have conflicting tags from different plugins or frameworks.
Title or description cut off
Keep titles under 70 characters and descriptions under 200 characters. X truncates anything longer. Front-load the most important words since users may only see the first line.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Twitter Card Validator still available in 2026?
No. Twitter's official Card Validator at cards-dev.twitter.com was deprecated in 2022 and has not been replaced by X. The platform no longer provides a built-in way to test or preview cards. Third-party tools like this one fill that gap by fetching your page's meta tags and showing you a preview of how the card will look.
What is the current URL for the X Card Validator?
There is no official X Card Validator URL anymore. The old URL (cards-dev.twitter.com/validator) no longer works. X's developer documentation still describes card markup but doesn't provide a testing tool. You can use this free validator as an alternative.
Do I need both Twitter Card tags and Open Graph tags?
You don't strictly need both — X falls back to OG tags if Twitter-specific tags are missing. However, including both gives you more control. The twitter:card tag specifically controls the card type (summary vs. large image), and without it X defaults to the small summary format. For the best previews on all platforms, include both sets.
How do I force X to refresh a cached card?
Since the official Card Validator was deprecated, there's no reliable way to force a cache refresh. X typically caches card data for up to 7 days. Your best options: wait for the cache to expire naturally, or try composing a new post with the URL (X sometimes fetches fresh data). Changing the URL slightly (e.g., adding a query parameter) also forces a fresh fetch but creates a different cache entry.
What image size should I use for X cards?
For summary_large_image cards (the most common type), use 1200 x 628 pixels with a 2:1 aspect ratio. For summary cards, use 300 x 300 pixels (square). Keep file size under 5 MB. JPG, PNG, WEBP, and GIF formats are all supported. Always use HTTPS URLs for images.
Can I use this to check Open Graph tags for Facebook too?
This tool shows both Twitter Card tags and Open Graph tags, so you can see what Facebook and LinkedIn would pull from your page. However, for Facebook-specific debugging, you may also want to use Facebook's Sharing Debugger, which shows exactly how Facebook caches and renders your OG tags.
Why does my card show on some platforms but not X?
This usually means you have Open Graph tags but are missing the twitter:card tag. While X falls back to OG tags for title, description, and image, it still needs the twitter:card tag to know which card format to use. Without it, X may not render a card at all in some cases, or it may default to a basic summary card.
Related Tools
- Twitter Shadowban Checker — Check if your X account visibility is restricted
- X Character Counter — Count characters for posts within X's limits
- OG Image Generator — Create Open Graph images for social sharing
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