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Answer first: A good TikTok engagement rate in 2026 is about 5% to 8% of views, measured as likes plus comments plus shares divided by views. Accounts under 100,000 followers average around 7.5% engagement by followers, falling to about 3% to 4% for accounts over a million. Measured against views, the median across 5,000 profiles is about 7%, and the top quarter of accounts in every size band clear 10%. Likes alone usually make up the bulk of that number, with creators targeting roughly a 12% like-to-view ratio.
How is TikTok engagement rate calculated?
There are two formulas, and benchmarks mean nothing unless you know which one is being quoted.
- Engagement by views = (likes + comments + shares) ÷ views. This is what TikTok’s own analytics and most 2026 benchmark studies use. It measures how a video performed with the people who actually saw it.
- Engagement by followers = (likes + comments + shares) ÷ followers. This is what influencer-marketing reports use, because it tells a brand how much of the audience an account can move.
By-views numbers are the ones to track for your own videos. By-followers numbers are the ones a brand will quote back to you in a sponsorship negotiation.
TikTok engagement rate benchmarks by follower count (2026)
The follower-based figures below come from the Influencer Marketing Factory’s 2025 benchmark report, which remains the most-cited reference for 2026 deal pricing. Instagram is shown for comparison.
| Follower count | TikTok engagement rate (by followers) | Instagram, same band |
|---|---|---|
| Under 100,000 | 7.50% | 3.65% |
| 100,000 to 500,000 | 5.10% | 3.04% |
| 500,000 to 1 million | 4.48% | 2.40% |
| 1 million to 5 million | 3.76% | 2.59% |
| 5 million to 10 million | 4.22% | 2.10% |
| Over 10 million | 2.88% | 1.77% |
Two things stand out. Small accounts engage at roughly double the rate of large ones, which is why micro-creators keep winning sponsorship budgets. And TikTok runs about twice Instagram’s rate at every size, so a 4% TikTok account is average while a 4% Instagram account is excellent.
Engagement rate by views: the number to track for each video
TokPortal’s November 2026 study of 5,000 public profiles measured engagement against views on each account’s last twelve posts. These are the figures to compare your own videos against:
| Average views per video | Average | Median | Top 25% |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 to 1,000 | 9.4% | 7.4% | 12.8% |
| 1,000 to 10,000 | 10.3% | 7.8% | 14.0% |
| 10,000 to 100,000 | 8.2% | 6.3% | 10.9% |
| 100,000 to 1 million | 7.8% | 7.0% | 10.6% |
| Over 1 million | 9.2% | 8.3% | 12.1% |
A plain rule of thumb from this data: under 5% needs work, 5% to 8% is normal, 8% to 12% is strong, and over 12% puts a video in the top quarter at any size.
What the ratio of likes to views looks like in practice
Likes are usually 80% to 90% of the engagement number, so the like-to-view ratio is the quickest health check. Organic videos commonly land between 4% and 10% likes per view.
We have an unusual view of what creators consider a “natural” ratio. Between January 2025 and August 2026, 1,228 customers bought both TikTok views and TikTok likes for the same video within 24 hours. The ratio they chose:
| Likes ordered as a share of views ordered | Value |
|---|---|
| 25th percentile | 7.5% |
| Median | 12% |
| 75th percentile | 26% |
The median buyer pairs 1,000 views with about 120 likes, which sits at the high end of organic and matches what a strong video does on its own. The top quarter, at 26% and above, is well past anything organic and is easy to spot; if you promote a video, stay near the median.
What moves engagement rate up
- Shorter videos with a loop. Completion and replays feed the by-views rate; a 10-second clip that loops twice beats a 45-second clip watched once.
- A question or a take in the caption. Comments are weighted more than likes in distribution and are the easiest number to double.
- Reply to comments with a video. A video reply is a second post and a second round of engagement on the same topic.
- Post to your audience, not a sound. Engagement by views is diluted when a trending sound brings in viewers who are not your audience. Expect the rate to dip on your most viral videos.
- Country matters. Engagement rates from US and UK viewers tend to be lower than from South and Southeast Asian audiences, which is why geo-targeted comparisons are fairer than global ones.
When to use a likes package, and how to keep the ratio honest
If a video has views but its like count lags the benchmarks above, a likes package brings the ratio up to where a strong organic video would sit, and that ratio is part of what the next batch of viewers and any brand looking at your profile will judge. Our geo-targeted TikTok likes let you match likes to the country your views come from, from about $4 per 1,000 for US likes, with a minimum of 10. Keep the ratio near the 12% median and apply it to a video people are already finishing; a 30% like ratio on a video with weak watch time looks wrong to both the algorithm and a sponsor.
Related reading: how long it takes to reach 1,000 TikTok views.
FAQ
What is a good engagement rate on TikTok for a small account? By views, 7% to 10% is typical for accounts averaging under 10,000 views per video. By followers, anything over 7.5% is above average for accounts under 100,000 followers.
Is 3% engagement on TikTok bad? By followers, 3% is average for accounts over 1 million and below average for small ones. By views, 3% is weak at any size and usually means a hook or length problem.
Why did my engagement rate fall when my views went up? Viral videos reach people outside your audience, who watch but rarely like or comment. The absolute numbers rise while the rate falls. Judge viral videos by shares and follows instead.
How do brands check engagement rate? Most use a tool that averages the last 10 to 20 posts, by followers. Delete nothing; one weak post barely moves a 20-post average.
Data: Influencer Marketing Factory 2025 benchmark report; TokPortal engagement study, November 2026 (5,000 profiles); SocialFansGeek order records, January 2025 to August 2026, aggregated. Package prices as of November 2026.
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James GeeK
Veteran Social Media Growth Hacker & Digital Marketer.
