How to Search on TikTok

TikTok has an enormous library of videos that will drive your sense of time away the moment you start scrolling. In just a few minutes, you will watch over thousands of videos that keep coming out one by one. But let us say you have watched a video about a place that serves the best coffee or how to make your favorite dessert, and then it disappears amidst the large TikTok library. What to do?

Is there a chance to find it, or will you have to wait till this video comes up again if you are lucky, to watch it? Well, the good news we are talking about here, is yes, there is a way to find your preferred content. You can search TikTok for a certain video, hashtags, etc… So, what about leveling up your TikTok experience from browsing and watching whatever this enjoyable platform suggests to being in control of what you would like to watch?

Here, in this article, we will talk about how to search on TikTok by discovering various methods such as searching for filters, effects, people and other ways. Keep reading to get the full picture and save time while looking for a specific topic or video on TikTok.

How to Access the TikTok Search Bar

Accessing the TikTok search bar is quite different from other platforms such as Instagram. In Instagram, for example, if you browse the platform on your phone app, you will find the search bar on the bottom left side next to the home icon. If you browse it on your desktop, it will appear on the vertical left side under the home icon. Simple, clear, and straightforward.

However, TikTok has a different story. So, how to find it?

There are two slightly different ways to access the TikTok search bar. The first is from a desktop, and the second is from the app on your phone.

• Open the browser, and type www.tiktok.com into the URL address.
• On the home page, you can locate the search bar on the top of the screen
• To start searching, type what you are looking for in the search bar, and then hit enter.
• Open the TikTok application from your phone. You will find several icons located at the bottom of your app.
• Click on the “Discover” which is the magnifying glass symbol.
• At the top of the Discover search, you will find the search bar.
• Tap on it to search for whatever you need.

How to Search on TikTok

As we mentioned before, knowing how to search is essential. It saves time and gets you what you need better. It is entertaining to keep browsing TikTok videos, but sometimes you want to see a specific video or look for a certain topic, so search and filters come in handy to know how to use them.

Now, that we know how to find and locate the search bar in TikTok, let us know more about how to search in TikTok. How do we get the results we need or how to refine our search to get the exact video? There are various ways to refine your search. Here, we have them in detail. You can also buy TikTok views to boost your videos!

Search for Videos

Do you want to avoid scrolling down and watching all the TikTok suggested videos that appear on the feed? Then, start refining what you see, and search for what you want.

It is easy and requires a few steps. Here are how to search for videos on TikTok:

• Launch the TikTok app on your phone.
• Locate the search bar.
• Tap on the search bar, and type what you are looking for. You can type anything the same way you search on Instagram.
• Many results will appear, and you will find tabs on top.
• Slide to the video tab, and you will get the most trending and highest-ranking videos. Of course, related to the searched topic.
• Browse the list you get, and click on the video you wish to watch.

Of course, the results that you will get depend on the way you search. So, in order to get the closest and most proper results, try to be accurate and to the point.

So, let us say, that if you want to know more about how to spend your holiday in Turkey, you can type “holiday places in Turkey” or “Spend a vacation in Turkey” and you will get results about places in Turkey that are considered good options to spend vacations in.

Search for Filters

Filters usage in TikTok videos might be purely for fun, to add an aesthetic touch, or add to the meaning of the message the video is trying to convey. Therefore, it is essential for any video creator and TikTok users to know how to search, apply and use filters.
Using the right filter will enhance the visibility, visuality and overall video outlook and make it more appealing, and indeed the opposite may result in a negative impact.

Another important thing we need to add here before moving forward is pointing out the difference between filters and effects.

Filters have to do with the color of the video only. So, you may apply the filter you believe appeals more to the video and its content. Now, going back to finding and searching for filters on TikTok. The process is simple and easy. Only in a few steps will you find the filter you seek.

These steps are:

• Launch the app and open it.
• On the bottom, you will find the “+” button. Tap on it.
• Now, you can create a new video and access the filter gallery.
• Here, you will find different filters and effects in the effect gallery. To browse the available filters, you need to slide and view them horizontally.
• Alternatively, you have the option to type on the search bar you find on this page the filter you are seeking. You may type a single word such as “fun”, “vintage”, “beauty”, etc.
• You can preview the filter and see how it will look when you apply it. You can also browse the different variations of the filter you picked.
• Once you preview the filter and like it, you can apply it.

Search for Effects

Effects add to the video as well and are fun to have. They may cause the high views of a certain video, if used properly of course. How many times, do you come across an effect you like, but since you did not save the video, you can not find it?

Guess what, you can locate any effect you like by searching using a single word only on the search bar. The best part of searching effects on TikTok is that while searching, you will get various effects as a result, and you will find effects that are probably new to you.

Here is how to search for an effect in TikTok:

• Type the name of the specific effect on the search bar. The name of the effect is displayed on the video that is using it. It will appear on the lower left-hand side.
• In case you can not remember the name, type a word that describes it. No matter how plain it is. You will get results related to the word.
• The first results you will get will be matching the exact name. Then, you will get the top-performing effects.

