How to Do a Voiceover on TikTok

Adding a voiceover to your TikTok can transform a simple clip into a compelling story, a helpful tutorial, or a hilarious skit. It's a fundamental skill that gives your content depth, personality, and a professional touch. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add your own voice to your videos, cover the insanely popular text-to-speech feature, and share some pro tips to make your audio sound great.

Why TikTok Voiceovers are a Game-Changer for Your Content

Before jumping into the "how," it's worth understanding the "why." A voiceover isn't just a technical feature, it's a powerful creative tool. When you layer your voice over a video, you unlock a new dimension of content creation. Here’s what it can do for you:

• Masterful Storytelling: You can turn candid footage of a trip into a captivating travel diary or transform a simple cooking video into an engaging narrative about a family recipe. Your voice guides the viewer's experience, explaining what they're seeing and adding emotional context.
• Crystal-Clear Education: For tutorials, DIY projects, or life hacks, a voiceover is essential. You can provide clear, step-by-step instructions that sync perfectly with the on-screen action, making your content infinitely more helpful and easy to follow.
• Unleash Your Inner Comedian: Some of the funniest content on TikTok uses voiceovers. Think of it as your chance to provide an inner monologue for your pet, dub over a silly video of your friends, or add sarcastic commentary to an otherwise ordinary situation.
• Build a Stronger Brand Voice: For businesses and professional creators, a voiceover literally gives your brand a voice. A consistent, friendly, and recognizable voice helps build a more personal connection with your audience, making your brand feel more human and relatable.
• Improve Accessibility: While closed captions are great, a voiceover can also act as an audio description for people who are visually impaired, making your content more inclusive for a wider audience.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Recording a Voiceover in TikTok

The native voiceover tool inside TikTok is straightforward once you know where to find it. Let's break down the process into simple, easy-to-follow steps so you can get it right on your first try.

Step 1: Record or Upload Your Video

Your journey begins with having a video ready. You have two options:

• Record a new video: Tap the `+` button at the bottom of the screen to open the TikTok camera. Record your clips as you normally would.
• Upload an existing video: Tap the `+` button, then select "Upload" from the bottom right to choose a video from your phone's camera roll.

Once you're satisfied with your footage, tap the red checkmark or "Next" button to move to the editing screen.

Step 2: Locate the Voiceover Tool

Now you're on the main editing page where you see options for text, stickers, and effects. The voiceover feature is tucked away in the editing menu.

On the right-hand side of the screen, look for an icon that says “Audio editing” or an icon that looks like a soundwave or microphone. Previously, it has been an arrow to expand more options. Tap on this icon to reveal the audio tools. Inside, you'll see a prominent option labeled "Voiceover." Tap it.

Step 3: A Crash Course on the Voiceover Editor

You’re now looking at the voiceover editor. This is where the magic happens. Here’s a quick overview of what you’ll see and how to use it:

1. The Video Timeline: You’ll see your video playing on a loop, with tracks for your original clip audio and your voiceover audio. A white vertical line on the timeline indicates your current position in the video.
2. Positioning Your Audio: Before you record, you can drag the timeline left or right. Place the white line at the exact spot where you want your voiceover recording to begin.
3. The Record Button: At the bottom, you’ll find a large, familiar record button. Recording is simple: press and hold the button to record your voice, and release it to stop recording.
4. Recording in Chunks: You don’t have to record your entire voiceover in one perfect take. You can record a few seconds, release the button, drag the timeline to a new spot, and then press and hold again to record another segment.

Step 4: Finalizing & Mixing Your Audio

You’ve recorded your audio, but a few final adjustments will make a significant difference for a great-sounding video.

At the bottom of the voiceover recorder, you can toggle a switch called "Keep original sound." If you uncheck this box, the original audio from your video clip will be completely muted, leaving only your voiceover. However, if your video’s original sound adds valuable context or ambiance (for instance, the sound of waves while talking about a trip), you'll want to reduce its volume so it won't interfere with your voiceover. To do so, enable the "Keep original sound" slider and lower the volume.

