There was a time when nailing the latest dance challenge was the best way to go viral on TikTok. And while dance videos are still popular (think the Charli XCX “Apple” dance created by Kelley Heyer), they haven’t been dominating the platform the way they used to. These days, most TikTokers would pick a niche and create content that’s hyper-specific to it. And to grow your reach, you need to use the right hashtags.
In a nutshell, a TikTok hashtag is a # followed by a keyword, typically one word or more referring to a topic or niche. Some examples include #dogwalking, #workfromhome, amd #financetips. By including relevant TikTok hashtags in your content, you’re informing the app what it’s about. That means your TikToks will be easier to find for people searching those topics, and your videos will be more likely to appear in their feeds.
Now that you know the basics, read on to learn how you can get more views with TikTok hashtags.
How to use TikTok hashtags effectively
Nope, you can’t just pack your TikToks full of trending hashtags and call it a day. Follow the tips below to use TikTok hashtags to the fullest:
- Add hashtags to the caption
- Add hashtags in the comments
- Avoid generic hashtags
- Use both short-tail and long-tail keywords
- Use a mix of popular and smaller hashtags
- Evaluate your content performance regularly
- Look for content gaps
- Adjust your strategy
Tip 1: Add hashtags to the caption
The most basic thing you can do with TikTok hashtags is adding them to the caption of each post. While there’s no hard limit on how many you can include in a post, you should aim to use three to five hashtags. If you use too many hashtags, your content’s discoverability might get dinged. So, make sure the hashtags you use are related to your content.
Tip 2: Add hashtags in the comments
Captions aren’t the only place you can insert hashtags. If you include hashtags in the first few comments after your TikTok goes live, that’ll be just as good as if they were added to the caption. This is especially useful if you’re using long hashtags that eat up your character count.
Tip 3: Avoid generic hashtags
There are some popular hashtags like #fyp, #foryou, or #satisfying that you tend to see over and over again on TikTok. The problem with these hashtags is they’re so generic that they don’t really tell the platform what the tagged content is about. Our advice? Avoid using these generic keywords and use relevant hashtags that are more specific to your content.
Tip 4: Use both short-tail and long-tail keywords
To put it simply, a “short-tail” keyword has more traffic while being less specific to your niche, while a “long-tail” keyword has less traffic while being more specific.
Let’s say you create content about walking dogs. A hashtag like #dogs is a short-tail keyword, while #professionaldogwalker is a long-tail keyword. The former may bring in views from more general viewers and dog lovers, while the latter may attract viewers specifically interested in your niche.
Tip 5: Use a mix of popular and smaller hashtags
After doing your research, you’ll probably find that some TikTok hashtags receive tons of views, while others have less views. With that in mind, should you just be using the hashtags that have the most views?
Not really. Just because a keyword has a ton of views now, it doesn’t mean that’s always going to be the case. Not only that, but keywords with more views are usually less specific to your content. So, try to mix it up.
Tip 6: Evaluate your content performance regularly
Set aside an hour or two every week to review the TikTok content you’ve published recently. For instance, check how many views and comments you’ve been getting. Are you seeing a pattern? Do some hashtags work better than others? Use these takeaways to determine what type of content you should create next, and which hashtags you should use.
Tip 7: Look for content gaps
In SEO (search engine optimization) terms, a “content gap” refers to keywords or topics in your niche that you haven’t targeted yet. They might have slipped by unnoticed while you were doing your research, or they might have emerged from recent trends. You can highlight these content gaps by looking at other creators in your niche and comparing their content to yours. Pay close attention to hashtags showing up in their content that you haven’t used yet.
Tip 8: Adjust your hashtag strategy
It’s important to make adjustments to your TikTok hashtag strategy over time. Are you using the right mix of long-tail and short-tail keywords? Are you using too many hashtags? Maybe your next piece of content needs to put a bit more emphasis on one category or the other. The more content you create on a regular basis, the better chances you have to tinker with your strategy over time.
How to search for trending TikTok hashtags
Before you even touch the # key on your keyboard, you need to do a bit of research. Not all hashtags are created equal, and you need to use the right ones in order for your content to get more reach. Here are a few ways to find and choose hashtags that’ll work for you:
- Use the search bar
- See what hashtags other TikTok creators are using
- Use the TikTok Creative Center to find trending hashtags
- Pay attention to the hashtags brands are using
- Get inspiration from your audience
Use the search bar
When you search for something on TikTok, you can choose between six types of results: Top, Users, Videos, Sounds, LIVE, and Hashtags. Hit the Hashtags tab, and you’ll see a list of popular hashtags related to whatever you enter in the search bar. You’ll also see the number of views each hashtag has. This is one of the easiest ways to compile relevant hashtags for your content needs.
See what hashtags other TikTok creators are using
No matter what your niche is, chances are there are other creators making similar content as yours. What kind of hashtags are they using now? Which ones did they use in the past? Their current content will give you an idea of hashtags worth trying now, while their older content might tell you what hashtags worked for them in the past — or even what you should avoid.
Use the TikTok Creative Center to find trending hashtags
The TikTok Creative Center is made for brands that advertise on TikTok, but creators can use it for research, too. The Trend Discovery tool allows you to find the most popular TikTok hashtags for your content, see how many views they’re getting, and how many posts they’re used in. If you click on a hashtag, you’ll also see how interest in it has grown over time, the age groups most interested in it, related interests, and more.
