TikTok is a lot to a lot of people: a daily vlog, a place to get news, and an incredibly popular search engine. However, it’s important to remember that TikTok started out as a place for sounds.
Yes, before becoming the all-consuming social media beast that it is today, TikTok was mostly known for music. In fact, in 2018 it teamed up with a lip sync service called Musical.ly to become the app we know and love today.
Whether it’s a song, a video clip, lip sync, or something else, sounds make TikTok special. In fact, 88% of users say audio is vital to their TikTok experience.
Whether you’re promoting your personal page or your business profile, mastering TikTok sounds is always in your best interest.
Read our handy guide to learn how to find TikTok sounds that are right for your business.
How to Find Popular Sounds on TikTok
In a way, TikTok sounds work just like hashtags on other social media apps. Add the popular TikTok sound to your video and you’ll start a larger conversation around that sound.
If you choose the right sound and do something special with it, you can create a lot of waves. Here’s how to find TikTok sounds your audience will love.
Your own FYP
The beauty of relevant content on TikTok is that it’s easy to get it in front of you right on your For You page. If you haven’t messed up your algorithm with weird browsing habits, chances are you’ll have viral content on your FYP when you open the app.
And if you notice a sound that has been used more than once on a skim, you may have a trending sound. Click on the song (in the lower right corner) and see what else is happening.
The song’s landing page allows you to favorite it, share it with friends, or use the audio right away.
But it’s also a great place to see if the audio trend has really gone mainstream. See how many other videos on TikTok use this sound and you will understand if the song is really viral.
“Made You Look”by Meghan Trainor has been used on 1.5 million TikTok, so it’s safe to say it’s a pretty popular audio.
TikTok search bar
Besides the timeline, TikTok has a powerful search feature. You can find a lot of interesting content just by clicking on the search bar. Even something as obvious as “viral sounds”will trigger a lot of viral sounds.
You can go to the Hashtags tab in the search results for another set of popular options. Users often grab trending songs with non-trending content, but you should get gold with little effort.
TikTok Sound Library
This is of course obvious, but it’s still worth noting that the best place to find popular TikTok sounds is the TikTok sound library.
The Sound tab makes it easy to find a list of recommended playlists with popular sounds. Be sure to check out the Favorites and TikTok Viral playlists for more inspiration.
TikTok Creative Center
However, TikTok has made it even easier than finding sounds on your own thanks to their Creative Hub.
This resource allows you to view real-time statistics about specific songs and sounds in the app. You can also see how good the sound sounds in certain regions. This is very useful if you are targeting a part of the world that you are not currently in.
@tiktokforbusinesssea 💥 Visit TikTok Creative Center at our bio for all the inspo you need to bring your #creative A-game. #tiktokforbusiness #tiktoktips
♬ original sound – TikTok for Business SEA – TikTok for Business SEA
You can view limited information in Creative Center without logging in, but you need to create a free TikTok business account if you want to dive deeper.
External TikTok trackers
You don’t have to stay on TikTok to find the best popular sounds.
In fact, a small, cottage industry of third-party trackers has sprung up, and sites like TokChart and TokBoard have become very useful.
You can use these sites to view statistics, such as which TikTok songs have charted and where. You can even see which hashtags are associated with the song.
Music Industry Resources
If a song is trending on TikTok, it is likely to be trending all over the world. TikTok is inherently connected to today’s music industry, so it’s wise to keep an eye on trends in general. If a song is incredibly popular on Spotify or YouTube, it is more likely to be successful on TikTok as well.
You can even put on your music industry hat and start watching the Billboard Hot 100 to see what songs might be trending in the future. You can even follow Billboard on TikTok.
@billboard Here’s a breakdown of @Taylor Swift’s big week on the Billboard Hot100. 💯 #taylorswift #billboard #swifties #midnights #theerastour #antihero #taylornation #billboardcharts #tsmidnights #tsmidnightsts #tsmidnightsalbum
How to Use TikTok Sounds as a Brand
You’ve learned how to find popular songs, so now all you have to do is add a new Taylor Swift song to your latest video, right? This is technically true for influencers, but not so easy for business accounts.
Business accounts don’t have access to mainstream pop songs – or, really, songs from any well-known artists. This is because potential copyright issues can arise if they use them in advertisements.
If your business account attempts to use copyrighted audio, you will see the following disclaimer:
Luckily, there are many more options for using TikTok sounds as a brand.
Here are some options for what you can do.
Use Free Audio
TikTok feels your pain and knows that you would like to add Blink-182 to your ads. But they took the next best step and created a commercial music library full of free audio recordings.
There are over 150,000 pre-cleaned tracks from just about every genre. You won’t be short of options to suit your content.
You can search for songs by genre, hashtag, mood, or song title, and there are even playlists you can browse for inspiration. This is a simple solution for branded content.
@nfl that fake out tho 😮💨 @49ers #rayraymccloud #sanfrancisco
The track “Beat Automotivo Tan Tan Tan Vira” by WZ Beat is an example of free audio that has gone super viral on the app.
