As of January 2025, TikTok has nearly one billion active users. This is even more notable when you consider that it’s still banned in the world’s largest country, India. Much of TikTok’s success is down to its extremely effective algorithm, which excels in suggesting new videos and keeping users glued to their screens. This addictive element can cause minutes to fly by unnoticed and erode mobile data allowances.
Video streaming is one of the most data-hungry activities a smartphone can do – as a result, TikTok can consume more mobile data than other social media apps like Instagram or Snapchat. So does TikTok use a lot of data? And how can you best measure your mobile data use and protect against unexpected bills?
How Much Data does TikTok Use?
As a video-streaming service, TikTok uses more mobile data on average than regular online surfing or social media apps like Instagram, Facebook or Snapchat.
TikTok uses between 750MB to 1GB of mobile data per hour. Watching a single 30-second video requires around 8MB – so 1GB of data will be enough to watch around 128 30-second videos.
Of course, these numbers rely on several factors and can vary greatly between videos. When calculating how much mobile data TikTok uses, it’s important to bear in mind who is using it. Simply watching videos and reading comments will consume less data than uploading or downloading content. Regular video creators will require considerably more data than an average TikTok user.
Estimates can vary, as the data used depends on the quality of the video – higher resolution videos will consume more data per second. In default mode, TikTok currently has no option to reduce the resolution – all videos are streamed in the resolution the creator uploaded them in.
What is Mobile Data?
Mobile data is the term used to describe the internet connection between a portable device, like a smartphone, and a cellular tower. The more information the smartphone requires, such as streaming HD video, the greater the data transfer between the device and the cellular network, and the more mobile data is “used up”.
Mobile data is usually measured in megabytes (MB) and gigabytes (GB), where 1GB is equal to 1000MB. Most prepaid SIM cards, eSIMs and some domestic phone contracts will permit a specified amount of mobile data usage, while others offer unlimited data use. For example, a prepaid 5GB eSIM will allow the user to transfer 5 gigabytes of data. Data-intensive tasks like downloading files or streaming HD video will deplete this faster.
How long are TikTok videos?
TikTok rose to fame as a platform for seconds-long videos, in the vein of the now-deceased “microvlogging” site Vine. To cater to a variety of new fans and video creators, TikTok recently extended the upload limit to ten minutes.
Despite these changes, the average TikTok video length is still around 35 seconds (TikTok recommend an optimal video length of 21 to 34 seconds).
Using TikTok in Other Countries
As the app, it’s become a favourite port of call for travellers and holiday planners. The app’s global user base has made it invaluable, use by everyone from professional travel influencers and national tourist boards, to locals and backpackers. Enter a travel destination into the TikTok search bar, and discover dozens of first-hand travel recommendations.
A downside to this is that streaming video is data-intensive. For holidaymakers who haven’t downloaded a travel eSIM or purchased a local SIM card, this can quickly incur hefty roaming charges.
Why is TikTok in the news?
TikTok has been the subject of discussion in the US congress in recent weeks as American lawmakers debate the potential influence of the app's parent company ByteDance. On January 19, 2025, TikTok was suspended in the USA for a 14-hour period before being reinstated. This uncertainty has prompted millions of US-based users to flee TikTok, echoing a wider transition by many Americans from Meta-owned social media services including Instagram and WhatsApp for Chinese alternatives like RedNote (also known as Xiaohongshu). For worldwide users, any potential US ban could have knock-on effects, as many of the app’s servers are based in the nation. There are fears that a US-wide ban, however unlikely, could result in a terminated service for international users.
Is TikTok Banned in the US?
As it stands, TikTok is still available to US residents. The app is banned altogether in several other countries including India, Nepal, Iran and Afghanistan. TikTok is unavailable to both residents and visitors in these countries. Of course, travellers need to be alert while using mobile data abroad. Using a local eSIM is the easiest and safest a to get online in other countries, but it’s still wise to keep an eye on your data usage and ensure you’re never without mobile internet when you need it. To that end, here is a guide to understanding and monitoring TikTok data usage, as well as tips on reducing it.
How to Measure Your Mobile Data Usage
Most smartphones make it easy to estimate your current mobile data consumption, as well as individual data usage for different apps. Here's how to check your current mobile data usage:
iPhone
On an iPhone, go to Settings > Mobile Data/Cellular. This will display the overall data usage for a given time period, as well as a list of all apps on the phone that use mobile data. Selecting the TikTok app icon will reveal further statistics about your TikTok data usage. Data for individual apps can also be switched on or off here.
Android
On an Android phone or tablet, open Settings > Network and Internet > Internet. Then tap the Settings cogwheel next to the name of your mobile network provider to view the total data usage of all apps on your device. Tap on the TikTok app icon to see specific details about your TikTok mobile data usage.
Google Pixel
To check your TikTok data usage on a Google Pixel device, open the Settings app and go to Network & Internet > SIMs > App data usage, then select the TikTok app.
The TikTok app also has a built-in screen time dashboard that shows your personal usage statistics on the app. To view your TikTok screen time:
1. Open the Profile section in the bottom-right corner of the screen
2. Open the menu and select Settings and privacy > Screen time
For users with a travel eSIM, the BetterRoaming app provides a simple overview of data used, making it easy to plan while on holiday. It will even notify users when they’re running low on data, avoiding anyone being stuck without internet when they need it most.
