How to Screenshare on TikTok Live

Screensharing on TikTok LIVE transforms your stream from a simple broadcast into an interactive presentation, a live gaming session, or a detailed tutorial. This powerful feature allows you to share your phone's screen directly with your audience, opening up a whole new world of content possibilities. This guide will walk you through exactly how to do it, from the basic requirements to creative ideas for making your screenshare broadcast a massive success.

Why Should You Screenshare on TikTok Live?

Before getting into the steps, it's helpful to see why this feature is such a game-changer for so many creators. Traditionally, a LIVE stream is focused on the creator's face and their immediate surroundings. Screensharing breaks that mold, letting you bring your audience directly into your digital world.

Here are just a few ways that a screenshare elevates your TikTok LIVEs:

• Mobile Gaming: Stream your gameplay directly from your phone. Whether you’re playing a popular title like Call of Duty: Mobile, Genshin Impact, or a casual puzzle game, your followers can watch you play, react to the action, and engage in real-time.
• App Tutorials & Walkthroughs: Teach your audience how to use a specific app. This is perfect for photo and video editing tutorials (like CapCut or Lightroom Mobile), productivity app guides, a walkthrough of your Notion dashboard, or even showing off a cool new piece of software.
• Live Coaching & Education: You can pull up a simple presentation, a document with notes, or a website to illustrate your points. Want to critique a follower’s website? Pull it up on screen. Want to review a design? Share it live.
• Product Demonstrations: If you have an app or a digital product, there’s no better way to show it off than a live, interactive demo. You can walk potential customers through features and answer their questions as they come in.
• Reaction Content: React to articles, social media posts, or videos with your audience by sharing your screen. It’s a great way to create a communal viewing experience and spark conversation.

Basically, if it’s on your phone screen, you can share it. This feature turns your LIVE into a more dynamic and valuable experience for your viewers.

Checklist: Are You Eligible to Screenshare on TikTok?

Unfortunately, not everyone can go LIVE or use the screenshare feature right away. TikTok has a few requirements in place to maintain the quality and safety of its LIVE platform. Before you get too far into planning, make sure you meet the following criteria:

• You Must Have at Least 1,000 Followers: This is the general threshold TikTok sets for granting access to the LIVE feature. This number can vary slightly by region, but 1,000 is the standard benchmark.
• You Must Be at Least 18 Years Old: To go LIVE and access monetization features like Gifts, you have to be 18 or older. TikTok uses your account's birthdate information to verify this.
• Your Account Must Be in Good Standing: If you have recent community guideline violations, your access to LIVE features might be temporarily restricted.

If you check all these boxes, you should see the option to go LIVE. The screenshare feature is a subset of the LIVE functionality, so once you can go LIVE, you should be able to screenshare.

Before You Go Live: A Quick Privacy and Professionalism Check

When you share your screen, you are sharing everything on it. A stray text message notification, a bank app alert, or an embarrassing photo in your camera roll can instantly appear to your entire audience. A few minutes of prep can save you from a major headache.

1. Clean Up Your Screen

Close all unnecessary apps. Having dozens of apps running in the background can slow down your phone and increase the risk of accidentally showing something you didn't mean to. Just keep the app or apps you plan to feature open and ready.

2. Turn on "Do Not Disturb" Mode

This is probably the single most important step. Banners, pop-ups, and notifications are distracting for your viewers and can expose private information. On both iPhone and Android, you can easily enable a "Do Not Disturb" or "Focus" mode that silences all incoming calls, texts, and app notifications. Make this a non-negotiable part of your pre-LIVE routine.

3. Check Your Wallpaper and Icons

Your audience will see your phone's home screen when you switch between apps. Make sure your wallpaper is something you're comfortable with hundreds or thousands of people seeing. It’s also a good idea to tidy up your home screen icons if they're particularly chaotic.

How to Screenshare on TikTok Live: A Step-by-Step Guide

Ready to go? The process is surprisingly straightforward. Follow these steps to get your screenshare up and running.

