TikTok today launched TikTok Next, its sixth annual trend forecast, designed to equip marketers for the year ahead through deep insights into the TikTok community’s changing interests and behaviors. The forecast gives brands a roadmap to create engaging, inspiring content that also drives business results.
“2026 will usher in a shift in user behavior toward new realities, newfound curiosity, and a search for emotional ROI. To resonate with the TikTok community in the coming year, marketers must look past the days of passive consumption and actively seek opportunities to tap into culturally relevant conversations, build community, and prove their value, leveraging new AI tools and diving deep into data and insights,” said Sofia Hernandez, Global Head of Business Marketing for TikTok.
The forecast identifies three key Trend Signals that reflect the Irreplaceable Instinct of TikTok users, representing curiosity, conviction, and care:
- Reali-TEA: New Realities Amid Chaos
Fantasy is fading. In 2026, audiences will realign through the chaos to forge new realities together.
In 2026, audiences are grounding themselves in reality, embracing self-improvement, and forming communities of accountability. Humanizing brands goes beyond AI avatars—brands must listen, learn, and share authentic stories that reflect audience experiences. TikTok users have moved from romanticizing life to embracing #TheGreatLockIn, a focus on self-improvement and creating new communities of accountability.
Case in point: Oreo mirrored audience behavior in real time for its Reese’s collaboration, merging brand narratives in a carousel post that became the company’s second top-performing post of 2025. TikTok tools like One Insight Spotlight and Market Scope enable brands to track audience sentiment and respond with empathy, humor, and authenticity.
- Curiosity Detours: Discovery as the New Currency
In 2026, curiosity becomes the new currency as audiences dive deeper into new journeys of discovery.
Audiences in 2026 seek discovery and serendipity. Active searching on TikTok—exploring comments, following leads, and navigating unexpected content—is replacing passive consumption. 52 percent continued searching on TikTok after discovering something on TikTok1. Audiences come with an active intention and are met with so many more curious, trusted, and unexpected answers that lead to new discoveries. Brands that meaningfully appear outside their core category can unlock new growth opportunities.
Case in point: Duracell (@duracellespanol) discovered a connection with the K-pop community through TikTok search journeys, identifying new growth audiences and engagement opportunities. By hearing from users about their TikTok search journeys, the brand uncovered an unexpected connection between its batteries and the K-pop community, who rely on Duracell to power the glowing lightsticks of their favorite idols. What started as a niche discovery has become a powerful new growth audience and a top priority for 2026. TikTok One Content Suite allows advertisers to track organic mentions, understand community language, and transform authentic content into paid campaigns.
- Emotional ROI: Intentional Purchases Over Impulse
Impulse will lose to intention in 2026 as shoppers reward the brands that justify the why to buy, first.
Consumers increasingly weigh emotional value alongside cost in their purchase decisions. Audiences are finding shopping recommendations from friends, in-store, or from AI, and are then going to TikTok to compare and validate from trusted creators before committing. As a matter of fact, 81 percent users say TikTok provides a view into real-life product usage2. In 2026, audiences look for brands that justify the “why to buy,” creating meaning, joy, and belonging rather than just transactional value.
Case in point: Audible (@audible) cracked the Emotional ROI code by handing the mic to the TikTok community. What started as a simple, organic post asking for five-star book recs turned into an explosion of engagement, achieving 376 percent higher reach than their channel average as #BookTok flooded the comments with passionate picks. By letting listeners lead the conversation, Audible transformed from the authority on stories to a brand in the story. Advertisers should show their brand delivers real, everyday value—whether through cost-per-wear, emotional payoff, or community connection. With Symphony Creative Studio, brands can easily adapt one idea across languages, formats, and styles—because in commerce, more content wins.
TikTok Next Methodology
The TikTok Next 2026 forecast draws on TikTok’s own analytics tools, including One Insight Spotlight and Market Scope, which unify paid and organic data to uncover trends in audience behavior, content performance, and market dynamics. These insights help marketers understand how users discover, engage with, and purchase from brands on TikTok in real time.
The full TikTok Next forecast can be viewed here.
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