TikTok is a chaos machine. Honestly, if you’ve spent more than five minutes on the app, you know the feeling of being sucked into a vacuum of sourdough starters, tax advice, and people dancing in their kitchens. It’s a lot. But buried under all that noise is the actual reason people stay: the creators. If you want to know how to follow on tiktok and actually build a feed that doesn’t feel like a digital fever dream, you have to understand that "following" isn't just about clicking a button. It’s about training an AI to understand your personality.
The mechanics are easy. The strategy is where people mess up.
The Basic Tap: Getting the Job Done
Let’s start with the literal "how." You’re watching a video. You like the person. You want more.
Look at the right side of your screen. You’ll see the creator's profile picture—it’s usually a circle. Right below that circle is a tiny pink or red plus sign. Tap it. That’s it. You’re following them. The plus sign vanishes, and now their content is technically earmarked for your "Following" tab.
But wait. There’s a second way.
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Sometimes that tiny plus sign is hard to hit, or you want to see if the creator is a "one-hit wonder" before you commit. Swipe left on the video. This pulls up their entire profile. You’ll see a big, unmistakable button that says "Follow." Hit that. Now, if you change your mind? Just tap it again. It’ll turn back to a neutral button, and you’ve successfully unfollowed. Simple.
Why Your Following Tab Might Feel "Broken"
Here is something most people don't realize: just because you follow someone doesn't mean you'll see every single thing they post. TikTok’s algorithm is notoriously aggressive. It prioritizes the "For You" page (FYP) over almost everything else.
If you follow 500 people but only interact with three of them, TikTok is going to stop showing you the other 497. It assumes you’ve moved on. To fix this, you have to actually use the "Following" tab at the top of your screen.
Toggle over. It’s right there at the top, next to "For You."
When you sit in the Following tab, you’re telling the app, "I want to see what my people are doing, not what the algorithm thinks I want." It’s a much more intentional way to consume media. It’s quieter. It’s less frantic. You might actually find that you enjoy the app more when you aren't being bombarded by viral trends that have nothing to do with your interests.
Finding Your People via Search and Sync
Maybe you aren't just stumbling across people. Maybe you’re looking for your real-life friends or that one chef you saw on Instagram.
The search bar is your best friend here. Type in their name or handle. TikTok is pretty good at guessing who you mean even if you butcher the spelling. Once the results pop up, there’s a "Users" tab. Tap that to filter out the random videos and just see the accounts.
Then there’s the controversial part: syncing contacts.
TikTok will constantly ask to see your phone’s contact list. If you say yes, it will show you every person you know who has a TikTok account linked to their phone number. It’s efficient. It’s also a little invasive for some. If you’re privacy-conscious, skip this. But if you want to find your cousin’s secret cringe-comedy account, this is the fastest way to do it. You can also sync your Facebook friends, which works the same way.
The "Friends" Tab vs. The "Following" Tab
TikTok recently introduced a "Friends" tab in the bottom navigation bar. This is different.
In the world of TikTok, a "friend" is someone you follow who also follows you back. It’s a mutual connection. This tab is specifically designed to show you content from people you actually know or have a digital relationship with. If you follow a celebrity like Gordon Ramsay, he’s probably not following you back. He won’t show up in your "Friends" tab. He’ll stay in your "Following" list.
Understanding this distinction helps you manage your expectations. If you want a social experience, focus on the Friends tab. If you want an entertainment experience, stay on the Following or For You pages.
Managing the Chaos: How to Unfollow and Clean Up
Look, interests change. You might have been really into "Bones or No Bones" with Noodle the Pug three years ago, but now your feed is cluttered with things you don't care about.
To clean house, go to your profile. Tap on the "Following" count.
This brings up a list of every single account you’ve ever followed. You can scroll through and hit the "Following" button next to any name to instantly drop them. There’s no notification sent to them. They won’t know you left unless they’re manually checking their follower list, which—let’s be honest—most people aren't doing unless they’re small creators.
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Quick Tips for a Better Feed:
- Don’t follow everyone. If you follow 2,000 people, your Following tab becomes just as messy as the FYP.
- Use the "Long Press." If you see someone you follow on your FYP and you're bored of them, long-press the video and hit "Not Interested." This doesn't unfollow them, but it tells the algorithm to stop shoving them in your face.
- Check your "Suggested" list. Sometimes TikTok’s suggestions are actually good. If you follow a lot of tech creators, the app will suggest more. It’s a rabbit hole, but a curated one.
The Etiquette of Following
Is it weird to follow your boss? Probably. Is it weird to follow your ex? Definitely.
TikTok is more public than people think. Unless your account is set to private, people can see who you follow. If you’re a professional trying to maintain a certain image, keep that in mind. Your "Following" list is a public endorsement of that person’s content.
Also, the "Follow for Follow" (F4F) trend is mostly dead. Back in 2020, people used to spam comments asking for follows. Nowadays, that just gets your account flagged as spam. If you want followers, post good stuff. If you want to follow people, do it because you actually like their videos.
Actionable Steps for a Cleaner TikTok Experience
- Audit your list. Spend five minutes today going through your "Following" list on your profile. If you haven't watched a video from someone in a month, unfollow.
- Use the search filter. If you're looking for specific niches like "Mechanical Keyboards" or "Slow Gardening," use the search bar, then filter by "Users" to find the top authorities in that space.
- Switch tabs. Spend tomorrow only using the "Following" tab instead of the "For You" page. You’ll notice how much more relaxed the app feels when you’re in control of the content.
- Engage with favorites. If there are 5 creators you absolutely love, go to their profiles and turn on notifications (the little bell icon). This ensures you never miss a post, even if the algorithm tries to hide them.
Following on TikTok is the only way to turn a generic video app into a personalized TV station. It takes a little bit of manual labor to keep it from becoming a junk pile, but the payoff is a feed that actually teaches you something or makes you laugh without the filler.