Research Tools
Through Research Tools, TikTok supports independent research on our platform. Qualified researchers in the U.S., Europe, Canada, and Brazil can apply to study public data about TikTok content and accounts. We are working to expand access to Research Tools in the future.
What data is available?Researchers can access public data on:
Accounts
Content
EU-based TikTok ShopsFor more information, check out the Codebook for Research Tools.
AccountsIncludes user profiles, follower and following lists, liked videos, pinned videos, and reposted videos.
ContentEU-based TikTok Shops
Who can apply?
To qualify for access, applicants must fulfill the following criteria:
- Be located in an eligible region and be affiliated with an eligible organization:
- Academic institutions in the U.S., EEA, UK, Canada, or Switzerland; or
- Not-for-profit and/or independent research institution, organization, association, or body in the EU. We are currently beta testing this service with select researchers in the U.S., UK, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.
- Academic institutions or not-for-profit organizations based in Brazil and looking to study online youth safety.
- Safety Advisory Council in Brazil.
- Have demonstrable experience and expertise in the research area specified in the application, as well as in data processing and analysis.
- Be independent of commercial interests and able to conduct research on a not-for-profit or non-commercial basis in pursuit of a public-interest mission.
- Disclose the funding of the research.
- Provide a clearly defined research proposal and demonstrate that the requested access is necessary for, and proportionate to, the purpose of the research.
- Commit to fulfilling data security and confidentiality requirements (including taking steps to protect personal data).
- Provide evidence that the research has undergone an ethical review.
- Be prepared to comply with the requirements set out in the TikTok Research Tools Terms of Service.
How to get access to Research Tools?
01
Create research accountAfter confirming your eligibility, create a TikTok for Developers account using your professional email address (for example, the email associated with your university or research organization).
02
Submit applicationComplete and submit the application form by providing information about yourself, your organization, and your research.
03
Wait for approvalYou can typically expect to hear back from us within 4 weeks of submission. We may need additional time if further information is required.
Once your application is approved, read the <tag1>Getting Started</tag> guide to learn more about how to access Research Tools.Working with a team?Once your application is approved, you can add collaborators to your research topic to share access to datasets. Please include information about your collaborators in your application. If your collaborators are affiliated with a different organization, each organization must submit a separate application.
Read Working with organizations to learn more.Applying as a Ph.D. candidate?You will need to submit an endorsement letter from a professor or dissertation advisor. You can download a sample letter here.Are you a vetted researcher?If you have been granted vetted researcher status by a Digital Services Coordinator (DSC), you may be eligible to access TikTok data to support research on systemic risks. Learn more about how we support vetted researchers.Researching on behalf of a not-for-profit, non-academic organization?TikTok makes public data available to non-academic, not-for-profit organizations under limited conditions. If your application is approved, we will provide information on how to use our Virtual Compute Environment, which is subject to strict security controls.
Once your application is approved, you can log in to our Virtual Compute Environment.
Ready to access research data?After your application is approved, check out our Getting Started with Research Tools guide to set up your access.View guide
Need help?
Understand Research Tools access
Learn how our Virtual Compute Environment works
Still got questions?