How to Add Memes to a TikTok Video

Adding a meme to your TikTok video is a sure-fire way to make your content more relatable and engaging. Whether you're reacting to a trending image or using a classic meme as a punchline, it's a quick hack for connecting with your audience. This guide breaks down simple methods for adding memes directly in TikTok and shows you a more advanced technique for greater creative control.

Why Memes on TikTok Just Work

Memes are the unofficial language of the internet, and on a platform as fast-paced and culture-driven as TikTok, they’re practically essential. Tapping into meme culture isn't just about being funny, it's a strategic move that helps you connect with viewers on a deeper level. When you use a meme your audience knows and loves, you’re creating an instant inside joke. It signals that you’re part of the same online community and understand what makes them laugh.

From a marketing perspective, memes are a low-effort, high-reward form of content. They often piggyback on existing trends, giving your video a built-in audience and a better chance of landing on the For You Page. Instead of building context from scratch, you're using a visual shortcut that communicates a feeling, an opinion, or a relatable situation in seconds. This allows you to produce relevant content quickly and stay top-of-mind with your audience without needing a big production budget.

Where to Find Memes (and How to Use Them Safely)

Before you can add a meme, you need to find the right one. The perfect meme feels timely, relevant to your niche, and genuinely funny to your target audience. But it's also important to be mindful of where you get your content from.

Great Places to Source Memes

Your goal is to find high-quality images or video clips that are easy to download. Here are some reliable go-to spots:

• Trending TikTok Sounds and Effects: The most organic place to find meme formats is on TikTok itself. Pay attention to recurring audio clips, Green Screen trends, or video formats. Participating in these trends is the easiest way to join the conversation.
• GIPHY: While known for GIFs, GIPHY is a massive library of reaction clips and short meme videos. You can find just about any popular meme there and download it as an MP4.
• Social Platforms like X (Twitter) and Instagram: Meme accounts on these platforms are often the first to popularize new formats. Following relevant accounts in your niche can give you a steady stream of ideas. Just be prepared to screenshot or use a third-party tool to download the content.
• Know Your Meme: This is less of a source for downloading and more of an encyclopedia for understanding the context. If you see a meme but don't know its origin or meaning, look it up here to make sure you're using it correctly.

A Quick Note on Copyright and Fair Use

Let's talk about the legal stuff for a second. Most memes are created from copyrighted material - movie stills, screenshots from TV shows, or viral photos. While meme culture often operates in a "fair use" gray area (especially for commentary, parody, or criticism), it’s not a complete free pass. Brands, in particular, should be cautious.

To stay on the safer side:

• Use your own photos: Turn your own content into a meme format. It’s original and 100% yours.
• Stick to reaction-style content: Recording your own reaction to a meme typically falls more clearly under fair use than simply reposting the meme itself.
• Give credit when possible: If you know the original creator of a meme format or image, tagging them is good internet etiquette.

When in doubt, focus on creating transformative content. Don't just post the meme, add your own commentary, joke, or story to it.

Method 1: The TikTok Green Screen Effect (Super Easy)

The simplest way to feature a meme in your video is by using TikTok’s built-in Green Screen effect. This tool lets you replace your background with any photo or video from your camera roll, making it perfect for react-style videos or storytelling.

Step-by-Step Guide to the Green Screen Effect

1. Download Your Meme: First, find the meme image or video you want to use and save it to your phone’s camera roll.
2. Open TikTok and Start a New Video: Tap the + icon at the bottom of the screen to open the camera.
3. Find the Green Screen Effect: On the left side of the record button, tap on Effects. Tap the magnifying glass icon to search. Type "Green Screen" into the search bar. You’ll see several options, but the one you want is the icon that shows a picture with a down arrow. It's one of the most popular effects.
4. Select Your Meme: Once you tap the Green Screen effect, a tray will appear showing the photos and videos on your camera roll. Select the meme you saved. It will now appear as the background.
5. Frame Your Shot: You can use your fingers to pinch, zoom, and move yourself around in the frame. Position yourself so you’re not blocking the important parts of the meme.
6. Record Your Video: Once you're happy with the framing, press the red record button. You can talk, react, or act out a scene while the meme plays or sits behind you. You can record one continuous clip or multiple shorter clips.
7. Edit and Post: After you finish recording, you can add text, stickers, subtitles, or a trending sound just like you would with any other TikTok video. Review your video, write a catchy caption with relevant hashtags, and hit post.

