At the time of writing, TikTok is one of the more transparent windows into online multimodal communication, with a research platform that allows a degree of granularity no longer present on places like Meta (Facebook, Instagram), X (Twitter) or Reddit. This, alongside its generational appeal to a younger demographic, makes TikTok an ideal place to observe online communication in all its forms.
There are numerous ways of accessing TikTok data, most of which require paying a third party. As a researcher, however, you have an additional mode of access through TikTok’s official research application programming interface (API), provided your institution is in line with TikTok’s terms of service, namely that it has “demonstrable experience and expertise in the relevant research areas and in the processing and analysis of data” and “has as one of its principal aims the conduct of research on a not-for-profit basis pursuant to a public-interest mission.”
Getting access to the API requires manual approval and can sometimes take up to 4 weeks of waiting, so we strongly suggest posting applications as early as possible in the project. Aside from that, the process is relatively simple:
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- Create a TikTok Developer Account (Different from your regular TikTok account)
- Apply for access to Research Tools
If you are a doctoral student (PhD candidate) you may additionally need an endorsement letter from your supervisor – TikTok provides a sample letter for that here.
Once your application has been accepted, go to your research profile and under your project, locate your client key and client secret – with that, we’re ready to start gathering data!