How to Add Song Lyrics on a TikTok Video

Adding song lyrics to your TikTok videos is one of the quickest ways to boost engagement and make your content more accessible. Whether you’re creating a karaoke-style duet, telling a story, or just want to highlight your favorite part of a song, timed lyrics grab attention and get people watching. This guide will walk you through exactly how to do it using both TikTok's automatic feature and the manual text tool for ultimate creative control.

Why Bother Adding Lyrics to Your TikToks?

You might think the song speaks for itself, but displaying lyrics on screen does more than just repeat what viewers are hearing. It transforms a passive listening experience into an active viewing one. Here’s why it’s so effective:

• It Boosts Watch Time: When lyrics appear one line at a time, viewers are naturally inclined to watch until the end of a phrase or the entire chorus. This signals to the TikTok algorithm that your video is engaging, which can help it reach a wider audience.
• It Increases Accessibility: A huge percentage of users watch videos with the sound off, especially if they’re in public, at work, or just scrolling at night. Displaying the lyrics means they can still understand and enjoy your video without audio. It also makes your content accessible to viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing.
• It Enhances Storytelling: Lyrics can provide context, act as a punchline, or add emotional weight to your video. You can create content where you act out the words, use them to respond to a situation, or simply let them set the mood for your visual content.
• It Encourages Participation: Lyric videos are fantastic prompts for Duets and Stitches. People love to sing along, react to the words, or use your video as a karaoke backing track, which brings more attention and engagement back to your original post.

Ultimately, it’s a simple edit that pays huge dividends in making your content stickier, more memorable, and easier for the algorithm to love.

Method 1: Using TikTok's Built-In Auto-Lyrics Feature

The easiest and fastest way to add lyrics is with TikTok’s native feature. It automatically transcribes and syncs the text to songs from its official music library. The only catch is that this feature is only available for songs where the publisher has enabled it. If the option doesn't appear, don't worry - just skip to Method 2.

Here’s how to use it step-by-step:

Step 1: Create or Upload Your Video

Start by recording a new video directly in the TikTok app or uploading a pre-recorded clip from your camera roll. Tap the red record button to film or hit the "Upload" button to select from your device.

Step 2: Add a Song from the Music Library

Once you have your video, tap "Add sound" at the top of the screen. Search for the song you want to use. Remember, for the auto-lyrics function to work, you must select the song from this official library. Once you select your track, you can trim it to the section you want to feature.

Step 3: Navigate to the Editing Screen

After selecting your sound, you'll be taken back to the video preview. Tap "Next" to move to the main editing screen where you’ll see options for Text, Stickers, Effects, and more on the right-hand side.

Step 4: Add the Lyrics

Tap the "Text" icon (it looks like "Aa") from the editor sidebar. If the song you’ve chosen supports automatic lyrics, a small icon with a musical note and lines (labeled "Lyrics") will often pop up. Tap it.

If you don’t see it appear automatically after adding your text, don’t worry. Sometimes you first have to type anything as placeholder text to wake up the editor options. Look for the "Lyrics" option on the text editing bar. TikTok will then process the audio and automatically generate synchronized lyrics that appear on screen in time with the song.

Step 5: Customize the Appearance

You’re not stuck with the default look. Once the lyrics are generated, you can tap on them to edit:

• Font: Choose from a variety of fonts to match the vibe of your video.
• Color: Select a color for the text and add a background highlight or outline to make it pop against your video. High-contrast colors work best.
• Alignment: Align the text to the left, center, or right of the screen.

When you're happy with the style, tap "Done." You can then drag the lyrics to position them anywhere on the screen.

Method 2: Adding and Timing Lyrics Manually

What if your chosen song doesn't have the auto-lyrics feature? Or what if you're using an original sound, a trending voice-over, or a specific remix? This is where manual text timing comes in. It requires a bit more patience, but it offers complete creative freedom and works for any audio on TikTok.

This technique is the secret behind some of the most viral storytelling and lip-sync videos.

Step 1: Have Your Lyrics Ready

Before you even start, find the lyrics for your song or sound bite. Have them open in a separate app or written down so you can easily copy and paste or type them into TikTok. This saves you from trying to remember the words while you’re in the middle of editing.

Step 2: Add Your Video and Sound

Just like before, record or upload your video clip and add the sound you want to work with. Proceed to the main editing screen.

Step 3: Add Your First Line of Text

Tap the "Text" icon ("Aa"). Type or paste the first phrase or line of lyrics that you want to display on screen. Don't type out the whole song - you're going to create a separate text box for each line.

Customize the font, color, and style, then tap "Done."

Step 4: Set the Duration

This is the most important part. After adding your text box, tap on it once more. A menu will appear with the option "Set duration." Tap that.

You’ll now see a timeline editor at the bottom of the screen showing your video clip and a red bar representing the text box you just created. Drag the start and end sliders of this red bar to match the exact moment the phrase is sung or spoken in the audio. You can use the play button to preview it and get the timing just right. When it’s perfectly synced, tap the checkmark.

Step 5: Repeat for All Remaining Lines

Now, simply repeat the process. Tap the "Text" icon again, add the second line of lyrics, style it, and tap "Set duration." Sync this new text box to the next part of the song in the timeline editor.

Continue this process for every line you want to appear in your video. While it might seem a little tedious, after two or three lines, you'll get into a rhythm and be able to do it quickly. This method gives you precise control, allowing you to create dynamic, fast-paced lyric videos that are impossible with the auto feature.

Creative Tips for A-Plus Lyric Videos

Knowing the "how" is only half the battle. Now let's talk about making your lyric videos stand out.

• Font Choice Matters: The font should match the song's energy. A powerful breakup anthem might use a bold, sans-serif font, while a dreamy indie pop song could use a softer or more artistic typestyle. A goofy, comedic sound? Go for something playful.
• Focus on Readability: Your lyrics should be easy to read in a split second. Use high-contrast colors (e.g., white text on a dark background, or text with a solid outline). Avoid complex, cursive fonts that are hard to decipher on a small screen.
• Use Emphasis Strategically: You can make one word in a line bigger or a different color to highlight its importance. This is done by creating two separate text boxes for the same line and timing them perfectly.
• Play with Placement: Instead of keeping all your lyrics in the same spot, make different lines pop up in different corners of the screen. This makes the video more dynamic and keeps the viewer's eyes moving.
• Align Lyrics With Action: Don't just show your face. Make your visuals interact with the lyrics. If the song says "look up," point your camera toward the sky. If it says "running," show yourself jogging. This synergy between text and video is what makes for truly compelling content.

Final Thoughts

You're now ready to add song lyrics to your TikToks, either with the quick auto-generator or the powerful manual text timing tool for ultimate control. Whichever method you choose, focusing on readability and matching the visuals to the text will set your content apart and help you connect with your audience on a deeper level.

When you're creating detailed content like lyric videos, planning becomes everything. At Postbase, we built our visual calendar specifically for content formats like TikToks and Reels, making it easy to see your entire content strategy at a glance. We help you plan out your video series, schedule them reliably so they actually post on time, and manage all your engagement in one place so you can focus on creativity, not chaos.