This method is fantastic for quick, timely content. When a new meme starts trending, you can create a reaction video in minutes.

Method 2: Using a Video Editing App (For More Control)

While the Green Screen effect is great, it has its limits. You can only use one meme as a full background. What if you want a meme to pop up in the corner of your screen as a punchline? Or what if you want multiple memes to appear throughout your video? For that, you’ll need a video editing app.

Apps like CapCut (made by the same parent company as TikTok), InShot, or VN Video Editor are popular choices because they’re user-friendly and packed with features.

Step-by-Step Guide Using an Editing App (Like CapCut)

1. Record and Download Your Content: Film your primary video footage - the part where you're talking or demonstrating something. Next, find and download the meme(s) you want to use as images or video files.
2. Start a New Project: Open CapCut (or your chosen editor) and start a new project. Import your main video footage first. This will be your base layer.
3. Add the Meme as an Overlay: Look for a feature called "Overlay" or "Picture-in-Picture (PiP)". In CapCut, it’s one of the main tools in the bottom menu. Tap it and select “Add overlay.”
4. Position and Resize the Meme: Choose your meme from your camera roll. It will now appear on top of your main video. You can drag it to any position on the screen and use two fingers to resize it or rotate it. This is great for making a meme appear over your shoulder or in a corner.
5. Adjust the Timing: On the editing timeline, the overlaid meme will appear as its own separate clip. You can drag its edges to trim its duration, so it only appears for a few seconds. You can also slide the entire clip left or right to change when it appears in your main video, perfectly timing it to your narration or action.
6. Repeat for Multiple Memes (Optional): If you want to add more memes, just repeat the overlay process for each one, arranging them on the timeline as needed.
7. Export and Upload to TikTok: Once your video is edited to perfection, export it in high quality (1080p is usually best). Then, open TikTok, tap the + icon, and select "Upload" to choose your finished video from your camera roll. Add your sound, caption, and hashtags within TikTok before posting.

This method requires a few extra steps, but the creative freedom it provides is well worth it. You can create more complex jokes, precise visual gags, and professional-looking content that stands out.

3 Creative Ways to Weave a Meme into Your Next TikTok

Knowing how to add a meme is only half the battle. Here are a few popular formats to inspire your next video:

1. The Commentary or Hot Take

Use the Green Screen effect with a screenshot of a funny tweet, a wild news headline, or a confusing product listing. Record yourself giving your opinion, cracking a joke about it, or delivering a "hot take." This positions you as an entertaining authority in your niche.

2. The Relatable Situation

Find a popular meme that describes a common feeling or experience (like the "This Is Fine" dog or the distracted boyfriend). Pair that meme with on-screen text describing a situation relevant to your audience. For example, a marketer could use the distracted boyfriend meme with the labels "Me," "Content Calendar," and "A New Viral Trend."

3. The Punchline Cutaway

Tell a story to the camera and right at the climactic moment, use the editing app method to have a meme pop up on screen as the punchline. For example, if you’re telling a story about a frustrating client email, you can have a short clip of a famous meltdown meme appear for a second or two to visualize your reaction.

Final Thoughts

Whether you're using TikTok's simple Green Screen effect for a quick reaction video or a separate editing app for more control, adding memes is a fantastic strategy to boost your content's personality and engagement. Incorporating them helps you stay relevant, connect with your audience through shared humor, and produce trending content in just a few minutes.

As you start creating more meme-focused content, planning becomes essential to keeping your feed consistent. That's where we designed Postbase to come in. Our visual calendar lets you plan and see all your upcoming TikToks, Reels, and Shorts in one place, so you can easily map out your next series of videos. Scheduling your meme videos alongside your other content ensures you're always posting at the right time, even when you're jumping on a fast-moving trend.