Finding someone on TikTok without their username can be valuable for connecting with friends, family members, or interesting accounts you’ve stumbled upon. With over 1.5 billion monthly active users as of 2023 according to Businessofapps, TikTok has become one of the most popular social media platforms. There are several creative methods to locate TikTok users without knowing their exact username, which this guide will cover in detail.
In this article, we’ll outline actionable techniques to help track down a TikTok account using just a name, a photo, recent posts, followers lists, suggested accounts, location tags, third-party websites, TikTok support, and contacts. With the right detective work, you can find almost anyone on TikTok without their unique handle.
Search by Name
TikTok has a search bar at the top of the app where you can type in the name of the person you’re trying to find. When you type in a full name, TikTok will show results for accounts with that name in their username or display name. The search is pretty straightforward, but can yield many results if it’s a common name.
To narrow it down, add details to your search query like a location, interest, or other identifying keywords. For example, searching “John Smith Los Angeles” or “John Smith Guitar” could help find a specific person. You can also filter the results by account type to only show verified accounts or people.
Additionally, you can tap on the name result itself and select “View @ usernames” to only see accounts that have that name in their username. This is the most precise way to identify someone by name on TikTok.
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How TikTok Search Works
Search Recent Posts
One way to find someone on TikTok without their username is to browse through recent posts by location or hashtag. Here’s how:
Go to the Discover page and tap on the search bar. Instead of entering a search term, tap on the filters icon on the right. From here, you can filter by location to see recent posts from a specific city, state, or country.
You can also filter by hashtag to view recent posts using a specific hashtag. For example, filtering by #sunset will show you recent sunset photos and videos.
Once you apply a location or hashtag filter, scroll through the results looking for the person you want to find. This method allows you to scan through recent content to try and spot someone you know.
Keep in mind that browsing through posts this way can be time consuming. You may have to scroll through a lot of content before (and if) you find the person you’re looking for. Using additional search filters like date posted or number of likes can help narrow down the results.
View Follower Lists
If you know the username of the person you’re searching for, you can view their follower and following lists to look for mutual connections. On their profile, tap on “Followers” or “Following” to see the full lists of accounts.
Scan through these lists of followers and followings for any familiar names of people you know. Since mutual followers often know each other in real life, spotting usernames of your own connections can help reveal the identity of the account owner. You can also try tapping into specific followers and repeating the process to map out an interconnected social graph.
For example, if you notice “@friend” in the list of followers, you can check “@friend’s” own followers and followings to see if any mutual connections emerge. Examining the followers and followings of known connections can allow you to gradually discover the identity of an unknown account.
Use Suggested Accounts
TikTok has a “Suggested” section that recommends accounts for you to follow based on your contacts and activity. TikTok accesses your contact list and matches it against other TikTok users to generate these recommendations (Source). So if someone in your contacts is on TikTok, their account may appear in your Suggested even if you haven’t connected with them yet.
To browse Suggested accounts for people you may know, go to your profile and tap the user icon in the top-right. Then tap “Suggested” and scroll through the list of accounts. Look for familiar names, profile pictures, or usernames of people in your contacts. Tapping “Follow” on any account will connect you with that user on TikTok.
Search Videos by Location
Another way to find someone on TikTok without their username is to search videos by location. TikTok has a geo-tagging feature that allows creators to add location information to their videos. You can search for videos taken at a specific location using TikTok’s built-in search tools.
To search by location, tap the discover icon on the bottom toolbar in the TikTok app. This will bring up the Discover page. Tap the search bar at the top and type in a location, such as a city name or neighborhood. TikTok will show you videos that have been geo-tagged with that location. You can scroll through the results to see if any of the videos feature the person you’re trying to find.
You can narrow down the location search even further to find more targeted results. For example, instead of searching for “Los Angeles”, try searching for “Venice Beach, Los Angeles”. This will show you only videos tagged at Venice Beach. The more specific the location, the fewer (but more relevant) results you’ll get. So pinpoint locations like a park, monument, building, or street corner if you want to maximize your chances of finding someone.
Just keep in mind that location tagging is optional on TikTok, so not every video will have geographic metadata. But searching by location can be a helpful way to uncover TikTok users in your local area or places you know someone frequents.
Use Third-Party Websites
As TikTok does not provide advanced search features, many third-party websites have emerged offering tools to search TikTok profiles more effectively. These websites allow searching by username, name, location, hashtag, caption keywords and more. Some popular options include TrendTok Analytics & Tracker, Exolyt, Keyhole, quintly, and Upfluence (TikTok Brings Account Management To Third-Party Tools).
The main benefits of using third-party search tools are providing more advanced search filters, analytics, and tracking of TikTok metrics. This allows businesses and marketers to gain valuable insights into growth opportunities. However, some limitations are that most third-party tools are paid subscriptions, and users have to grant access for them to search your profile data. There are also concerns about data privacy when using external services. But many reputable tools comply with privacy policies and allow revoking access. Overall, third-party tools open up more possibilities for finding profiles and analyzing performance.
Contact TikTok Support
If you are unable to locate someone’s profile through searching TikTok directly, you can submit an information request to TikTok Support to ask for assistance finding a particular user. According to TikTok’s Information Requests Report, law enforcement and government agencies can formally request information from TikTok to aid investigations.
To submit an information request, you will need to provide valid legal process such as a subpoena, court order, or warrant. Requests must be submitted through the online law enforcement request system or via email to [email protected]. TikTok requires a signed court order before disclosing any user information.
The types of information TikTok can provide in response to a valid information request includes basic subscriber information, log files, user-generated content, and limited profile information such as username, profile bio, profile picture, and date of account creation. However, they do not release passwords or financial information. Each request is reviewed to ensure it satisfies applicable legal requirements before any user data is disclosed.
Seek Help from Contacts
Another option is to ask your friends, family members, and other contacts if they are familiar with the TikTok account you are trying to find. Many people use TikTok regularly, so someone in your network may already be following the account or have interacted with their videos.
You can send out a message in your group chats or post on your own social media accounts asking if anyone knows the TikTok handle you are looking for. Be sure to provide any details you have about the account, like the name of the person, type of content they post, or any usernames they may use across platforms.
Crowdsourcing the information from your own social network can be an effective way to track down a TikTok account. Your contacts may be able to provide the exact username, recent videos the account has posted, or other helpful clues that aid your search. Leveraging your personal connections gives you an advantage in finding TikTok accounts you only have limited information about.
Just be mindful not to spam your contacts with repeated requests. Target your inquiries to the people most likely to know the account and provide enough context so they can assist you if possible. With some help from your friends or followers on other social platforms, you may be able to identify the TikTok account profile you’ve been looking for.
Conclusion
There are various methods you can use to find someone on TikTok without knowing their username. The main techniques covered in this article include searching by the person’s name, looking through their recent posts and followers lists, using suggested accounts and location tags, and utilizing third-party websites.
Here are some additional tips when trying to locate someone on TikTok:
- Try alternative spellings of the person’s name if you cannot find them at first.
- Look through the comments sections on relevant videos – the person may have commented there.
- Use social media connections to reach out to the person or their contacts who may know their TikTok handle.
- If you have an approximate age or location for the person, filter search results accordingly.
- Check back regularly as new accounts and posts are added daily to TikTok.
With some creative thinking and persistent searching through the various methods covered, you should be able to find someone on TikTok even without knowing their exact username. Just stay patient and keep trying different approaches until you locate their account.
