4 of the Best Native Twitter Clients for Linux

Check Twitter from your Linux desktop

By
Gary Newell
Writer
Gary Newell was a freelance contributor, application developer, and software tester with 20+ years in IT, working on Linux, UNIX, and Windows.
our editorial process
Gary Newell
Updated January 26, 2020
Cartoon illustration of a row of bluebirds on phone line chatting with speech bubbles.

Sean Gladwell / Getty Images

While you can use the Twitter website for viewing tweets on your timeline, it is more convenient to have a dedicated tool, leaving your web browser free for other things. There are a number of clients that let you see what's happening on social media networks like Twitter on the Linux desktop.

These clients are available for most distributions of the Linux operating system.

01
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Best Corebird Replacement: Cawbird

Cawbird Twitter Client
What We Like

  • Links open directly in your web browser.

  • Images are displayed within the main Cawbird screen.

  • Interface resembles the Twitter mobile app.

What We Don't Like

  • Limited customization options.

  • No extra features that you won't find in the desktop version of Twitter.

The popular Corebird Twitter client no longer works, but Cawbird faithfully recreates all of the features that made it so loved. Any message composed by somebody that you follow will appear on your home tab, including tweets from other people who are interacting with the people you follow.

Clicking on a tweet opens it in its own display where you can retweet it, reply with a direct message, or add it to your favorites. You can also click on a user's handle to see all of their tweets.

02
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Extensive Customization: Mikutter

Mikutter Twitter Client

Gary Newell
What We Like

  • Get notified when your tweets are favorited, retweeted, or replied to.

  • Clicking on image links opens them in your default image viewer.

  • Extensive customization options.

What We Don't Like

  • No option for attaching images.

  • The interface can be overwhelming at first.

The Mikutter interface is slightly different from that of Cawbird. The screen consists of a bar at the top where you can add a new tweet. Under this is the main Twitter pane where your timeline is displayed. Creating tweets in Mikutter is more instant than with Cawbird as you can just enter them from the main screen.

Mikutter has a settings option which lets you customize the way it works. For instance, you can choose whether to automatically shorten URLs when adding them to a tweet you are composing. The timeline can also be customized so that it refreshes as frequently as you want. By default, it is set to 20 seconds.

03
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Best Console Based Client: Oysttyer

ttytter Twitter Client

Gary Newell
What We Like

  • Fast and lightweight.

  • Easy to set up.

  • No graphical environment required.

What We Don't Like

  • Can't view images or formatted text.

  • Requires you to remember terminal commands.

Oysttyer is the successor to ttytter, a popular client that is no longer in development. It allows you to keep up with Twitter on a computer that doesn't have a graphical environment set up. There is no user interface; everything runs entirely in the command terminal.

You can compose tweets by typing directly into the terminal console. You can also view your timeline, respond to direct messages, and more using text commands. For example, type /whois followed by a user's handle to view their profile.

04
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Best Email Client With Twitter Integration: Thunderbird

Thunderbird

Gary Newell
What We Like

  • Check your email and Twitter timeline from the same screen.

  • Quick and easy setup.

What We Don't Like

  • Not all Twitter features are available.

  • No notifications.

Thunderbird isn't a dedicated Twitter client; it's an email client along the lines of Outlook and Evolution. However, the Thunderbird chat feature allows you to view your Twitter timeline and write new tweets.

The interface isn't as comprehensive as Cawbird's or Mikutter's, but there is a convenient timeline tree feature that can display messages from particular dates and times. The best thing about using the Twitter chat in Thunderbird is that you can use it for multiple tasks. For instance, you can use it as an email client, a RSS reader, and a chat tool.