1. Open TikTok and Tap the "+" Button: Click the create icon at the bottom of the screen, just like you would to film a regular video.
2. Navigate to the "LIVE" Screen: At the bottom of the camera screen, you'll see several options like "Camera," "Story," and "Templates." Swipe right until you land on the LIVE option.
3. Set Up Your LIVE Stream: Before you even think about screensharing, configure your basic LIVE settings.
   • Add a Title: Give your stream a compelling title. Something like "Mobile Gaming Chaos!" or "Live CapCut Editing Tutorial" tells viewers exactly what to expect.
   • Select a Topic: Choose a relevant topic (e.g., Gaming, Education, Chat) to help TikTok show your stream to the right audience.
   • Add Effects or Filters (Optional): You can set up your filters and effects for the portions of the stream where your face will be visible.
4. Select the "Share screen" Option: Among the options on the LIVE setup screen, you will find settings and tools icons. One of them will be labeled "Share screen" (or may appear as an icon of a phone with an arrow). Tap this to switch from camera mode to screenshare mode.
5. Confirm the Privacy Warning: Your phone will show you a final confirmation pop-up. It will remind you that everything on your display, including notifications and sensitive details, will be recorded and broadcast. This is your final chance to back out and enable "Do Not Disturb" if you forgot. Confirm that you want to start the broadcast.
6. Tap "Go LIVE": Press the big red "Go LIVE" button. A 3-2-1 countdown will appear, and then your livestream will begin. Instead of broadcasting from your camera, TikTok will now be capturing and streaming your phone's entire screen.

And that’s it! You are now live and sharing your screen. Your viewers will see whatever you see on your display. You'll typically have a small picture-in-picture overlay of your face camera and an interface to read comments, unless you've toggled these off.

Switching Back and Forth

Don't want to screenshare for the entire duration? No problem. During your broadcast, you can typically tap a button on the LIVE interface to switch between your front/back camera and your screen share. This is great for introducing a topic face-to-face, switching to a screenshare to demonstrate it, and then coming back for a Q&A.

Pro Tips for an Engaging Screenshare Stream

Just knowing how to turn on screenshare isn't enough. You want to create a stream that's actually fun and valuable to watch. Here are some strategies to make your broadcast stand out.

Have a Clear Plan or Topic

While spontaneous streams can work, screenshare LIVEs benefit from a bit of structure. Know what you’re going to show and in what order. If you’re doing a tutorial, have the steps outlined. If you're gaming, know what your objective is for the stream. A clear goal prevents awkward pauses and keeps the energy up.

Acknowledge and Engage with Your Audience

Just because you're focused on your screen doesn't mean you can ignore the comments. Your audience is your co-host.

• Read comments out loud: This makes viewers feel seen and encourages others to participate.
• Respond to questions: You are the expert in the stream. Answering questions provides immense value and builds community trust.
• Welcome new viewers: A quick shout-out to new people joining the stream is a welcoming gesture that can make them stick around longer.

Having alerts set up for new followers or Gifts can also create exciting interaction points.

Use a Second Device if Possible

Trying to manage gameplay or a tutorial on one screen while reading tiny comments on the same screen can be tough. If you have another phone, a tablet, or a computer handy, open your own TikTok stream on that device. This gives you a dedicated screen for monitoring the chat and the appearance of your stream, allowing you to focus your main phone on the content itself.

Invest in Good Audio

Your visuals may be from your screen, but your voice is what guides the experience. A crackly, muffled, or distant microphone will cause people to leave, no matter how good your content is. You don't need a high-end studio setup - a simple wired pair of earbuds with a built-in mic is often clearer than your phone's native microphone.

Tell People What You're Doing

Narrate your actions! Explain your thought process during a game, walk through your clicks in a tutorial, and read out the article text you're reacting to. Remember that some people may only be half-watching or listening while doing something else. Your narration ensures everyone can follow along.

Final Thoughts

Screensharing on TikTok LIVE is a fantastic way to diversify your content, provide real value, and connect with your audience in a more interactive way. By preparing your device, understanding the steps, and focusing on creating an engaging experience, you can turn a simple broadcast into a must-see event for your followers.

Keeping track of all your great content ideas - from short-form videos to ambitious LIVE streams - can get overwhelming. We built Postbase to solve this chaos. You can use our visual calendar to plan out your entire social media schedule, including "slots" for your LIVE streams, so you get a complete picture of your content strategy. By scheduling your video posts and Reels ahead of time, we help free you up to put more energy and thought into high-impact activities like your next big screenshare LIVE.