With the news that Tik Tok may not be long for this world (or at least not long for the United States market), this is a worrying time if you’re a fan of the globe-conquering app. It’s even more of a worrying time if your income depends on the existence of Tik Tok. Like YouTube and Instagram before it, Tik Tok has become a place where any user can grow their viewership and popularity until they become an influencer or an advertiser, but if it’s suddenly cut off, there will be huge lifestyle changes for many of the people who’ve come to rely on it.
All is not lost, though. The fate of Tik Tok is out of our hands – instead, it’s in the hands of American President Donald Trump and his administration – but if it does disappear forever, something else will come along to fill the hole. Chances are that the ‘new’ Tik Tok won’t actually be a new app. It’s likely to be something that already exists, and there are several contenders to inherit the throne. We’ve identified five of them in particular that seem ideally suited to bridging the gap, and you may want to consider registering for an account with them now, so you’re prepared if the worst were to happen. Let’s check them out together!
Cheez
As the old saying goes when you’re preparing to pose for a picture, smile and say “cheese” – or should that be “Cheez?” The Cheez app may be the most similar to Tik Tok in terms of both design and execution. The layout will be familiar to anyone who’s spent time experimenting with Tik Tok, and most of the features that you’ve come to recognize are present and correct too. You can take part in all the dancing and singing contests you want in head-to-head battles against your friends (or even complete strangers), but there’s greater depth than that to this app. Aside from welcoming anyone who makes videos in the Tik Tok style, there’s also a place for vloggers of any kind, and an easy-to-follow award and ‘clout’ system where you gain rewards as your viewership increases.
Funimate
Funimate is one of the newer kids on the block when it comes to video-sharing apps, and has a comedic style that Wired described as ‘whimsical’ in their recent review. It may not have the user base that the other apps we’ll discuss in this article have, but think of that as a positive instead of a drawback. As there are fewer people making videos on the app, it’ll be easier for you to break through if you can create quality content. If Tik Tok was to disappear and its users rushed to Funimate in search of a replacement, you’d already be established as one of the key accounts on the app, and you’d potentially pick up a new audience very quickly. Activity on the app focuses on lip sync challenges, comedy, and pranks, but that’s not necessarily a limitation. Videos work on loops in the same way they do on Instagram, so bear that in mind when you’re creating content.
Vigo Video
Vigo Video, which as far as we know isn’t named after the bad guy in the second “Ghostbusters” movie, was already being discussed as a potential Tik Tok rival before news of a potential ban surfaced. Now that the ban is on the cards, interest in Vigo Video has intensified significantly. If you’re old enough to remember Vine, you’ll feel at home on Vigo immediately as it has a fifteen second limit on video length, and works in a similar way. Most of the videos shared on the platform show off the talents of the people posting them, and the more likes and shares those people receive, the better the financial benefits of being on Vigo become. If you look to Tik Tok as a way of making money rather than a hobby, Vigo might be the best potential replacement for you. In theory, your earnings potential here is limitless.
Firework
We might just have recommended Vigo Video as the most likely way of making money from short videos in the absence of Tik Tok, but Firework isn’t far behind. Just don’t expect to have as much control over how and when you make that money. This app is a ‘spin’ button away from being an Online Slots UK. When you’ve created a video and posted it, you have more control over whether it nets you any cash than an online slots player does after they’ve made their bets. Even the busy layout might remind you of a modern online slots website! The key to monetization here is winning the weekly competitions, which come with cash prizes, but a funny viral clip is just as likely to win as one in which you’ve slaved over lighting and production quality. That means the result isn’t always ‘fair,’ but since when was life ever fair?
KWAI
Kwai might be almost unheard of in the USA right now, but don’t expect it to stay that way for long. It’s a cute app, and if we know anything from our years on the internet, it’s that cuteness always finds an audience. Lip syncing is a popular activity on KWAI, but so is fashion and beauty blogging, or even reciting lines from your favorite TV shows and films. Like some of the other apps we’ve mentioned, KWAI hosts regular contests and competitions for users to earn prizes, and also ‘borrows’ the ‘stories’ feature that’s popular on Instagram to make itself stand out from the crowd. It will need to expand its user base significantly if it’s to become a success on the level of Tik Tok, but it should have no problem doing that under the right circumstances.
Don’t just dive straight in with one of these apps. Take a few days to familiarize yourself with all of them and work out which one is the best choice for you and your needs. Ideally, Tik Tok will be saved, and nobody will suddenly find themselves looking for a new home for their viral videos. Failing that, it’s always good to know that we have a backup. That’s exactly what these five apps represent.