How To Get Unshadowbanned on TikTok (2024)

Have you noticed that your engagement levels on TikTok – particularly your views – have tanked recently, without any warning? If so, you may have been shadowbanned, and there are only a few ways you can try to get it lifted on your own.

What is a Shadow Ban on TikTok?

If the term “shadowban” sounds secretive and creepy, and that’s because it is. 

Social media platforms like TikTok sometimes resort to shadowbanning users that violate their Community Guidelines, either with their content or through their activity. The reason it’s not a full ban is because it doesn’t actually restrict the user from using their account. It just prevents their content from being ranked in the algorithm and getting shown to other users on their For You Pages (FYP). 

TikTok has denied any existence of a shadowban. But there’s no other explanation for why some accounts inexplicably undergo a significant and sudden downturn in engagement with their content. Especially considering the fact that this state doesn’t last forever. 

But the shadowban still lasts long enough to be damaging to your reach on the app, as well as to how much money you’re able to earn from monetization programs like the Creator Fund. That’s why users are so eager to get it lifted as quickly as possible.

4 Ways To Get Unshadowbanned on TikTok

If you think TikTok has shadowbanned your account, you’re not without recourse. In fact, there are four things you can do to try to get yourself unshadowbanned. Let’s go through them, one by one.

1. Delete Content that Violates TikTok’s Community Guidelines

We mentioned earlier that TikTok shadowbans accounts as a sort of soft penalty for violating the platform’s Community Guidelines. Thus, it makes sense that deleting the content that kicked off the violation in the first place would remove the shadow ban. 

For this method, you may need to go over the TikTok Community Guidelines with a fine-tooth comb. It may not be obvious at first how any of your recent content was offensive. (After all, if it were that severe, you would probably have received a sterner punishment.)

2. Avoid Spam Activities

Another way you could have violated the Community Guidelines is by engaging (perhaps without knowing) in spam activities. 

For example, if you’ve been sending messages in mass to other users to promote a product or service, impersonating another individual, or been buying bot followers, those things may result in a shadow ban. 

Check TikTok’s Community Guidelines to see what they define as “spam and deceptive account behaviors.” If any of it sounds similar to what you’ve been doing, cut back or stop those activities immediately. 

3. Delete the TikTok App and Reinstall It

In the event that your problems with your videos getting seen rest on the function of the app and not on any action against you, you may find that deleting the TikTok app and reinstalling it will lift the shadowban. This action clears the cache on the TikTok app and initiates any updates that may be preventing it from functioning properly. 

Keep in mind that you will have to sign into your account all over again, so make sure you have your username and password handy. 

4. Wait Two Weeks for Unshadowbanned

Finally, you can always try waiting for TikTok to lift the shadowban. The shadowbanning period typically lasts only about two weeks – but it can also last longer. 

For that reason, you may want to try the other three methods of getting unshadowbanned first, and leave waiting for it to drop off as a last resort.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

If you believe you’ve been shadowbanned on TikTok, take heart! Follow our steps for how to get unshadowbanned on TikTok, so you can get back to your normal engagement levels and continue building your account.