TikTok is a popular short-form video social media app with over 1 billion monthly active users worldwide. On TikTok, users can follow other accounts to see their content in their Following feed. The Following feed shows all the latest videos from accounts a user follows in chronological order. Tapping on the Following tab at the bottom of the app opens the feed.
The Following feed allows users to easily stay updated on new videos and content from their favorite creators. It operates similarly to the feeds on other social platforms like Instagram and Facebook. Understanding how the Following feed orders videos can help users better manage who they follow and what content they see.
Default Following Order
By default, TikTok displays the following list in reverse chronological order. This means the most recent accounts you followed appear at the top of the list. As you scroll down, you’ll see the accounts you followed earlier and earlier over time.
According to this source, when you follow a new account on TikTok, it gets added to the top of your following list. So the newest follows are always at the top.
This chronological ordering applies across platforms and devices. Regardless of if you’re viewing your following list on an iPhone, Android, desktop, etc., the default reverse chronological order remains the same.
Factors That Influence Order
There are several factors that can influence the order of someone’s following list on TikTok:
Most Interacted With
Accounts that you have the most interactions with recently, like liking, commenting, duetting, etc. will show up higher in your following list. TikTok’s algorithm favors accounts it thinks you engage with the most.[1]
New Follows
New accounts that you just recently followed will show up at the top of your following list. The most recent follows get pushed to the top.[2]
Location in Lists
If you add accounts to custom Lists on your profile, this can influence their order in your main following feed. Accounts in Lists may get sorted separately.
Suggested & Promoted
TikTok may bump suggested accounts or Verified/promoted accounts higher in your feed, even if you didn’t recently interact with them.
Viewing Profiles
Frequently visiting someone’s profile may place them higher in your following feed.
Direct Messaging
Having active conversations with an account via Direct Message may also influence their position.
Most Interacted With
The accounts you engage with the most are often pushed to the top of your following list on TikTok. This includes accounts you view frequently, comment on, and interact with in direct messages. TikTok’s algorithm tracks your activity and engagement to determine which accounts to rank higher in your following list. The more you interact with a user’s content, the more likely their account will appear near the top of the list.
According to High Social, the accounts someone engages with most frequently tend to float to the top. Engagement can include watching their videos, commenting, liking, sharing, or messaging. So if you find yourself regularly interacting with certain creators, chances are you’ll see them at the top of your following list.
New Follows
Accounts that a user has recently followed will appear at the top of the Following list briefly before being reordered based on other factors. According to this source, newly followed accounts will remain at the top of your Following list for around 24 hours after initially being followed. After that initial period, other factors like engagement and location come into play in determining the order of accounts in your Following feed.
So in summary, if you want to see the accounts someone has most recently followed, check towards the top of their Following list. Those newest follows will be pinned there temporarily before getting shuffled into the main feed order.
Location in Lists
The order of accounts in custom Lists also impacts their position in your main following feed. According to High Social, if you add someone to a List like “Close Friends,” they will appear towards the top of your following feed. TikTok’s algorithm recognizes that you specifically added that account to a List, so it assumes you want to see their content more often. Therefore, accounts in custom Lists get priority in your main feed over accounts not in Lists. The more Lists an account is added to, the higher up it will appear. This allows you to curate your Following feed by strategically adding certain accounts to Lists.
Suggested & Promoted
TikTok’s algorithm will suggest accounts for you to follow based on your interests and activity. These suggested accounts may appear within your Following list (TikTok Help Center). Suggested accounts are identified with a badge that says “Suggested Account.”
TikTok states that suggestions come from accounts followed by those you already follow, accounts with content similar to what you view, and popular accounts in your area. However, some users suspect TikTok looks at phone contacts and other sources (Reddit).
In addition to algorithmic suggestions, promoted accounts may also appear. These are accounts that pay TikTok to get suggested to users. Promoted accounts have a badge that says “Promoted.”
You can turn off suggested accounts in your settings. However, promoted accounts may still be displayed even if suggestions are disabled.
Viewing Profiles
Viewing someone’s profile on TikTok will move them higher in your following list order. When you view a user’s profile, TikTok considers that engagement and will prioritize showing that account higher in your list. According to an article on Remote Tools, “TikTok bumps up people in your Following list when you view their profiles. It assumes you want to see more of them if you took the time to visit their page.”
So if you view someone’s profile that you recently followed, they will likely move closer to the top of your following list, ahead of other people you followed earlier but have not engaged with recently. This allows TikTok to surface accounts you seem most interested in higher in your feed and following list 1.
Direct Messaging
Messaging someone on TikTok through direct messages can also impact their placement on your Following list. According to TikTok’s Help Center, you can send direct messages to anyone, even if they don’t follow you back [1]. When you message an account you follow, this interaction may move them higher up in your Following list.
TikTok notes that messages from accounts you don’t follow will show up in a separate Message Requests folder. Interacting with these accounts by accepting the message request and replying may also move them up your Following list.
Overall, direct messaging creates engagement between you and the account. TikTok seems to prioritize accounts you frequently interact with through likes, comments, shares, and messages. So direct messaging can be one way to move a followed account higher in your Following list.
Conclusion
TikTok’s default following list is ordered algorithmically based on factors like user interactions and activity. New follows tend to appear at the top while those you engage with often stay near the top. Suggested and promoted accounts may also get priority placement. While you can’t manually reorder your whole following list, you can find specific users through search and profiles. Overall, TikTok curates your For You feed and following list to show you more of what you like. But you have options to further customize who you see.
In summary, TikTok’s algorithm aims to optimize your experience by highlighting the accounts you engage with most. While you can’t completely control the order, you can influence it by interacting with certain users more. By understanding how TikTok prioritizes follows, you can make the most of your tailored For You feed and connections.
