How to Add Multiple Sounds on TikTok

You can absolutely use more than one sound in your TikTok videos, and it’s one of the best ways to make your content feel more dynamic and professional. This guide will walk you through exactly how to layer audio, whether you're adding a voiceover to a trending song or creatively blending two different tracks. We’ll cover the straightforward in-app method and a clever workaround for more complex sound mixing.

Why Bother With Multiple Sounds Anyway?

Layering audio isn't just a gimmick, it's a strategic creative choice that can seriously elevate your content. For marketers and creators, mastering this skill can make a tangible difference in engagement and storytelling. Here’s why it’s worth the small extra effort.

It Unlocks Better Storytelling

One sound can set a mood, but two can tell a story. Think about a simple DIY tutorial. With just a trending instrumental in the background, it’s a standard, passive video. But add your voiceover explaining the steps, and suddenly it's an engaging, educational piece of content. You're combining the vibe and potential reach of a trending sound with direct, value-driven narration. It lets you explain context, tell a joke, or add a personal touch that a single audio track can't convey on its own.

It Helps Build a Unique Brand Sound

In a sea of content where everyone is using the same trending audio, layering gives you a way to stand out. You can combine a popular track with a consistent set of your own sound effects, a short jingle, or even a specific style of voiceover. Over time, your audience starts to recognize this sonic signature. It becomes part of your brand identity, making your content instantly recognizable even if someone is just scrolling and listening without looking at the screen.

It Creates Surprising and Engaging Moments

Some of the most viral TikToks come from unexpected audio mashups. A dramatic movie score layered over a video of a cat knocking over a glass of water? Comedy gold. The right combination can create irony, tension, or pure humor that grabs a viewer's attention and makes them want to share it. These inventive mixes are what make the platform so fun and often become trends themselves, driving tons of shares and comments asking, "How did you do that?"

You Get the Best of Both Worlds: Reach and Originality

Using a trending sound can give your video an algorithmic boost, getting it in front of more eyes. The problem is, you’re competing with thousands of other videos using that exact same track. By layering your own voice or a second complementary sound on top, you get the discovery benefit of the trend while adding a layer of creativity that makes your video fresh and prevents it from getting lost in the noise. It’s a smart way to play the algorithm game without sacrificing your unique voice.

Method 1: The In-App Editor (Best for Voiceovers)

This is the most common and straightforward way to add multiple sounds on TikTok. It’s perfect for when you want to talk over a piece of music or add specific sound effects to punctuate moments in your video. The tools are built right into the app and are pretty intuitive once you know where to look.

Step-by-Step Guide:

1. Record or Upload Your Video. Start your TikTok creation process as usual. You can either record your clips directly within the app or upload a pre-edited video from your camera roll. Get the visual part of your content ready first.
2. Add Your Primary Sound. At the top of the screen, tap "Add sound." This is where you'll pick the main audio track for your video. This is typically a trending song, an instrumental, or any piece of music from TikTok’s vast library that sets the overall mood. Select your sound and continue to the editing screen.
3. Find the "Voiceover" Tool. On the right-hand editing menu, look for the dropdown arrow (sometimes it's already expanded). Tap on "Voiceover," which is represented by a microphone icon. This will take you to a dedicated recording screen.
4. Record Your Voice. On the voiceover screen, you'll see your video timeline. You can drag the timeline to the exact spot where you want your narration to begin. Press and hold the red record button to record your voice. You can record in one long take or in short segments. A very helpful trick is to uncheck the "Keep original sound" box while you record, this mutes the main track so you can hear yourself clearly, but don't worry - the original sound will still be there after you're done recording.
5. Add Sound Effects (Optional). If you want to add more layers, you can go back to the editing screen and find the "Sound" option, sometimes within the "Edit" panel. From there, select "Sound effects." TikTok has a library of effects like applause, whooshes, dings, and crickets that you can place precisely on your timeline.
6. Time for the Audio Mix! This is the final and most important step. On the right-hand editing menu, tap "Volume." You will now see two separate volume sliders. One will say "Original sound" (your main music track) and the other will say "Added sound" (your voiceover and any sound effects). To make your voiceover clear, slide the "Original sound" volume way down, often to a level between 5% and 15%. Slide the "Added sound" volume up to 100% or even 200% to make it pop. Play the video back, tweak the levels until they are balanced, and you’re done!

This method gives you precise control and is the official way TikTok intends for you to layer explanatory or comedic narration over music.

