Overview of Private TikTok Accounts
A private account on TikTok means that the account holder’s profile information, videos, likes, comments, and other account details are only visible to followers who have been approved by the account holder (What is the difference between public and private videos on the TikTok app?). Users typically make their accounts private for increased privacy and to limit visibility of their content to people they don’t know. Having a private account allows TikTok users, especially younger users, to exercise more control over who can view and interact with their videos and account (TikTok changes privacy settings for kids under 18).
Profile Information
When a TikTok account is set to private, only the account’s approved followers can see the full profile information, including the profile photo, name, bio, number of followers, number of accounts following, total likes, and total videos. People who are not followers of the private account can still see limited profile information like the profile photo, name, and bio, but not the number of followers, following, likes, or videos [1].
TikTok always shows a user’s name, username and profile photo publicly, even on private accounts. But private profiles hide more sensitive metrics like follower counts. This allows users to keep their account information private while still having a public presence on the platform [2].
Videos
When a TikTok account is set to private, only approved followers can view that account’s videos. However, those followers do not have the ability to comment on or duet/stitch those private videos.
According to TikTok’s support page, “Only approved followers can see your private videos on your profile” (https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/account-privacy-settings/making-your-account-public-or-private). The account owner gets to approve or deny each follow request, so they have full control over who can access their private content.
While followers can see private videos, TikTok notes that “your followers won’t get notifications when you post, and they won’t be able to comment on or duet/stitch your private videos” (https://support.tiktok.com/en/account-and-privacy/account-privacy-settings/making-your-account-public-or-private). This gives creators more privacy and control.
Likes and Comments
One of the main features of making your TikTok account private is that others cannot see the videos you have liked or the comments you have made on videos. When your account is set to private, your likes and comments remain private and are not visible to anyone else on TikTok.
This means if you like or comment on a video from another user while your account is private, that user will not be notified or be able to see that you interacted with their content. Your likes and comments on both public and private accounts will not show up for others to view.
According to TikTok’s support article, “Only you can see the videos you’ve liked while your account is set to private.” Comments you make are also only visible to you. So having a private account allows you to freely interact with content while controlling what others see about your activity.
Searchability
Private TikTok accounts and their videos do not show up when searching on TikTok or external search engines like Google. This is one of the main benefits of making an account private – it prevents random users from finding you or your content through searches.
According to an article on How to View Private TikTok Accounts, “Private TikTok accounts won’t show up in searches so strangers can’t find your profile or content.” Videos posted to a private account also won’t appear in hashtags or results even if they use trending sounds. Essentially, making an account private removes it from being indexed and discoverable through any search functions.
The only way for someone to find a private account’s content is if they are already following that user or have a direct link to a specific video. Otherwise, searches on TikTok and other platforms will not display private accounts or their videos.
Direct Messages
You can send direct messages to a private TikTok account, but only if you and the private account are following each other. According to TikTok’s Help Center, in order to send a direct message, you must tap the Inbox icon at the bottom of the app, then tap on the user’s name that you want to message (source). If you do not follow each other, you will not have the option to message a private account.
Additionally, according to Online Help Guide, in order to message a private account that does not follow you back, you need to send them a follow request first. Once they accept your request and follow you back, you will then be able to send direct messages back and forth (source).
Following/Followers List
On a private TikTok account, only mutual followers are visible on your Following and Followers lists (Source). This means people who don’t also follow you back cannot see who you follow or who follows you. Your Following and Followers counts will still be visible to anyone, but only people you mutually follow can see the specific accounts. This gives private account users more control over their follower lists privacy.
Making an account private is the only way to hide your Following and Followers lists from non-mutuals on TikTok. There are no settings to selectively hide these lists like on other platforms. So a private account ensures follower lists stay between mutuals.
Duets and Stiches
One limitation of having a private TikTok account is that other users cannot Duet or Stitch your videos. Duets allow users to post reaction videos side-by-side with another user’s video. Stitches enable combining your own video with someone else’s content. However, if your account is private, others will not be able to Duet or Stitch your videos. This gives you more control over how your content is used, but reduces the potential for your videos to go viral through remixes by the larger TikTok community.
Livestreams
One feature limited to a private TikTok account’s followers is livestreaming. When an account is set to private, only approved followers will be able to view livestreams hosted by that account.1 This allows creators to broadcast live content to their followers without making it public to all of TikTok. Livestreams can include Q&As, behind-the-scenes footage, announcements, or any other real-time engagement a creator wants to have just with their followers.
Additionally, livestreams hosted by private accounts do not show up on TikTok’s public “Live Now” page where anyone can discover current livestreams. This functionality keeps the private account’s live content exclusive to only approved followers.
Making an Account Private
To make a TikTok account private in the app, follow these simple steps:
1. Tap on your profile icon in the bottom right corner of the app.
2. Tap on the 3-line menu icon in the top right corner.
3. Select “Privacy and safety” from the menu.
4. Toggle the “Private account” setting to on.
Before making your account private, it’s important to know:
– When private, only your followers can view or interact with your videos and profile.
– New followers will need approval to see your private content.
– Your likes, shares, and comments on other videos will remain visible.
– You won’t appear in search results or recommendations to new users.
– You can still share video links directly with other users.
Making your account private allows more control over who sees your content. Just be aware it limits potential new followers.
