TikTok is a popular short-form video app that has seen tremendous growth since launching in 2016. As of January 2023, TikTok has over 1 billion monthly active users globally (source). In the United States alone, TikTok has over 150 million monthly active users as of 2022 (source).
With its huge userbase, TikTok offers robust capabilities for users to search and discover new content. You can search by keywords, hashtags, sounds, and most importantly – specific users. This allows you to easily find and follow creators that match your interests. TikTok’s search features make it simple to explore the vast amount of videos on the platform.
Searching for a User
To search for a specific user’s profile and videos on TikTok, tap the search icon at the top right of your screen and enter the exact username into the search bar. Then tap “Search” or hit enter. This will pull up the user’s profile page, as well as any public videos posted by that user. You can also tap on the username within a video caption to be taken directly to that user’s profile.
For the most effective username searches, make sure you enter the exact spelling and capitalization. Usernames are case-sensitive. If you can’t find a user, check if there are any spaces before or after the username and remove them. You can also try searching for just the first portion of longer usernames.
According to TikTok’s help center article, “Discover and search,” the search bar allows you to search for specific users as well as sounds, hashtags, captions, and more on the platform. The article states, “Be as specific as possible when entering search terms” (https://support.tiktok.com/en/using-tiktok/exploring-videos/discover-and-search).
Following Users
Following other users is an important part of the TikTok experience, as it allows you to see more content from creators you enjoy in your For You feed. When you follow someone, you’ll start seeing their new videos, LIVE streams, and posts in your Following feed.
To follow someone on TikTok:
- Go to their profile page by tapping on their profile picture or username.
- Tap the “Follow” button next to their username. The button will turn blue once you’ve followed them.
- You can also tap the “+” icon on their videos to follow them directly from the video screen.
Once you follow a user, you’ll see a “Following” label under their profile name. To unfollow them, just tap “Following” and confirm you want to unfollow.
Following creators you enjoy is a great way to customize your TikTok feed and see more of the content you love. Just be sure not to go overboard following too many accounts, or your feed may get too crowded.
Hashtags and Mentions
One way to search for videos related to a specific TikTok user is by using hashtags and @ mentions associated with that user. Hashtags play a huge role on TikTok as they help surface videos to a wider audience. By default, TikTok displays trending hashtags on the Discover page which can give you ideas of hashtags to search related to a particular user. You can also type a username into the search bar followed by a hashtag to see videos using that hashtag from a specific user. For example, searching “@charlidamelio #foryoupage” would show Charli Damelio’s videos using the hashtag #foryoupage.
Including @ mentions is another way to find content about or featuring a certain user. If you type “@charlidamelio” in the TikTok search bar, for instance, you will be shown videos that either were created by Charli Damelio or @ mention her in their captions or comments. This can help you discover more collaborations, reactions, and other videos relevant to a particular user.
According to Hootsuite, the most relevant hashtag and @mention search results will appear under the Top tab, while trending hashtags related to your search term can be found under the Hashtags tab. So utilizing targeted hashtags and @ mentions associated with a TikTok user is an effective way to dig up more videos about or related to them on the platform.
Sounds
One way to search for specific users on TikTok is by searching for sounds that they have used in their videos. Each video on TikTok uses an audio clip or sound, and you can search for users who have created videos featuring a particular sound.
To search by sound, tap the search icon on the top right of the TikTok app and select the “Sounds” tab. Here you will see trending sounds as well as a search bar to look up specific sounds. Type in the name of the sound you want to find.
This will bring up a page showing that sound, along with a feed of videos using it. You can scroll through to find users who have used that sound. Their username will be displayed underneath their video. Tap on their username to open their profile and see more of their content.
Searching by sound is a great way to discover new creators and content around a specific meme, song, or audio clip. It allows you to explore users who have been inspired by the same sounds.
Duets and Reactions
One way to find collaborations and reaction videos related to a specific user on TikTok is through Duets and Reactions. The Duets feature allows users to record a video alongside another user’s existing video, while the Reactions feature lets users react to others’ videos side-by-side.