Method 2: The Two-Videos Trick (For Blending Songs)

What if you want to mix two different songs from TikTok's library? The built-in editor won’t let you add two commercial sounds at once. But there's a popular workaround that creative editors use all the time. It involves privately posting a video to save the first sound and then using that saved video in a new project.

Part 1: Creating Your Base Video with the First Sound

1. Create & Add "Sound A". Start a new TikTok and either record or upload your footage. Go to the "Add sound" menu and select your first song - we’ll call it "Sound A." Edit your clips and trim the audio so it’s timed perfectly with your visuals.
2. Post the Video Privately. When you get to the posting screen, don't publish it for everyone to see. Tap on "Who can watch this video" and select "Only me." This is a critical step. Publishing it privately saves the video to a special tab on your profile that only you can see.
3. Save the Video to Your Device. Now, go to your profile and tap the icon that looks like a padlock. This is where all your private videos live. Open the video you just published, tap the three-dot menu (...) on the side, and choose "Save video." This will download a copy to your phone’s camera roll with "Sound A" permanently embedded into the video file.

Part 2: Layering the Second Sound on Top

4. Start a New TikTok. Open TikTok again and tap the "+" button to create a new video. This time, tap "Upload" and select the video you just saved from your camera roll - the one that already has "Sound A" baked into it.
5. Add "Sound B". With your saved video loaded into the new project, tap "Add sound" at the top and choose your second song from the library, which we'll call "Sound B."
6. Mix Your Two Sounds. Now for the magic. Proceed to the editing screen and tap the "Volume" icon. Just like in the voiceover method, you’ll see two sliders. This time, "Original sound" refers to your uploaded video containing "Sound A," and "Added sound" refers to "Sound B." Now you can adjust the volume of both songs independently to create your custom mashup! Maybe you want "Sound A" as a subtle-but-present melody and "Sound B" as the dominant beat. Play with the mix until it sounds just right.
7. Finish and Post Publicly. Add any remaining text, effects, and captions, and post this final version for everyone to see. You've successfully blended two separate commercial tracks into one seamless video.

A Note on This Method

While this workaround is fantastic for creativity, be aware that from an algorithmic perspective, TikTok will only recognize "Sound B" as the official audio for your video. It won't associate your post with any trends related to "Sound A" because that sound is now just part of your "Original sound." This method is more for creating an artistic effect than for trying to capitalize on two trends at once.

Tips for a Great Audio Mix

Simply adding multiple sounds isn't enough, you have to make them work together. A bad mix can sound messy and deter viewers.

• Prioritize Clarity: In almost every case, one sound should be the hero and the other the sidekick. If you have a voiceover, it needs to be the loudest and clearest element. If you're mixing two songs, one should usually form the background texture while the other provides the main melody or beat. Don't let them compete for attention, let them support one another.
• Match the Vibe (Or Go for Intentional Contrast): An upbeat pop song mixed with a peaceful nature sound might feel jarring. Try to pair sounds that are thematically or emotionally compatible. On the other hand, intentionally contrasting sounds can create great irony or humor, so feel free to experiment - just make it a conscious choice.
• Think About Pacing: Use your audio edits to control the energy of your video. You can have an instrumental playing softly at the beginning, bring in a voiceover to explain something, and then cut both to let a powerful sound effect land with maximum impact. Your audio mix tells a story just as much as your visuals do.
• Always Listen With Headphones: Your phone’s built-in speakers can be deceiving. They often flatten the audio and may hide the fact that your sounds are clashing or that your voiceover is muffled. Before posting, always do a final audio check with headphones to catch any mixing issues.

Final Thoughts

Learning how to add multiple sounds on TikTok, whether through the official voiceover tool or the two-video workaround, is a skill that opens up enormous creative potential. It allows you to transform a simple video into a piece of content with personality, humor, and a clear narrative, helping you connect more deeply with your audience and build a memorable brand on the platform.

Creating intricate videos with layered audio can be time-consuming, and planning that content is half the battle. This is where a sharp content planning process becomes so important. In our own social media workflow, using Postbase allows my team to visually organize our ideas on a shared calendar, helping us plan our more complex TikToks alongside our Reels, Shorts, and other content. When you're consistently executing across multiple platforms, having a reliable system to plan, schedule, and analyze what’s actually working not only saves time but also provides the clarity you need to keep growing without the chaos.