Working with sound partners
If you have room in your marketing budget for audio production, consider using TikTok’s own audio marketing partners. Last year, TikTok expanded its affiliate marketing program to include Sound Partners.
The program now boasts offerings from international music companies such as Butter, 411 Music Group, Sonhouse, AEYL MUSIC and many, many more.
The cost will vary depending on the scale of your campaign. Some production companies also offer subscription services in addition to per-project fees. You can even work with them to develop a sound strategy for your brand’s entire TikTok page.
Make your own sounds
If you don’t want to use any standard music as your audio track, there are plenty of other options available to you if you decide to create your own sounds. Depending on how ambitious you feel, they can be as complex or as simple as you want.
First, you can create or hire someone to write original music for your TikTok page. It might look like hanging out in Garageband or collaborating with an audio composer and musician.
This option isn’t necessarily ideal if you don’t have any musical background, but it can pay off in many ways. After all, a TikTok branded audio or jingle can go a long way if other users want to use it in their videos.
This last point also explains why you could do the same to create an official sound that is just, well, you say. If you say something catchy enough that others want to quote, you may find that your audio is reused in other videos.
If you name the sound and mention your brand somewhere, it can pay off for your project in the long run.
@elfyeah Poof! 💨 Poreless putty can make anything disappear! Show us your #elfvanishingact ✨ @rominagafur #porelessputty #elfyeah #elfcosmetics
Cosmetic brand elf is working with agencies to create original songs that go viral and set off TikTok trends.
Request custom sound
If you’re lucky with Duets or notice that you’ve gained fans on TikTok, you can directly request user-generated content from your fan base. A user-created campaign can pay off very well.
Think about how your specific demographic would like to participate in your campaign. You can try asking for a review or a guide for your product, or even something more creative like a joke or a tune. If this applies to you, you can encourage fans to react to your work or ask them to come up with a comedy sketch. You can even include user-generated content in some kind of competition.
Another great way to inspire user generated content is to encourage duets. If your branded video is something users want to collaborate with, it will likely make waves all over TikTok. Consider what kind of duo someone might want to create with your content and go from there.
@yoleendadong #duet with @vessi wow no more wet socks pretty cool kinda freaky deaky ✨ #nomorewetsocks #vessi #waterproof #waterproofshoes #ketchup
Shoe company Vessi encourages duos with contests, calls and, well, very weird videos that require a lively response.
If you are posting something done by someone else, you should always include their name in the caption. This will protect you from any issues if users decide to copyright their audio later.
You should also avoid re-posting audio that includes copyrighted music, even if it’s in the background.
Get a license
Okay, we get it: you absolutely need to use a Carly Rae Jepsen song in your TikTok brand campaign. There is simply no substitute for her unique, emotional pop music.
In this case, you can license the song for use in your video. It may be expensive, but it is technically possible. Start by seeking legal advice from a copyright or music licensing lawyer – and let us know how it goes!
Frequently Asked Questions About TikTok Sounds
Still confused? Here is a breakdown of some frequently asked questions about TikTok Sounds.
Can businesses use TikTok sounds?
Yes. Companies can use TikTok sounds in their videos if they are allowed for commercial use. The best ways to include sounds in business messages are to use pre-cleaned commercial TikTok audio, create your own original sounds, or use user-generated content (credited).
What does “This sound is not licensed for commercial use”mean?
If you’re getting this error, it most likely means that you’re trying to access the “master”song using a TikTok business account.
TikTok users with personal accounts can use any sound they like, including the world’s most popular pop songs, but TikTok doesn’t allow businesses to use popular music in their videos.
They implemented this policy in 2020, after which they introduced free music available in their commercial music library.
@timmycobbsfitness_tv #moda #problemsolved #fyp #business how to fix the problem of commercial use error! Give a like and blow it up
How to access commercial TikTok music library?
TikTok’s commercial sound library is available both in the app and in a desktop browser.
If you are using the app:
- Open the camera and click Add Sound
- Then click “Sounds”and find “Commercial Sounds”.
This will take you to the commercial music library where you can browse your options.
How to download TikTok sounds?
There is no direct way to download audio from TikTok to your device.
If you want to save your favorite sound on TikTok, tap the bookmark icon to add the sound to your favorites. This will save it to the app so you can easily use it later.
If you really need TikTok audio to use outside of the app, you may want to consider screen recording or downloading TikTok videos using a third party app or website.
How to find saved sounds on TikTok?
Once you’ve added a TikTok audio to your favorites, it’s as simple as tapping the Favorites tab when creating a post.
When you add a sound to a new TikTok, just click on the Favorites tab. All your previously saved sounds will be displayed under this banner.
Can you add more than one sound to TikTok?
You cannot add multiple sounds to the same TikTok within the app. If you want to link more than one sound, you will have to use a third party video editor to create a video and then upload it to the app.
However, if you do this, you will most likely miss your video associated with that particular sound in the TikTok database.