What is nice about searching for effects on TikTok is that you can see all the top-performing videos using a certain effect. This gives you ideas on how to use it, and how to make your video among the top-performing ones.

Search for Sounds

The audio effect on videos is high. It can make the video rank top, especially if you use trending songs, music or any audio.

Therefore, as a video creator, you should familiarize yourself with how to search for sound in TikTok, what the trending sounds are, and what the top-performing videos are using a particular sound. Now, how can you locate and use a sound on TikTok?

In a few simple steps, you can find your sound. The process is simply like below:

• Type the word (the name of the sound if you know) on the search bar. The name of the sound is displayed in the lower-left corner of the video.
• In case you cannot remember or you don’t know the sound name, type a word that describes it.
• You will get a result of various videos that have the closest name to your keyword used in the search.
• Tap on the video tab to start browsing the resulting videos.
• You can preview the sound before you apply it to your video.

Search for People

Searching for people or TikTok users may mean two things. You are either looking for a TikToker a celebrity, or someone you know such as a friend. You can find the people you actually know easily in various ways.

If you are looking for someone you know to follow on TikTok, then there is a very easy way to do it.

• Go to your profile page, and tap on the user icon you find at the top left corner.
• You will find “Find Friend” with three options: Contact, Facebook and Invite Friends.
• Tap on contact and all your contacts who have TikTok accounts will be suggested for you.
• You can click on the friend you need to follow, view their account and start following them.

Now, if you are looking for someone to follow in TikTok, but not someone you know. Here is how you can search for them.

• Access the search bar on your TikTok application.
• Type the username or the name of the person you want to follow
• You will get a result showing all the names that are similar to your search
• You can also tap on the user’s tab to get all the accounts that match your keyword.
• Start browsing to find your target account.
• You can view their profile and content.
• Then, you can follow them.

Search Hashtags

Searching for hashtags in TikTok is easy. You need to follow the following steps:

• Open the TikTok application on your phone
• Access the search bar
• Type your keyword on the search bar. When it comes to hashtags, try to be specific to get more accurate results. So, if you are looking for content about pets, especially cats, type cat and you will get all the related hashtags.
• You will get all the results related to your keyword.
• Swipe to the hashtag tab.
• Browse the results. You can click each hashtag to view the videos that use it.
• You can follow and like hashtags to keep getting content about this hashtag.

How to Search on TikTok Without an Account

Sometimes you may need to find a video or find out how certain topics are presented in TikTok, but you are not a TikTok account holder and you are not interested in joining TikTok.

Marketers need to search and explore competitors’ various marketing efforts, so it may become a necessity to watch TikTok videos and learn about the content presented there. The good news here is that you don’t need to have a TikTok account to search in TikTok. You can search for any video on TikTok without having an account. Also, learn what counts as a view on TikTok.

How to search on TikTok using the app? you need to follow these steps:

• Download & install the TikTok app from the Play Store.
• Open the app and skip the log-in or sign-up options you get. This usually appears when using the app for the first time.
• Tap on the search bar and type your keyword.
• Browse the results you receive. You can retry your searches several times.
• View the videos you want, and you may interact by commenting or liking the video.

How to search on TikTok using the desktop, without the app? You need to follow these steps:

• Type TikTok on the URL address
• Tap on the search bar.
• Type your keyword.
• Results related to the keyword you inserted will appear.
• Browse the results and pick the video you are looking for.
• You can interact with the content if you wish.

Expanding Your Search

Searching on TikTok is not limited to videos, hashtags, filters, effects and people. You may search for many other things. You may look up for anything that is useful for your content creation, and assist in placing your video on top. Also, you can learn how to search for better ways to interact with video content. Here are a few things you may search for in TikTok:

Duets

TikTok has a nice feature called Duet. It allows TikTok users to play two videos together. You can have your video on the same screen as someone else’s video having a slide dividing the video into two sections. It is fun and used for entertainment purposes.

To search for duets, you need to type duets on the search bar. You will get the top-performing duets under the top tab, and you can find more duets under duet hashtags.

You can refine your search by adding the name of the person or the account. So you can type duets with @abcdef so you will get all the duets with this account.

Followers

If you would like to check your follower list and if you need to search for a specific person ensure that this person is still on your follower list. In order to search for followers you need to go to your profile and tap on followers to get the full list of your followers. Then, you can browse the list and look for a specific account or just check who is following your account.

GIFs & Stickers

Many people enjoy using GIFs and stickers to communicate and comment on TikTok or any social media content. It is fun and entertaining, and at the same time, a new and different way to convey your opinion, thoughts and words.

Also, you can use them in your videos. To look up any GIF or sticker on TikTok is simple and easy. You need first to create a new video by clicking on “+”. Then, after uploading the video or image, tap on the sticker icon located at the bottom and type the GIF or sticker name you are looking for on the search bar. You will get many GIFs related to the keyword you inserted to choose from.

Final Thoughts

Knowing how and what to search on TikTok is essential. Whether you are a TikToker, TikTok user, or marketer, searching the platform helps you to stay up to date, improve your content, enhance your overall marketing strategies, and get the chance to explore more and find more engaging topics.