Add A Via Parameter To AddThis Tweet Button

AddThis provides social sharing buttons for websites. If you’re using the AddThis Tweet button and want to add a via parameter (to attribute tweets to a specific Twitter account), here’s how to configure it.

AddThis Tweet Button with via Parameter

Modify the AddThis button configuration to include the tw:via attribute:

<!-- AddThis Tweet button with via parameter -->
<a class="addthis_button_tweet"
   tw:via="YourTwitterHandle"
   tw:related="SuggestedFollow"></a>

<!-- Full AddThis toolbox example -->
<div class="addthis_toolbox addthis_default_style">
    <a class="addthis_button_facebook_like" fb:like:layout="button_count"></a>
    <a class="addthis_button_tweet" tw:via="YourHandle" tw:related="OtherHandle"></a>
    <a class="addthis_button_google_plusone" g:plusone:size="medium"></a>
</div>

The tw:via attribute adds “via @YourTwitterHandle” to the pre-filled tweet text. The tw:related attribute suggests an additional account to follow after tweeting.

Additional Tweet Button Attributes

AddThis supports several Twitter-specific attributes:

tw:via="handle" — Attribution account (without @)
tw:related="handle1,handle2" — Suggested follow accounts
tw:text="Custom text" — Override the default tweet text
tw:url="https://example.com" — Override the shared URL
tw:count="horizontal|vertical|none" — Count box position
tw:lang="en" — Language for the tweet button interface

Using Twitter’s Native Share Button

If you don’t need AddThis’s analytics or other sharing platforms, Twitter provides a native share button with simpler configuration:

<a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?via=YourHandle&text=Check+this+out&url=https://example.com"
   class="twitter-share-button"
   data-via="YourHandle"
   data-related="OtherHandle">Tweet</a>

<script>!function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)?'http':'https';if(!d.getElementById(id)){js=d.createElement(s);js.id=id;js.src=p+'://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js';fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js,fjs);}}(document, 'script', 'twitter-wjs');</script>

Web Intent URL Format

You can also create a simple share link without any JavaScript:

<a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?via=YourHandle&text=Hello+World&url=https%3A%2F%2Fexample.com"
   target="_blank"
   rel="noopener noreferrer">Share on Twitter</a>

Parameters for the intent URL:

text — Pre-filled tweet text (URL-encoded)
url — URL to share (URL-encoded)
via — Attribution handle (without @)
related — Comma-separated suggested follow handles
hashtags — Comma-separated hashtags (without #)
in_reply_to — Tweet ID to reply to

AddThis Alternatives (2026)

AddThis was shut down by Oracle in May 2023. If you’re still using AddThis code, it no longer works. Here are modern alternatives:

ShareThis — Similar sharing widget, free tier available
AddToAny — Lightweight sharing buttons with wide platform support
Native share buttons — Use each platform’s official button (best performance)
Web Share API — Browser-native sharing dialog for mobile: navigator.share({title, text, url})

For most sites in 2026, using native platform buttons or the Web Share API provides better performance and privacy than third-party sharing widgets.

Implementing Web Share API

The modern approach to sharing on the web uses the browser’s native sharing dialog:

// Check if Web Share API is supported
if (navigator.share) {
  navigator.share({
    title: 'My Page Title',
    text: 'Check out this article!',
    url: window.location.href
  })
  .then(() => console.log('Shared successfully'))
  .catch((error) => console.log('Sharing failed:', error));
} else {
  // Fallback: copy to clipboard or show custom share menu
  navigator.clipboard.writeText(window.location.href)
    .then(() => alert('Link copied to clipboard!'));
}

Browser support is excellent in 2026 — all major mobile browsers and most desktop browsers support it. For browsers that don’t, provide a clipboard fallback.

Migrating from AddThis

If your site still has AddThis code, remove it and replace with lightweight alternatives:

<!-- Remove this AddThis code -->
<script type="text/javascript" src="//s7.addthis.com/js/300/addthis_widget.js#pubid=ra-xxxxx"></script>

<!-- Replace with simple share links -->
<div class="share-buttons">
  <a href="https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?via=YourHandle&url=ENCODED_URL&text=TITLE" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a>
  <a href="https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=ENCODED_URL" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a>
  <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/shareArticle?mini=true&url=ENCODED_URL" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LinkedIn</a>
</div>

This approach is faster (no external JavaScript), privacy-friendly (no tracking), and works without any third-party service dependencies.

Adding Open Graph Meta Tags

For better social sharing across all platforms, add Open Graph meta tags to your pages:

<meta property="og:title" content="Your Page Title">
<meta property="og:description" content="A brief description of the page">
<meta property="og:image" content="https://example.com/image.jpg">
<meta property="og:url" content="https://example.com/page">
<meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image">
<meta name="twitter:site" content="@YourHandle">

These tags control how your page appears when shared on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other platforms — regardless of which sharing button implementation you use.

Add a Via Parameter to AddThis Tweet Button