How to Add Tags to TikTok After Posting

You've filmed, edited, and perfectly timed your video to a trending sound. After hitting the post button, you watch the view count start to creep up, only to realize you completely forgot to add your hashtags. It's a frustrating moment every creator knows, but what can you do about it? In this guide, we'll walk through the honest answer to whether you can add tags to a TikTok after posting and cover the best strategies to fix the mistake and avoid it in the future.

So, Can You Actually Add or Edit Tags on TikTok After Posting?

Let's get right to it: No, you cannot directly edit the caption or add hashtags to a TikTok video once it has been published. After a video goes live, the description, hashtags, and user tags are locked in permanently. This might seem frustrating, but there's a good reason for it from TikTok's perspective.

The hashtags in your caption are a primary signal you send to the TikTok algorithm. The platform uses them to understand what your video is about, who to show it to first, and how to categorize it for the For You Page. Allowing users to change hashtags after the fact could let people "game the system" by adding trending tags to old videos long after the trend has passed, which could disrupt the algorithm's learning process and create a confusing user experience. So, while it feels like a limitation, it helps keep the content discovery engine running smoothly.

But don't worry - just because you can't hit an "edit" button doesn't mean you're out of options. You have a few workarounds, each with its own pros and cons.

The "Start Over" Method: Deleting and Re-uploading Your Video

The only official way to change your hashtags is to delete the original video and re-upload it with the corrected caption. While this sounds simple, it comes with a major catch: you will lose all existing views, likes, comments, and shares on the video. Essentially, you are starting from zero.

When Is This a Good Idea?

This nuclear option is really only recommended in one specific scenario: you just posted the video (like, within the last 5-10 minutes) and it has gained almost no traction (fewer than 100 views, a couple of likes, and no comments). In this case, you have very little to lose, and starting over with proper hashtags gives your content a much better shot at reaching the right audience.

Step-by-Step Guide to Deleting and Re-uploading:

1. Save Your Video (The Right Way): Before you do anything, you need a high-quality copy of your video.
   • The best-case scenario: You saved the video to your camera roll before you uploaded it the first time, or you still have the video in your TikTok drafts. Drafts are your best friend! They are saved without a watermark.
   • If you didn't save a draft: You'll have to download the live video. Go to your video on TikTok, tap the three-dots icon (•••), and select "Save video." Be aware: this version will have a TikTok watermark, which can sometimes impact the algorithm's perception of re-uploaded content.
2. Delete the Original Post: Once your video file is safely on your phone, navigate back to the original TikTok. Tap the three-dots icon again and select "Delete" from the bottom row of options. Confirm the deletion.
3. Re-upload and Add New Tags: Now, just upload the video again as you normally would. Tap the "+" icon, select the video from your camera roll, make any final edits, and when you get to the publishing screen, write your new caption with all the well-researched hashtags you missed the first time.

Tread carefully with this method. If a video has decent engagement or has been up for a few hours, re-uploading can erase momentum you were already building. For those cases, consider these other strategies.

Alternative Strategies If You Don't Want to Delete Your Video

If your video already has a few thousand views, a bunch of comments, or you just don't want to sacrifice the engagement you've earned, deleting it is off the table. Here are three smarter ways to handle the situation.

Strategy 1: Add Hashtags in the Comments

This is probably the most-asked question after "Can I edit the caption?" and the answer is a little nuanced. While you can certainly add hashtags to your own comment section, they do not work the same way as hashtags in the caption. The algorithm uses the caption's tags to categorize and distribute your content to For You Pages. Tags in the comments are largely ignored for initial distribution.

However, they may have a very minor impact on searchability within TikTok's search function. If someone specifically searches for a hashtag you put in the comments, your video might appear, but anecdotally, this effect is minimal.

• How to do it: Simply leave a comment on your own video with the hashtags, like: "#socialmediamarketing #tiktoktips #contentcreator."
• When to use this: If you want to put in minimal effort and have a slim chance of improving searchability. It costs you nothing but 30 seconds, but manage your expectations. Think of it as a low-effort, low-reward tactic.

Strategy 2: Use the "Stitch" or "Duet" Feature on Your Own Video

This is a clever and highly effective workaround that gives your content a second chance without deleting the original. By Stitching or Dueting your own video, you create a new, separate video that references the old one. This new video gets a brand new caption where you can put the correct hashtags.