Pay attention to the hashtags brands are using
Find brands that create content at least tangentially related to your niche, and you can get a good idea of the hashtags you should be using. These brands have full-time employees who spend hours each week researching hashtags to optimize their content. Keep an eye on these accounts and you’ll find hashtags you should be using as well.
Get inspiration from your audience
There’s nothing wrong with snooping around on your followers a bit — marketers call that market research! Go through a few of your followers’ profiles, looking at the kinds of videos they’re posting. What hashtags are they using? Better yet, go look at some of the content from other creators they follow and grab those hashtags.
Top 50 TikTok hashtags in 2024
- #tiktok
- #tiktokchallenge
- #tiktokviral
- #tiktoktravel
- #tik_tok
- #tiktoktraditions
- #tiktokers
- #love
- #lovegoals
- #lovestory
- #lovesong
- #like
- #likeforlike
- #follow
- #followme
- #followers
- #aesthetic
- #viral
- #viralpost
- #fyp
- #foryoupage
- #meme
- #funny
- #funnyvideos
- #cute
- #fun
- #music
- #musically
- #happy
- #fashion
- #fashiontiktok
- #fashioninspiration
- #fashiondesigner
- #comedy
- #tiktokcomedy
- #comedyvideo
- #comedychallenge
- #featureme
- #followforfollowback
- #tiktokchallenge
- #challenge
- #tiktokmademebuyit
- #repost
- #viralvideos
- #momsoftiktok
- #dadsoftiktok
- #prank
- #family
- #justforfun
- #tiktokcringe
Benefits of using TikTok hashtags
So why bother with TikTok hashtags at all? Well, it turns out they can do a lot for you. Here are just some benefits of researching and including hashtags in your TikTok content:
Get more views
The biggest benefit of using the right TikTok hashtags is getting a lift in views. That’s because you don’t just hitch your TikTok wagon to a success train, but using TikTok hashtags is essential for TikTok SEO.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is what makes your TikToks easier to find, and brings you more views. Great content can still get views without popular hashtags or SEO, but all content gets more views with the right hashtags.
Find communities
When you’re doing your TikTok hashtag research, something interesting is guaranteed to happen: you’ll discover communities you didn’t even know existed. Whether it’s beauty creators who specialize in #sfxmakeup or the gravity-defying pros of #bouldering, TikTok hashtags are great for finding new niches you’ll have a blast exploring. That means new ideas for content, new niches to look into, and new creators you can potentially collaborate with.
Get unlimited ideas
One of the best ways to grow on TikTok is to create consistently, and that requires having a ton of ideas constantly. And some days, when you’re trying to come up with those ideas, you might come up blank.
So start searching for hashtags. Not only will you find hashtags you can use for SEO and building views, but you’ll also be exposed to lots of content across a variety of niches. And because you’re not actively trying to come up with ideas, your brain will take in what you’re seeing and work on ideas in the background. Next thing you know, a fresh new idea might pop up!
Connect with other creators
By searching up niche hashtags, you’ll find other TikTok creators with similar interests as yours. That’s not only amazing for getting new content ideas, but it’s also great for building your network.
It works the other way, too. By including the right hashtags to your content, you make your profile more easily discoverable for other TikTok creators and users.
Spot trends
Jumping onto the right trend can bring you a ton of views and new followers. And, instead of noticing trends while passively scrolling through TikTok, you can go out hunting for them.
TikTok trends usually create trending hashtags. So, a great way to keep an eye on trends is to regularly look for viral TikTok hashtags and pay attention to the ones with the most views.
Step up your TikTok SEO game
Using hashtags is one of the best ways to signal to TikTok what your content is about. So, take the time to do your research, compile a good mix of short-tail and long-tail keywords, and adjust your hashtag strategy as you create. By including the right hashtags in your content, you’ll likely get a lot more traction on TikTok.
Want to increase your reach on TikTok? Get our free TikTok SEO Cheat Sheet for more creator-approved tips.
TikTok hashtags FAQ
What are TikTok hashtags?
TikTok hashtags are keywords — one word or more — that follow the # symbol. They’re added to TikTok content so the search engine can pick them up and deliver relevant content to people when they’re browsing these hashtags.
How do you use hashtags on TikTok?
Adding hashtags to your TikToks is as simple as hitting the # symbol when writing up a video caption and adding the relevant keywords. Once you publish your TikTok, those keywords will be your hashtags. You can use hashtags in a few more ways, too:
- Adding them to comments
- Mentioning them in your TikTok’s title
- Saying them out loud in your TikTok
- Mix popular hashtags with niche hashtags
- Use the same hashtags as other creators in your niche
- Jump on trending hashtags
How do you find TikTok hashtags?
There are more than a few ways to find hashtags for your content. First, search up any keyword in TikTok, and hit the Hashtags tab. You’ll see a list of hashtags related to that keyword and the number of views they have. Try using some of those! You can also use TikTok’s Trend Discovery Tool to do deep dives on specific hashtags.
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Further reading
- TikTok SEO: 8 Tips To Help Your TikTok Videos Rank High in Search
- How To Get More TikTok Followers: 12 Simple Hacks
- What Are the Best Times to Post on TikTok?
- TikTok Money Calculator: Estimate How Much You Can Earn as a Creator
This article was originally published in January 2023, and updated in July 2024 with additional information.