How to Warm Up a TikTok Account
Before you start posting, teach the TikTok algorithm who your content is for by warming up your account the right way.
Starting a new TikTok account? Before you hit that post button, take a minute to set yourself up for success. TikTok’s algorithm doesn’t know who you are or who might like your content — until you show it.
Here’s how to “warm up” your account and help TikTok understand your niche and ideal audience.
Why Warming Up Matters
TikTok's For You Page (FYP) is driven by recommendation signals. When you open a new account and start posting without giving the algorithm any context, your videos can land in front of the wrong audience — or worse, no one at all.
Step 1: Watch Like Your Audience
Spend 10–15 minutes a day scrolling through content that your ideal audience watches.
If you’re a fitness creator, watch fitness videos. If you're making educational content, consume other educational videos. Like them. Watch them to the end. Interact with them.
You're training TikTok on what kind of content you care about — and by extension, what kind of content you might create.
Step 2: Interact Intentionally
Don’t just scroll. Use the app actively:
- Like relevant videos
- Comment on a few
- Follow a few niche creators
- Save or share videos that align with your future content
These actions send strong signals to the algorithm about your interests and connections.
Step 3: Avoid Mixed Signals
Don’t scroll memes, random entertainment, or unrelated niches — even if it’s tempting. You’re curating a feed signal for your account, and mixed signals confuse TikTok’s profiling of you.
Step 4: Warm Up for 3–7 Days
Give your account 3–7 days of warm-up behavior before posting your first video. This gives TikTok a chance to build a profile of your interests — and makes it more likely your first video hits the right people.
Final Thoughts
Think of warming up your TikTok account like prepping soil before planting. If you skip the prep, your content might fall on rocky ground. But if you take just a bit of time to train the algorithm, you’ll give every post a better chance to grow.
Ready to go viral? Start with the scroll.