Twitter is ready for the long-awaited edit button. ‘This is happening!'

"If you see an edited Tweet, it's because we're testing the edit button. This is happening, and you'll be okay," the social networking service provider tweeted on Thursday, surprising its millions of followers.

The eagerly anticipated feature button may allay some of Twitter's long-standing concerns.

“It’s true: Edit Tweet is being tested by our team internally. The test will then be initially expanded to Twitter Blue subscribers in the coming weeks,” wrote Twitter in a blog.

The most requested feature to date

“Given that this is our most requested feature to date, we wanted to both update you on our progress and give you a heads up that, even if you’re not in a test group, everyone will still be able to see if a Tweet has been edited."

The new feature will make Tweets available to edit a few times in the 30 minutes after they are posted for Twitter Blue users. The rollout is planned in a few weeks.

“Edit Tweet is a feature that lets people make changes to their Tweet after it’s been published. Think of it as a short period of time to do things like fix typos, add missed tags, and more,” further explained Twitter in its blog.

Twitter Blue is currently available in the US, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand and costs $4.99 per month. However, initial tests of the edit feature will be limited to just one country.

“Like any new feature, we’re intentionally testing Edit Tweet with a smaller group to help us incorporate feedback while identifying and resolving potential issues. This includes how people might misuse the feature. You can never be too careful,” added Twitter.

“Later this month, we’ll be expanding Edit Tweet access to Twitter Blue subscribers. As part of their subscription, they receive early access to features and help us test them before they come to Twitter. The test will be localized to a single country at first and expand as we learn and observe how people use Edit Tweet. We’ll also be paying close attention to how the feature impacts the way people read, write, and engage with Tweets.”

Elon Musk's poll

The feature is a long time coming. Twitter’s co-founder and former chief executive had previously claimed he would probably never provide an edit button.

However, in April, Elon Musk posted a Twitter poll in which 73.6% of the 4.4 million respondents noted that they wanted just such a feature. The billionaire was in talks at the time to buy the social media platform.

It seems Twitter caved to public pressure but regardless of how the edit button came to be it is safe to say it’s a very welcome addition. Other social media platforms have edit functions that allow text to be edited even years after it has been posted and they have managed to thrive.

Some may argue that editing something after it has been posted messes with its integrity but the truth is it simply gives writers an opportunity to correct any errors without having to delete the initial message and its initial responses. We can all agree that that is a very welcome feature!

In May of last year, Twitter considered adding an undo feature at a cost.