When you’re permanently banned from a social media platform like TikTok, you’ll know immediately—you won’t be able to log in or find your profile in a search. A shadow ban, on the other hand, is much more subtle—the platform will hide your account from other users without ever letting you know.
While there is some debate over whether social media platforms actually use shadow banning to suppress certain content, it is a real tactic. In fact, one in 10 users believe they have experienced it. Here’s everything you need to know about shadow bans on TikTok.
What is a TikTok shadow ban?
A TikTok shadow ban is a tactic by which the platform minimizes an account’s content visibility without informing the account owner. If you’re subject to a shadow ban—likely because you violated one or more TikTok community guidelines—your content may not appear on other users’ “For You” page or in hashtag searches. You’ll likely see a drop in engagement since other users in the TikTok community can’t see or interact with your posts as easily.
Reasons for getting a TikTok shadow ban
- Posting adult content
- Bullying and hate speech
- Promoting dangerous acts
- Posting copyrighted material
- Spamming or botting
Similar to other social media platforms, TikTok likely uses shadow bans to penalize accounts that go against TikTok’s community guidelines or are responsible for repeated violations. The most common guideline violations include:
Posting adult content
Any content not suitable for minors—that includes nudity, sexually explicit content, violence, and drugs—is against TikTok’s rules and may get your account shadow-banned.
Bullying and hate speech
Although TikTok encourages individual expression, it forbids targeting others, spreading hateful opinions, and harassing other users in the comments section—all of which violate its rules against bullying and hateful behavior.
Promoting dangerous acts
Content that promotes harmful behavior—like disordered eating, violent extremism, self-harm, suicide, or dangerous challenges—is also against TikTok’s community guidelines. The platform will swiftly ban it to protect users from injury.
Posting copyrighted material
TikTok has a strict policy against copyright abuses. If you post content for which you don’t have intellectual property rights, the platform will mute your videos or take them down completely. To stay within the community guidelines and avoid copyright issues, use music from TikTok’s licensed library, and avoid promoting someone else’s original content as your own.
Spamming or botting
Using bots or creating fake accounts to artificially boost your engagement can put your account in hot water fast. TikTok tracks what it calls “spammy behavior” and will curb it to prevent users from taking advantage of the algorithm.
How to check if you’ve been shadow-banned
- Your engagement suddenly plummets
- You don’t show up on the For You page
- Your hashtags don’t appear in search results
- You struggle to upload your videos
Here are some indications you may have been shadow-banned:
Your engagement suddenly plummets
To view your analytics in the TikTok app, go to your profile, tap the dropdown menu in the top right, select “Creator tools,” and then tap “Analytics.” You’ll see video views, profile views, likes, comments, and shares. Select a period of time at the top—like “Last 7 days” or “Last 60 days”—and check the bar graph for a sudden and significant drop in engagement.
You don’t show up on the For You page
Under normal conditions, your content will appear on all of your followers’ Friends feeds. Ask a friend who’s following you to look at their Friends feed and see if your TikTok videos pop up. If not, you might be under a shadow ban.
Your hashtags don’t appear in search results
If you use hashtags in your video descriptions, your videos should appear in the search results for those hashtags. Have a friend search one of your hashtags to see if your video appears in the search results. If it’s a rare hashtag, or if you have a significant number of followers, your content should appear near the top of the search results.
You struggle to upload your videos
If you keep getting a message like “Processing” or “Under review” when you try to upload TikTok videos—and you know your internet connection is fine—the system may be blocking your content. This could happen if the system determines your video contains sexually explicit content, hate speech, or other forbidden elements.
How long does a TikTok shadow ban last?
Since TikTok doesn’t discuss its shadow banning policies in its community guidelines, there’s no way to know for sure if you’ve been shadow-banned or how long a shadow ban may last. Many users who believe they’ve been shadow-banned estimate that it lasted about two weeks. A handful of users claim their shadow bans lasted a month or longer.
Tips for removing a TikTok shadow ban
Think you’ve been shadow-banned and wondering just what is going on? There are a handful of things you can do to get your TikTok account back on track:
Remove rule-violating content
Since most shadow bans come from violating TikTok’s community guidelines, comb through your existing content and delete anything that might be harmful, hateful, or in danger of copyright infringement.
Follow TikTok’s community guidelines
As you engage with the platform, ensure your new posts and comments align with TikTok community guidelines. Steer clear of inappropriate content that TikTok might flag as mature, dangerous, hateful, or copyrighted.
Practice restraint
Resist the urge to bulk-post or bulk-follow to make up for your drop in engagement and maintain a regular social media content calendar. Prioritize posting high-quality content no more than one a day, although your ideal cadence will also depend on the platform. For example, posting to Instagram three to five times a week is best. The TikTok algorithm can flag high-volume activity as spammy behavior, and you may inadvertently extend the length of your shadow ban.
Be patient
If all else fails, or if you think your content was mistakenly flagged, just wait it out. Many users believe shadow bans last around two weeks, so continue posting, follow community guidelines, keep an eye on your analytics, and see if your numbers return to normal.
TikTok shadow ban FAQ
How do I fix a shadow ban on TikTok?
If you think you’ve been shadow-banned on TikTok, remove any flagged content that may violate TikTok’s guidelines, make sure any new activity follows the rules, and avoid any spam-like behavior like bulk-posting or bulk-following—especially from a new account.
Why am I getting zero views on TikTok?
If you have a following on TikTok and your numbers experience a significant drop, you may be the subject of a shadow ban. If, however, your account is new or you don’t have many followers, you may just need to up your content game. Learn how to go viral on TikTok.
Can you avoid being shadow-banned on TikTok?
If you follow TikTok’s community guidelines and avoid posting harmful, copyrighted, or spam-like videos, you shouldn’t have any problems with shadow bans. However, TikTok support hasn’t publicly disclosed their shadow ban policies, so much of the information users have about shadow banning is anecdotal.
