How to Find Reach on TikTok Analytics
Trying to find your "reach" in TikTok Analytics can feel like looking for a button that doesn't exist. That's because it doesn't - at least not by that name. TikTok calls its primary reach metric "Video Views." This article will show you exactly where to find your Video Views, understand what they mean on an account and individual video level, and share practical tips to grow your reach.
What is "Reach" on TikTok?
If you've used Instagram or Facebook, you're familiar with the term "reach," which typically means the number of unique accounts that saw your content. On TikTok, the top-level metric that's most comparable is Video Views.
A "video view" on TikTok is counted the moment your video starts playing. This could be someone watching it from start to finish or simply scrolling past it for a fraction of a second in their "For You" feed. Because a single user can watch your video multiple times, your total Video Views are usually higher than your number of unique viewers.
So, where does that leave "true" reach? For that, you need to dig deeper into the analytics of a specific video, where TikTok provides a metric called Unique Viewers. We'll cover both: the high-level Video Views for your account and the specific Unique Viewers for each post.
First, Switch to a Creator or Business Account
You can't see any analytics on a personal TikTok account. To get access to your data, you need to switch to a Creator or Business Account, which is free and only takes a few seconds.
Here’s how to do it:
Open your TikTok profile and tap the three horizontal lines (the "hamburger" menu) in the top-right corner.
Select "Settings and privacy."
Tap on "Account."
Choose "Switch to Business Account" or "Switch to Creator Account." TikTok will guide you through picking a category for your content.
Once you’ve switched, you'll see a new "Creator tools" or "Business suite" option in your settings menu, which is your gateway to TikTok Analytics. It can take a day or two for new data to start populating, so don't worry if it's empty right away.
How to Access and Interpret Your TikTok Analytics
Now that your account is set up, you can start tracking your reach. You can access analytics on both the mobile app and the desktop site.
Accessing Analytics on an iPhone or Android:
Go to your profile page.
Tap the hamburger menu in the top-right.
Select "Creator tools" or "Business suite."
Tap on "Analytics."
Navigating the Main Analytics Dashboard
Your analytics are split into three main tabs: Overview, Content, and Followers. Here’s what each one tells you about your reach.
1. The Overview Tab: Your Account's Total Reach
The Overview tab is the best place to see the overall reach of your account. The first metric you'll see is Video Views. This is your high-level reach for a given period.
You can toggle a date range here: Last 7 days, Last 28 days, Last 60 days, or a custom range. Look at this number to understand the big picture. Are your views trending up or down? This graph shows you the daily ebb and flow of your account’s visibility.
2. The Content Tab: Analyzing Your Individual Videos
The Content tab is where you can see the reach of each video you've posted within the selected date range. Here you'll find the "Trending Videos" section, which lists your videos from most to least viewed - a quick way to identify your top-performing content.
This page gives you a snapshot of titles, thumbnails, and total views. This immediate feedback helps you see which videos are resonating with audiences and hitting the "For You" page most effectively. To get the richest data, you need to click into a specific video.
Analyzing Unique Viewers for Individual Videos
To find the true reach of a single TikTok video, you need to look at its individual performance data. This is where you'll find the “Unique Viewers” metric.
Here’s how to get there:
From the Content tab in your Analytics, simply tap on any video.
Alternatively, navigate directly to a video on your profile, tap the three dots (…), and then select “Analytics.”
Once you're in the video's detail view, you’ll see several key metrics:
Total Video Views: The total number of times the video has started to play.
Unique Viewers: This is it. This number tells you how many distinct, individual accounts saw your video. This is the closest equivalent to "reach" as defined by platforms like Instagram and Facebook. If your Total Video Views are significantly higher than your Unique Viewers, it means people are watching your video more than once - a great sign of engaging content.
Traffic Source Types: This chart breaks down where your views came from. The holy grail here is the "For You" page. A high percentage of views from this source means TikTok's algorithm is recommending your video to a wide audience beyond your existing followers. Views from "Profile" mean people are seeking out your content directly.
Viewer Retention Chart: This graph shows a play-by-play of when viewers drop off. Pay close attention to the first few seconds. A steep drop-off at the beginning suggests your hook isn't strong enough to stop scrollers. High retention and "completed watch" metrics send strong positive signals to the TikTok algorithm, which often leads to more reach.
5 Actionable Tips to Increase Your Reach on TikTok
Finding your reach is half the battle, the other half is growing it. Here are some proven strategies to get your videos in front of more people.
1. Nail the First Two Seconds
You have less than two seconds to convince someone to stop scrolling. Start your videos with a strong hook: ask a question, present a surprising statement, or show an intriguing visual. If your retention chart shows a steep initial drop-off, your hook is likely the issue.
2. Use Trending Audio Wisely
Trending sounds act as their own discovery engine on TikTok. Hopping on a trending sound or meme format gives your video an immediate ticket to a larger audience. Check the "For You" page or the sound library to see what's currently popular. Don’t force it, though - make sure the trend fits your niche and brand.
3. Master Your Hashtag Strategy
Hashtags help TikTok categorize your content and show it to relevant audiences. A good strategy involves mixing different types of hashtags:
Broad hashtags (#foryou, #tiktok, #viral) are good for general visibility but are highly competitive.
Niche hashtags (#smallbusinessmarketing, #contentcreatortips, #booktokrecommendations) help you reach a more targeted and engaged audience.
Use 3-5 relevant hashtags per video. Stuffing a video with dozens of them can look spammy and confuse the algorithm.
4. Post When Your Followers Are Most Active
Under your Analytics’ Followers tab, you’ll find data on your followers' most active times of the day. Posting an hour or so before these peak times gives your video a better chance of gaining early traction, which can create a snowball effect. The algorithm rewards videos that get engagement quickly after being posted.
5. Double Down On What Works
Your own analytics are your best teacher. Go to your Content tab and look at your top 3-5 trending videos. What do they have in common? Was it the format, the topic, the hook you used, or the sound? Identify these patterns and create more content that follows a similar formula. Don't be afraid to create a series or reuse a successful format.
Final Thoughts
Understanding your reach on TikTok means looking beyond a single metric. You can measure your account's general performance with overall 'Video Views' and dig into 'Unique Viewers' on individual posts to see the actual number of people you're reaching.
Keeping an eye on these numbers - along with engagement on other platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and your site analytics - takes a lot of time. Instead of bouncing between a dozen tabs to stitch together a full picture of your marketing performance, we built Graphed to connect all your data sources in one place. You can sync tools like TikTok Ads and Google Analytics and then just use plain English to ask questions like, "Show me a dashboard of my top-performing ad campaigns across all channels this month." We handle the difficult work of crunching the numbers and building the reports for you, so you get answers in seconds, not hours.