How to Add Balance to TikTok Ads Manager

Nothing stalls creative momentum like a technical roadblock. You’ve filmed your TikTok, edited it perfectly, written killer ad copy, and you’re ready to launch your campaign - only to find a zero balance in your Ads Manager. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add funds to your TikTok Ads Manager, navigate the payment settings, and get your campaign running. We’ll cover both manual and automatic payment methods so you can choose the setup that works best for you.

Understanding TikTok's Payment Methods: Automatic vs. Manual

Before you add any money, it’s good to understand the two ways TikTok handles payments. The one you choose can make managing your ad budget simpler or give you stricter control, depending on your needs. Think of it like a prepaid vs. a postpaid phone plan.

Manual Payments: The "Pay-as-You-Go" Approach

With manual payments, you prepay for your ad spend by adding a balance to your account. Your ads will run and deduct costs from this prepaid amount until it runs out. It's straightforward and puts you in complete control of your budget.

• Best For: Businesses with strict or fluctuating budgets, one-off campaigns, or anyone who wants to avoid surprise charges on their credit card.
• Pros: You can never spend more than you’ve loaded into the account. It’s simple to track and great for starting out.
• Cons: If your prepaid balance runs out, all of your ads will stop running immediately until you top it up again. This can be disruptive for successful, ongoing campaigns.

Automatic Payments: The "Set-It-and-Forget-It" Method

With automatic payments, you add a primary payment method (like a credit or debit card), and TikTok charges you automatically as your ads run. This happens either on a specific billing date each month or when your account spending reaches a certain billing threshold (e.g., $50, $100, etc.). As you spend more and make payments on time, TikTok typically increases your threshold.

• Best For: Agencies, established advertisers, and anyone running consistent, long-term campaigns who doesn’t want their ads to stop due to a low balance.
• Pros: Your campaigns run without interruption, which is ideal for performance and scaling. It’s also less hands-on once you have it set up.
• Cons: You need to keep a close eye on your campaign performance, as costs can add up quickly without the hard stop of a prepaid balance. It requires more disciplined budget monitoring.

How to Add Balance to TikTok Ads Manager: A Step-by-Step Guide

For this walkthrough, we'll focus on the manual payment method, as it’s the most direct way to “add balance.” The process is simple and should only take a few minutes.

Step 1: Get into Your TikTok Ads Manager Dashboard

First things first, log in to your TikTok Ads Manager account. You can head directly to ads.tiktok.com. Once you're in and have selected the correct Ad Account (if you manage more than one), you’ll see your main dashboard.

Step 2: Find the Payment Section

Look to the top right corner of the screen. You'll see your account avatar or business name. Click on it to reveal a dropdown menu. From this menu, select Payment. This will take you to your billing dashboard, which is command central for all things finance-related for your ads.

Pro Tip: Take a moment to look around this page. You’ll see your current balance, payment history, and information about your payment methods. Getting familiar with this area will save you time later.

Step 3: Click "Add Balance"

Since we're using manual payments, the billing dashboard will prominently feature your "Available Balance." Right next to that, you should see a clear, clickable button that says Add Balance. This is your next click. If you haven't set up any payment methods yet, you may be prompted to add one at this stage.

Step 4: Enter the Amount and Your Payment Details

A new window will pop up. This is where you'll tell TikTok how much you want to add and how you're going to pay for it.

1. Enter the Recharge Amount: In the first field, type in the amount you want to add to your account. If you’re just starting out, you can begin with a small amount like $20 or $50 to test the waters with your first campaign. You don’t need to fund your entire month’s budget at once.
2. Add a Payment Method: If you don't have one saved, you'll need to add one now. Click “Add a new credit/debit card.” Most regions accept Visa, Mastercard, JCB, and American Express. Enter your card number, expiration date, security code, and the cardholder name exactly as it appears on the card.
3. Check Your Billing Information: Your billing address needs to match the address associated with your credit card. Any mismatches here are a common reason for payment failures, so double-check it.

Once everything is filled in, click the button to proceed. Depending on the payment method and your location, some different form inputs may show up here like PayPal details.

Step 5: Confirm and Check Your New Balance

The final step is to review the information one last time. Make sure the amount is correct and the card details are accurate. Once you click Make Payment or Confirm, TikTok will process the transaction.

Almost instantly, you should see the new amount reflected in your "Available Balance" back on the main Payment screen. In some rare cases, it might take a few minutes. Just refresh the page, and it should appear. Now you’re ready to assign a budget to your ad groups and launch your campaign!

Setting Up Automatic Payments in TikTok Ads Manager

So, what if you'd rather not manually add balance every time? Switching to a post-paid method is just as easy.

To do this, you’ll head back to the Payment section from your account dropdown. Instead of clicking "Add Balance," look for account settings or a payment method section and ensure a primary card is on file linked to automatic payments. Once you’ve linked a card, TikTok will no longer require you prepay. Instead, you'll get automatically billed when you reach your spending threshold. You can see your current threshold on this page as well so you know what to expect.

Common Financial Questions and Troubleshooting

Even with a smooth system, financial questions pop up. Here are some quick answers to common issues marketers run into.

Why did my card payment fail?

A payment failure is almost always due to one of a few things:

• Incorrect Information: The most common culprit. A wrong expiry date, CVV, or a billing address that doesn’t match your card’s records will cause an error. Double-check everything.
• Insufficient Funds: Make sure the account or card has enough money to cover the balance you’re adding.
• Bank Restrictions: Sometimes, a bank’s fraud detection system will block an online or international transaction. If you're sure your details are correct, you may need to call your bank to authorize the payment to TikTok.

How can I keep my spending under control with automatic payments?

Great question. Relying on your billing threshold isn't a budget strategy. The best way to control spending in TikTok Ads Manager is to set strict budget limits at the campaign or ad group level.

• Campaign Budget: Set a total budget for the entire campaign ("Lifetime Budget") or a daily cap ("Daily Budget").
• Ad Group Budget: You can also set daily or lifetime budgets for each individual ad group within a campaign for more granular control.

Your automatic payments will only charge what your campaigns and ad groups have actually spent, so using these settings is your best friend for making this payment method work without surprises.

Can I get a refund for my remaining manual balance?

Generally, TikTok's advertising policies state that any prepaid, unused funds in your manual account balance are non-refundable. For specific cases, you would have to contact TikTok Ads support through the question mark icon in the dashboard, but you should fund your account expecting that the money will be used for advertising.

Final Thoughts

Funding your TikTok Ads Manager account should be the easiest part of your campaign setup. Whether you choose the direct control of manual payments or the convenience of automatic billing, the process is quick and lets you get back to a more meaningful job: making great ads and engaging with your audience.

Managing ad payments is just one part of keeping your social media operations smooth. Once your ads start driving traffic and comments start rolling in, actually managing that new engagement becomes the priority. We recognized the frustration of jumping between apps just to reply to DMs and comments, especially after putting in all the work to generate them. That's why we built Postbase with a unified inbox that brings all your conversations into one place, so you can focus on building your community without the chaos.