Example Scenario: You posted a brilliant recipe video but forgot to add #recipetiktok or #easymeals. The original video isn't getting seen by foodies. You can "Stitch" the first second of your own video with a new clip of you saying, "Forgot to add the tags, but here's how you make my foolproof pasta sauce!" Then, in the caption of this new Stitch, you add all the food and recipe hashtags you originally missed. The Stitch now has a chance to land on food-lovers' For You Pages, where it can drive traffic back to your original, whole video.

How to Stitch/Duet Your Own Video:

1. Go to your original video that's missing the hashtags.
2. Tap the three-dots icon (•••) to open the options menu.
3. Select either "Stitch" or "Duet."
4. For a Stitch: Select the clip from your original video you want to lead into your new content. Then, record a new ending or intro.
5. For a Duet: Set up the Duet format (side-by-side, green screen, etc.) and record your new video alongside the original.
6. Proceed to the posting screen. Here, in the caption for this new video, write your compelling hook and add all the correct, strategic hashtags.

This method brilliantly preserves the original post while giving the core content another chance to be categorized correctly by the algorithm. It is arguably the best strategy when you don't want to lose what you've already built.

Strategy 3: Run the Video as a TikTok Ad with "Promote"

If the video is important for your brand or business goals, you can use TikTok's built-in "Promote" feature. This isn't about adding hashtags, but about achieving the same end goal: getting your video in front of the right audience.

Instead of relying on organic hashtag discovery, you are paying to target users based on their interests, demographics, and behaviors. So, if you posted a video about your small business's new product and forgot to tag #smallbusinesstiktok, you could "Promote" the video and define your target audience as people interested in small businesses and your product category.

• How to do it: Go to the video, tap the three-dots icon, and select "Promote." From there, you'll choose a goal (more views, website visits, etc.), define your audience, set a budget, and launch the campaign.
• When to use it: This is a powerful option for business accounts or creators monetizing their content. If a video is directly tied to a business outcome and you have the budget, Promote can be an excellent way to recover from a hashtag mistake by paying for precise targeting instead.

The Best Fix: Prevention and Planning Before you Press Post

The best way to avoid the stress of messing up your hashtags is to slow down and create a system to get them right every time. Reactive fixes are okay, but a proactive strategy will save you headaches and lead to much better organic growth.

1. Find and Save Your Core Hashtags

Don't try to think of hashtags on the fly. Use the TikTok search bar to research relevant tags in your niche. Your goal is to use a mix:

• Broad Hashtags (1-2): These are tags with millions of views, like #workout or #marketing. They give the algorithm a general idea of your video's topic.
• Niche Hashtags (2-3): These are more specific to your community, like #beginnergymtips or #socialmediamanagerlife. These connect you to a more targeted, engaged audience.
• Trending Hashtags (0-1): Only use a trending tag if it is genuinely relevant to your video's content.

Keep these hashtag sets in a notes app or a spreadsheet so you can quickly copy and paste them when you're ready to post.

2. Always Use the Drafts Folder

Always, always, always save your video as a draft before you even think about posting. Upload your edited video, write your caption, add hashtags and mentions, and then hit "Drafts" instead of "Post." This does two things:

• It saves a perfect, watermark-free version of your video natively in the app.
• It gives you a chance to step away and review your caption and tags one last time before it goes live. If you see a typo or change your mind, you can edit it perfectly right from your drafts.

3. Use the "Description" Field on the Final Editing Screen

Before you get to the caption screen, there's a step where you can add text overlays, stickers, etc. At the very top right, there's a lesser-known feature that looks like a tag with text lines. Tapping on this lets you add a more detailed "description" of your video. TikTok uses this information for SEO and accessibility (like closed captions).

By writing a clear, keyword-rich sentence here (e.g., "Easy 30-minute Tuscan chicken recipe for a fast weeknight dinner"), you give the algorithm another powerful signal about your video's content, which supplements your hashtags beautifully.

Final Thoughts

While you can't directly edit hashtags on a TikTok video after posting, you're not powerless. You can either restart by re-uploading the video if its traction is low, or you can use clever workarounds like the Stitch/Duet method to give your content a new life without losing your initial engagement.

The stress of forgetting hashtags often stems from trying to juggle too many things at once. It's a pain we've personally experienced, which is why we built our visual calendar in Postbase. We use it to plan and schedule our TikToks - captions, hashtags, and all - far in advance, moving our entire content process out of messy spreadsheets. By the time a video goes live, we can be confident everything is perfectly optimized and ready to connect with the right audience.