The Friends Tab on TikTok is a feed of content from your friends, meaning followers you follow back, plus accounts you follow and, in select regions, suggested people you may know. Some people see Discover there instead. Syncing contacts or Facebook friends can bring in more suggestions.
It's easy to mix this feed up with For You. The difference is who it's built around: the Friends Tab leans on people you're connected to, rather than whatever TikTok thinks you'll like from anyone at all.
Three kinds of account that fill this feed
- Friends. On TikTok that word has a specific meaning: followers you follow back.
- Accounts you follow, even if they don't follow you.
- People you may know, shown as suggested accounts. This part only appears in select regions.
Those suggestions can come from your phone contacts or your Facebook friends, depending on what you choose to share with TikTok.
Why yours might say Discover
Some people see Discover in that spot rather than the Friends Tab. It varies from person to person, so if your app looks different from a friend's, nothing's broken and you haven't missed a setting.
Syncing contacts and Facebook friends
If you want the feed to pick up more people you know, here's where the switches are.
- In the TikTok app, tap Profile at the bottom.
- Tap the Menu button at the top, then select Settings and privacy.
- Tap Privacy, then tap Sync contacts and Facebook friends.
- Turn on Sync contacts or Sync Facebook friends.
Changing your mind about syncing
Syncing isn't a one-way door. You can turn it off or remove previously synced contacts at any time from the same Sync contacts and Facebook friends screen. That's worth knowing before you switch it on, because it means you can try it and back out if the suggestions feel too close to home.
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If someone you expected to see has vanished from the feed altogether, their account may have changed; this guide to the Account not found message explains the usual reasons.
Bottom line on shaping this feed
The Friends Tab is only as good as the connections behind it. Follow back the people you know, follow the accounts you enjoy, and switch on syncing only if you're comfortable sharing contacts or Facebook friends. Remember that the suggested-account part only shows up in select regions, so your feed may lean more on friends and follows than someone else's does. To widen your circle, use the For You feed to find people with similar interests; finding the most-liked videos in your niche is a handy way to spot accounts worth following.
Frequently asked questions
How can you find more friends on TikTok?
Use the For You feed to find people with similar interests, invite friends from other platforms, or turn on contact or Facebook syncing.
