What To Expect When You Make A TikTok Video Private

It’s fairly obvious what happens if you decide to make your entire TikTok account private instead of public.

Virtually everything except your TikTok username and profile photo becomes invisible to the vast majority of app users. Only your approved TikTok followers are able to see or download your posts, view your TikTok profile and likes, or attend your Live streams — and no user can follow you unless you approve their request.

Needless to say, it’s extremely difficult to build audiences and a powerful TikTok presence with a private account. If you simply have a video that you don’t want seen widely on the social media platform, keeping your account public and making only that video private is a better way to protect a TikTok post without essentially becoming incognito on the app.

Here’s what that decision will mean.

What Happens When You Make TikTok Content Private

A private video won’t wind up on TikTok’s For You page (FYP) or go viral, since it will have an extremely small audience. The most important effect of making a post private is to prevent everyone except an account’s existing followers from viewing it, so it will never attract the number of likes and video views necessary for it to become wildly popular.

Here’s what else to expect if you choose to make a TikTok video private rather than public:

• It can’t be shared by other TikTok users, even the ones who follow you.
• No one is allowed to download it or use it in Stitches or Duets (although your followers can still add it to their favorites).
• The video won’t appear publicly on your TikTok profile’s content grid. It will be put into a separate area where only you can see it (by clicking the “Lock” icon above the grid).
• You can share the post with someone who isn’t your follower if you’d like, but you’re the only one able to do that.

Making a TikTok post private is easy. Before you upload the video, you’ll see an option that says “Everyone can view this post.” Tapping on that link opens a popup window where you can change the setting to “Friends,” which keeps your video private. (Choosing the “Only you” option means your followers won’t be able to see the post.)

The decision to make a video private can be reversed at any time by tapping on the video, clicking the vertical dot icon, and selecting “Modify privacy settings.” Be aware, though, that any content that’s initially private will never earn the same exposure across the platform that it would have received if it had launched as a public post.