How does TikTok's Algorithm Work?

By: Becca Chase

Knowing how it works might just get you TikTok famous.

Picture this. It’s 11 p.m. on a Tuesday and you told yourself that you’d go on TikTok for a couple of minutes before bed. Before you know it, it’s 2 a.m., and you’ve been scrolling for three hours. TikTok’s personalized videos, located on a non-stop scrolling “For You Page,” make it difficult to put the phone down. But have you ever wondered how TikTok curates these videos that seem to be made just for you?

Well, TikTok finally released how it all works!  In June 2020, TikTok released a press statement detailing how the platform utilizes its “For You Page” by measuring interaction and engagement with posts. 

TikTok's algorithm takes advantage of user interaction. If a user tends to interact with an account with cute puppy content, that user is more likely to see content from that specific account on their For You Page, as well as puppy-related content from other recommended accounts. TikTok reads user interactions like liking, posting comments, or sharing content as preferences. 

TikTok also takes into account the amount of time users spend watching a video. If users watch a video in completion compared to watching only a few seconds and then scrolling, that video will be pushed to others as recommended content. That’s why so many content creators on TikTok strive to capture their viewers’ attention until the end. This completion ratio of the video is measured as the most important indicator for the algorithm to push your content compared to other metrics like shares, comments, and likes, in that subsequent order.

Although accounts may have large follower base or previously high viewership on other videos, that does not directly indicate or contribute to its influence in TikTok’s recommendation system. 

If you've watched videos with the song “Glamorous,” for example, or with the hashtag #dancechallenge often, you are more likely to see more videos featuring that sound or hashtag. Actions like tapping "Not Interested" on certain videos, reporting videos that may breach guidelines, or adding a video to your “favorites'' all shape your recommendations in your feed. 

Users'  location, preferred language, and device they are accessing the app on all play a role in shaping recommended videos, but do not hold as much weight as other preference measurements.

You may be asking, “so why does my For You page feature a mix of popular accounts, small creators, and posts with seven likes?” TikTok shows all videos to its interested users. Say an account called cutepuppies101 posted a video of a golden retriever to the sound of “Walking On Sunshine.” TikTok's algorithm would show it to cutepuppies101's followers and those who have engaged and interacted with videos that may have featured the same sound, hashtags, or similar content. From then, depending on how much interaction the video receives, the algorithm will show the video to more viewers, giving it more exposure.
 
Understanding how TikTok’s algorithm works can help guide you to specifically curate your videos for a targeted audience, and maybe even lead you to TikTok stardom.

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