5 Ways to Reduce TikTok Data Usage
1. Only upload videos when connected to Wi-Fi
Uploading and downloading videos requires more data than just viewing them. Avoid uploading or downloading videos when not connected to Wi-Fi and save some precious mobile data.
2. Turn on TikTok Data Saver mode
For a quick fix, turn on TikTok’s in-built Data Saver mode. This is an option in the TikTok profile menu that will reduce the video playback resolution, consuming less mobile data. You may notice that videos take longer to load with this option enabled. Here’s how to turn on TikTok Data Saver mode:
1. Select the Profile option in the bottom-right corner of the screen
2. Select the Menu icon
3. Select Settings and Privacy
4. Turn on Data Saver
3. Turn off background app use
A general principle when conserving mobile data is to turn off background app data usage. Many apps, including TikTok, will consume mobile data through unseen, unnoticed channels like installing automatic, tracking data or pre-rendering videos. Turning background data use off will halt these processes, with little to no noticeable change in user experience. Background app data usage can be turned off for individual apps, or across the device as a whole. To turn off background app data use:
iOS
1. Open the Settings app
2. Select General > Background App Refresh
3. Turn this to off to suspend it for all apps, or scroll down to the individual apps you wish to turn it off for
Android:
Android currently has no direct option to switch off background app refresh. However, users can switch their phones to Battery Saver mode, which will eliminate background app use, among other features such as screen brightness, in order to extend the phone’s battery life. To enter battery saving mode on an Android device:
1. Open the Settings app
2. Select Device maintenance > Battery
3. Select the SAVE POWER button to turn off background app use for all apps, or select individual apps from the list below.
4. Download videos and photos to view offline
If you have a long journey coming up or you’re headed to an area with unreliable Wi-Fi or mobile signal, a smart way to stay entertained without mobile data is by pre-saving TikTok videos. Currently, TikTok lets users download up to 200 offline videos and watch them whenever even without an internet connection.
Note that downloading videos uses plenty of data - around 14MB for a 30-second video. Make sure you’re connected to Wi-Fi before saving offline videos from TikTok. Users can choose between downloading individual videos or letting the algorithm automatically select a number of posts from the For You Page.
1. To use the app's automated offline video feature, open the Settings menu
2. Select Offline videos
3. Choose the number of videos you want to download – 50, 100, 150 or 200.
4. TikTok will select the chosen number of videos and save them for later viewing in the offline section of the app
6. Use a travel eSIM
Using a travel eSIM may not technically reduce the volume of data used – but it does ensure that any data used will cost far less, especially when abroad. A BetterRoaming eSIM plan can be purchased and downloaded before travelling and used as soon as you arrive at your destination, providing low-cost, reliable mobile data in 160+ countries.
Travel eSIM Plans
How TikTok Data Use Compares to Other Apps
Instagram is chiefly an image-sharing platform, as opposed to the video-only TikTok app. As a result, the average hourly data usage of Instagram is significantly lower than TikTok. However, the introduction of Instagram Reels has affected this. Reels’ short-form, full-screen video emulates TikTok and therefore requires more data than the static Instagram feed. Watching Instagram Reels uses a similar amount of mobile data to TikTok, at around 700MB-1GB per hour. Instagram also supports video calls, which use around 150-300MB per hour for a two-person conversation.
YouTube Shorts
YouTube Shorts is another TikTok clone, this time from the long-form video hosting platform YouTube. While regular YouTube videos can be several hours long, YouTube shorts are capped at three minutes. Like TikTok, the average data usage for YouTube Shorts depends on the video quality. On average, it consumes around the same amount of mobile data as TikTok.
Snapchat
Snapchat is a photo-based instant messaging app with over 400 million daily users. It also permits sharing of short-form videos, similar to TikTok. As Snapchat typically involves a mixture of text, photos and videos, it uses less data than the video-only TikTok. Expect Snapchat to use around 1MB per sent image, while video calling on Snapchat will use between 300-500MB per hour.
Frequently Asked Questions About TikTok Data Usage
1. Does TikTok use a lot of data?
As TikTok is almost solely a video-streaming app, it uses more mobile data per hour than other social media apps like Instagram or Snapchat which feature a mixture of videos and still images. Watching a 30-second TikTok will use around 8MB of mobile data.
2. Which countries is TikTok available in?
TikTok is available in most countries, though this is at the mercy of various geopolitical factors and may change at any time. At the time of writing, TikTok is unavailable in India, Nepal, Iran, Afghanistan, Syria, Jordan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. In some countries, including the UK, Belgium and Canada, the app is available to the public but banned from all government-owned mobile devices. TikTok is not available in China, where users use Douyin, the China-only analogue instead.
3. Can I save videos offline on TikTok?
Yes, conserve mobile data by pre-saving videos from TikTok to watch offline. Open the Watch offline section in the app's Settings menu to download up to 200 videos.
Make Your Data Go Further With a Travel eSIM
While it’s always wise to conserve data, a travel eSIM allows access to low-cost high-speed internet, even while roaming abroad. This means you don’t have to worry about reducing data usage on holiday as you won’t incur roaming charges. Using TikTok with a prepaid travel SIM is an easy and cost-effective way to stay entertained on long journeys. Find your perfect plan from over 160+ countries and regions now.
