How to Get Words on a TikTok Video

Putting words on your TikTok video does more than just add a label, it’s a powerful way to grab attention, tell a story, and keep viewers watching until the very last second. This guide will walk you through exactly how to add text using the in-app editor, master popular effects like timed reveals, and adopt pro strategies to make your words pop. We’ll cover the basics and then level up to the creative techniques that top creators use to make their content unforgettable.

The Fast-Track: Adding and Styling Text in TikTok

TikTok’s built-in text editor is surprisingly robust. It’s perfect for adding quick thoughts, emphasizing a point, or making your video more accessible. Forget complicated software - you can do almost everything you need right inside the app.

Step-by-Step Guide to Adding Basic Text

Once you’ve recorded or uploaded your video and are on the main editing screen (where you see options like "Filters" and "Adjust clips"), you’re ready to add your words.

1. Tap the Text Icon: On the right-hand editing toolbar, tap the "Text" icon (it looks like "Aa").
2. Type Your Message: A text box and keyboard will appear. Type out what you want to say. Keep it punchy! Viewers are scrolling fast, so shorter lines of text work best.
3. Customize Your Text: This is where the fun begins. Before you tap "Done," you have several options:
   • Fonts: Along the bottom, you can scroll through various fonts. Choose one that matches your video’s aesthetic, whether it’s bold and modern, classic and clean, or playful and quirky.
   • Colors: To the left of the fonts, you’ll find a row of color bubbles. Tap one to change your text color. You can swipe through the default options or tap the color wheel icon for a full spectrum of choices.
   • Style &, Highlight: See the “A” icon on the far left of the editor screen? Tapping this cycles through text styles. You can add a solid background to your text, a semi-transparent highlight, or an outline. This is incredibly useful for making your text readable against a busy background.
4. Position and Resize: After you tap "Done," you can move the text box anywhere on the screen by dragging it with your finger. Use two fingers to pinch and zoom, making the text larger or smaller to fit the space perfectly. You can also rotate it.

You can add multiple text boxes to a single video. Just repeat the process to add more words, each with its own unique styling and placement.

Timing is Everything: How to Make Text Appear and Disappear

One of the most effective ways to hold viewer attention is by timing your on-screen text to appear and disappear in sync with your video. This creates a dynamic, engaging experience that guides the viewer through your story. You'll see this everywhere, from recipe videos where ingredients pop up as they’re added to "Get Ready With Me" videos where text highlights products as they’re used.

Using the 'Set Duration' Timeline

Making text appear and disappear is much easier than it sounds. Here’s how you do it:

1. Add your text and style it as you want. Once you're back on the main editing screen, tap on the text box you just created.
2. A small menu will appear. Tap on “Set duration.”
3. This will open a timeline view of your video clip at the bottom of the screen. You'll see your text highlighted with a red box overlaid on the timeline.
4. Drag the handles on the left and right sides of the red box to set the start and end points for your text. As you drag, the video preview above will show you exactly what's happening at that moment.
5. Tap the play button to preview how it looks. Adjust the timing until the text appears exactly when you want it to and disappears at just the right moment.
6. Tap the checkmark at the bottom right to save the duration. You can do this with every single text box you add to create sequences of words that appear one after another.

Example in action: Imagine a fitness tutorial. As you demonstrate a squat, text appears that says “Keep your back straight.” It stays for three seconds, then disappears just as you move to the next exercise, where new text like “Engage your core” appears. This is all done with the “Set duration” tool.

Level Up: Creative Text Tricks for Higher Engagement

Once you’ve mastered the basics of adding and timing text, you can start using some of the more advanced features that help make videos go viral.

1. Let TikTok Read Your Words with Text-to-Speech

You’ve definitely heard that automated, slightly robotic voiceover on TikTok. That’s Text-to-Speech, and it’s a brilliant tool for grabbing attention and making content more accessible for people who are multitasking or have visual impairments. The contrast between a human on screen and the robotic voice often adds a layer of humor that hooks viewers in.

How to Use Text-to-Speech:

• After you’ve added a text box, tap on it once.
• In the menu that appears, tap the icon with a person’s head and soundwaves (it says “Text-to-speech”).
• Choose one of the voice styles available. TikTok regularly updates these, offering different tones and accents.
• The audio will automatically be generated in your chosen voice, reading your text at the exact time it appears on screen according to the duration you've set.

2. Automatically Transcribe Your Video with Auto Captions

A huge percentage of users watch TikToks with the sound off. If your video has someone speaking, auto captions are non-negotiable. They make your content accessible to everyone and keep those silent-scrollers engaged. TikTok’s auto caption feature is impressively accurate.

How to Turn On Auto Captions:

• On the main editing screen, look for the “Captions” icon in the right-hand menu.
• Tap it, and TikTok will automatically transcribe any speaking in your video.
• Once generated, the captions will appear as individual text boxes. You can tap on any of them to edit for errors and even change the font and style just like any other piece of text.

By using auto captions, you greatly increase the chances that your message will land, even if the viewer’s phone is on mute.

3. Use Text as the Primary Storyteller

Sometimes, the words are the main event. In many popular formats, text overlays do all the work of telling a story while the video in the background simply provides a vibe or context. Think of GRWM videos where the text explains a dramatic story, or “Day-In-The-Life” videos where the on-screen words explain what’s happening in each clip.

To do this well, use the duration tool meticulously. Break your story into bite-sized "sentences," each in its own text box. Have one box disappear and the next one appear immediately for a smooth, readable flow.

Pro Tips for Text That Stops the Scroll

Knowing how to add text is one thing, but knowing how to add effective text is another. Here are a few best practices to keep in mind.

• Mind the Safe Zones: TikTok’s interface covers parts of the screen. Keep your text away from the very bottom (where the caption is), the far right (where the like, comment, and share buttons are), and the top edge. The safest real estate is generally the center and upper-middle of the screen.
• Contrast is Your Best Friend: Your amazing text is useless if no one can read it. Always choose a color that stands out from the background video. If your video is dark, use light text. If it’s light, use dark text. The "highlight" or "outline" styles are lifesavers for busy backgrounds where colors are constantly changing.
• Keep Text On Screen Long Enough to Read: General rule of thumb: read your own on-screen text out loud twice, at a normal pace. If you can’t get through it before the text disappears, it’s too short. Viewers get frustrated when they don't have time to read, and they'll likely just scroll away.
• Use Brand Fonts When Possible (With a Catch): If you’re a brand, consistency is great. However, sometimes native TikTok fonts perform better because they feel more organic to the platform. A good strategy is to use an *outside app* like CapCut to bake in your brand font for one specific part (like a call to action), and use TikTok's fonts for the rest of the storytelling to keep it feeling native.

Final Thoughts

Mastering on-screen text is one of the most powerful skills you can develop as a TikTok creator. It turns a simple video clip into a compelling story, a helpful tutorial, or a laugh-out-loud piece of entertainment. From simple text additions to strategically timed reveals and automated voiceovers, you now have the tools needed to create content that captivates your audience from start to finish.

As creators, our team is constantly working with videos, and we know how critical planning is, especially for text-heavy content that tells a specific story. That's why we focused on building Postbase with a visual calendar that shows you everything at a glance. When you can schedule your TikToks, Reels, and Shorts weeks in advance and see how your narrative unfolds, making high-impact video content becomes much less chaotic and way more strategic.