These TikTok alternatives could help you fill the void if the app goes dark
Alex Wong/Getty Images
- The Supreme Court ruled to uphold a TikTok ban β and several apps are vying for its crown.
- Sister app Lemon8 has soared in popularity but is likely to get the ax, too.
- Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have competed in short-form video for years, and RedNote recently attracted US users.
As TikTok inches toward potential extinction in the US, creators are trying to transition viewers to other platforms, while some viewers are already in a state of mourning.
The app is set to be yanked from US app stores on January 19, after the Supreme Court ruled to uphold a law on Friday forcing China-based ByteDance to divest its ownership of Tiktok or face a ban.
If the app goes dark, US users will have to look elsewhere for a short-form video fix. TikTok's ethos and community are unique, but competing formats exist on the world's biggest social-media apps, and are also offered by emerging competitors.
Here's who is β and who's not β in the running.
CHRIS DELMAS/AFP via Getty Images
Data shows that new apps often struggle to gain long-term traction when they have well-established rivals. And Meta, YouTube, and Snapchat have all been competing in the short-form space for years.
Meta launched Instagram Reels in 2020 to great success β even chipping away at TikTok usage, according to two studies from last year. Analysts predict Meta will be the biggest winner if TikTok goes dark in the US.
YouTube, the original video giant, added short-form video in 2021,Β which has paid off handsomely. More recently, the Google-owned platform has used the prospect of a banΒ as a selling point for its ad team.
Snapchat, for its part, launched a TikTok counterpart calledΒ SpotlightΒ in 2020,Β offering payouts to get creators to post.
Meanwhile, LinkedIn has more recently targeted TikTok by encouraging influencers to post short-form content. Some have told Business Insider that they've seen engagement boosts as a result.
Jaap Arriens/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, another Chinese social app β which functions like Instagram and TikTok but with more commerce features β has recently surged in popularity, with some TikTok users learning Mandarin to make the transition.
It could, however, also be subject to the same divest-or-ban law as TikTok if the US government chose to target it.
Matt Cardy/Getty Images, Clapper
Clapper, a Texas-based challenger, was founded in 2020, when the idea of a Tiktok ban was first tossed around by the Trump administration.
The app at one point reached third place in the free iPhone app download charts, with Clapper seeing an uptick in downloads whenever the news of a Tiktok ban again makes headlines.
Rafael Henrique/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
Triller has long sought to position itself as an alternative to TikTok β and currently offers a tool to help creators save their videos.
Triller has gone through a series of strategy shifts over the years. After several false starts, it went public late last year through a reverse merger with a Hong Kong-based company called AGBA Group Holding Limited.
It recently hired former TikTok product head Sean Kim to run its video app, as well as several other subsidiaries.
Whatnot
TikTok helped social shopping break through in the US in a major way in 2024. The app drove $100 million in US sales on Black Friday alone, for example.
It's not the only one in the space, however. Some of its competitors include Flip and Complex Shop, formerly known as NTWRK. Flip, which raised $144 million last April at a $1 billion valuation, according to Bloomberg, launched in 2019 and enables users to post short, shoppable reviews.
Whatnot also made headlines after closing a $265 million funding round earlier this month at a $5 billion valuation. The app hosts livestreams across categories like fashion, collectibles, and storage unit finds.
Jonathan Raa/NurPhoto via Getty Images
TikTok sister app, Lemon8, hasΒ soared to the top of the app chartsΒ in recent weeks. Lemon8 is reminiscent of Pinterest and contains a mix of photos and videos.
However, given that the law specifically mentions ByteDance, the parent company of the two apps, Lemon8 would likely be banned along with TikTok.
Christopher Krepich, the communications director for the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, previously told Forbes the bill would ban Lemon8 unless ByteDance divested.