Once you are done and back on the main editing screen, you can tap the "Sound" button from the upper menu to add a trending sound to keep your audience engaged. From there, you can tap the "Volume" tab to access multiple audio sliders and control the levels of the original sound, your voiceover, and the added music track to mix the perfect audio balance.

After adjusting, hit "Save," and you're ready to post your masterpiece!

Pro Tip: Made a mistake? Don't stress. Each recorded audio clip appears on your voiceover audio track, tap on it to move its position or delete it, so you can re-record just that part instead of the whole thing.

Beyond Basic Voiceovers: Conquer The Iconic Text-to-Speech

Alongside manual voiceovers, TikTok's robotic text-to-speech voice has become an iconic part of the platform's culture. You've definitely heard it, that slightly monotonous, clear digital voice that reads on-screen text aloud. It’s popular because it can add a layer of impersonal humor, protect your anonymity, or simply grab the attention of viewers scrolling with their sound on.

It's easy to use this feature.

How to Easily Add Text-to-Speech Voice on Your TikToks

1. Record or upload your video just as you would for a regular voiceover and proceed to the editing screen.
2. On the top right-hand side menu, tap the "Text" tool (‘Aa’).
3. Draft the words you want into your text box, then tap “Done.” Customize the font or colors as you want.
4. Now, tap on the text box you just added to your screen until an options bar appears.
5. Look for an icon of a face speaking, labeled “Text-to-speech.”
6. Once you tap it, a panel will appear offering various voice styles. Pick the one that fits the vibe you want for your TikTok content and wait for TikTok to process it. Play the video again to hear your text in a new voice on TikTok!
7. Timing is everything: You can also set a specific duration for your text and its audio to appear. To do so, tap on the text, press "Set duration," then you will see a timeline where you can drag the start and end of the highlighted selection to match the action on screen. Tap the checkmark afterward to save it!

Pro Tips For Crafting High-Quality Voiceovers That People Will Actually Listen To

Knowing how to use the feature is one thing, but creating a voiceover that captures your audience's attention is another. Check out these powerful tips to level up your audio on TikTok:

• Use a Script: It might seem unnecessary for a short video, but even a few bullet points can prevent you from rambling and help you deliver your lines confidently and concisely.
• Find a Quiet Place: Avoid echoes and background noise. A simple hack is to record in a closet, where the clothing will absorb sound. You can also place a heavy blanket over your head and phone to create a makeshift sound booth and improve your audio quality, no professional microphone needed.
• Pace Yourself: Don't rush to fit too much information into one video. If you have a lot to say, consider splitting it into a multi-part series. Speak calmly and clearly, at a slightly slower pace than usual, to improve enunciation and sound more knowledgeable.
• Match Your Tone to the Vibe: Delivery matters. You don't need to be a professional voice actor, but your tone should match the content. Adjust your energy - whether it's excited, calm, or humorous - to fit the video.

Video Ideas for TikTok Voiceovers

Now that you know how to create a great voiceover, what content should you make? Here are a few popular ideas to inspire you:

• GRWM - "Get ready with me" vlog style content.
• DITL- "Day in the life" of your dog... or as a... (your profession).
• "What I eat in a day": Showcase all your meals. This is a very trendy format people love.
• "What my (son, boyfriend...) thinks about...": Let a person or pet rate skincare products, food, or something unusual.
• "My morning Routine": Showcase how you start your day. This creates connection and is a great format for engagement.

Final Thoughts

Whether you're using your authentic voice to tell a story or leveraging the popular text-to-speech feature for a fun trend, mastering voice tools on TikTok is key to creating engaging content. Using your "voice" helps you connect with your audience and deliver your message more effectively.

Once you've perfected your TikTok audio, you'll want to schedule that amazing content to post at the perfect time for maximum engagement. This is where Postbase can help. We've designed our platform to make scheduling content across multiple social media networks fast and easy. Instead of posting manually to each platform, you can use Postbase's centralized visual calendar to effortlessly schedule content not only for TikTok, but for multiple accounts including Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and more. It will save you time in the creation process - often the hardest part of content creation!