To find duets and reactions related to a particular user, go to their profile and tap on the “Duets” or “Reactions” tab. This will display a feed of all videos that have used that user’s original content to create a duet or reaction video. You can scroll through to see collaborations and responses from other creators.
Duets and reactions are a great way to see how a user’s content inspires creativity in the TikTok community. It lets you discover new angles on their videos, comedy sketches reacting to their posts, and musical collaborations using their sounds. Using these features can uncover a whole realm of videos related to a specific user beyond just their own uploads.
However, it’s worth noting that searching by duets and reactions is limited to content associated with a user’s own videos. There is no universal search to find duets or reactions associated with any video or audio clip on TikTok.
Comments
One way to search for a specific TikTok user is by looking through their comment history. Users who comment on videos leave a traceable record of their engagement. By clicking on a user’s profile and navigating to their comments tab, you can see a chronological list of all the videos they have commented on.[1] This allows you to discover new videos and creators that a user has interacted with.
Viewing a user’s comments can provide insight into their interests and what type of content they engage with on TikTok. For example, if a cooking channel replies to a user’s comment, you could deduce that the user is likely interested in cooking videos and creators. Their comment history becomes a trail you can follow to potentially find more videos and accounts to explore based on their interactions.
Likes
There is no direct way to see all the videos a specific user has liked on TikTok. TikTok does not have a feature that shows a complete list of videos liked by a user. This is to protect user privacy.
However, there are some workarounds:
- You can look on the user’s profile page and scroll through their “Liked” videos section. However, this only shows a limited number of recently liked videos.
- If you tap on a specific video, you can see the list of people who liked that video by tapping the heart icon. So you can scroll through videos and check each one to see if the user you’re searching for liked it.
- You can use third party websites like FollowSpyro that claim to show likes of TikTok users. However, the data may not be fully accurate or up-to-date.
In summary, there is no perfect solution. TikTok intentionally limits the ability to see a complete list of liked videos to protect user privacy. Checking individual videos for likes or using third party tools are the only workarounds.
Challenges
Another way to find videos of a specific TikTok user is by searching for challenges they have participated in. On TikTok, challenges go viral when users create videos using the same sounds, hashtags, or concepts.
To find if a user has done a popular challenge, search the challenge hashtag and their username. For example, searching #FlipTheSwitchChallenge @charlidamelio would show results of Charli D’Amelio’s video for that challenge. TikTok’s search allows combining a challenge hashtag with a username to narrow results.
Challenges can be a great way to discover new content from a favorite TikTok creator. You can see their unique take on a viral trend by searching the challenge hashtag and their username. This works for both audio and dance challenges which users reproduce in their own style.
However, keep in mind that TikTok’s search feature has limitations. It may not surface all of a user’s challenge videos, especially if the video doesn’t use the official hashtag. Checking a user’s own profile is the best way to see all of their content. But searching challenges can unearth gems you may have otherwise missed.
TikTok Search Limitations
TikTok’s search functionality has some limitations that can make it difficult to find specific users or content. Here are some of the main issues with searching by username on TikTok:
- Usernames are not indexed by TikTok’s search engine, so searching a username directly will not bring up a user’s profile. You have to already be following someone to find them by searching their username.
- If a user has deactivated their account, it is no longer searchable at all on TikTok.
- TikTok’s search algorithm prioritizes showing trending, popular content. This means search results are not always comprehensive.
- There is no advanced search function to narrow results by username, filters, etc.
In summary, the best way to find someone on TikTok is to already know and follow their username. Otherwise, it can be quite difficult to search for a specific person unless their content is consistently going viral. TikTok’s search is geared more towards discovering new, trending content rather than locating specific users. To improve searchability, it’s recommended for users to establish a consistent branded username, use relevant hashtags, post frequently, and cross-promote their account on other platforms.
Source: https://www.socialexperttips.com/why-cant-i-find-someones-username-in-tiktok/
