Is it a goal of yours to make money from TikTok?
The truth is, most people do not need nearly as many likes as you might think to begin getting paid.
In fact, even very small accounts are able to make a full-time income on TikTok under the right circumstances.
So, how can it be done, and exactly how many likes will you need to start getting paid? In this article, we’ll cover everything that you need to know!
How Many Likes Does It Take To Make Money On TikTok?
At this time, there isn’t a specific amount of likes that you need in order to begin making money from TikTok.
As long as you have an engaged audience, brands may be willing to partner with you for sponsorship opportunities, even if you receive less than 1,000 likes per video.
While the TikTok Creator Fund requires at least 10,000 followers and 100,000 views in the last 30 days, the number of likes per video or total likes on your account is not a factor.
Besides, there are far more profitable ways to monetize your following, even without that many likes!
So, let’s look over some ways to start getting paid from TikTok straight away.
How Do TikTok Creators Make Money?
Fortunately, there are multiple ways to make money on TikTok, and new opportunities are popping up all of the time.
For now, let’s look at the three most popular methods to get paid from TikTok – some of which work even with very small accounts!
1. TikTok Creator Fund
When you think of getting paid from TikTok, this is the thing that most people think of.
TikTok operates a fund for creators that pays for each view they receive. While this pay is pitifully low – between 2 and 4 cents for every 1,000 views, it is still one way to earn money none-the-less.
Of course, since even a video with one million views may only earn between $20 and $40, you need an enormous account – or regularly have videos go viral in order to make any real money with TikTok.
As noted earlier, the number of likes your videos receive do not have any impact on earnings. While more likes and and engagement tends to lead to more views (due to showing up on the For You page more frequently), likes aren’t a direct factor when it comes to the TikTok Creator Fund.
Thankfully, the TikTok Creator fund is actually one of the worst ways to make money on TikTok, since it pays so low!
The other methods we’re about to share pay far more, and do not require you to have 10,000 followers like the TikTok Creator Fund does.
2. Brand Sponsorships
One of the most lucrative ways to get paid from TikTok is to partner with brands, and they pay you for sponsorships.
The idea behind this is that you are paid to make a video about a brand or their products, and they pay you a lump sum for doing so.
The exact amount of money you can earn may depend on your total audience size, the amount of engagement your videos receive, and how close your audience is to the brand looking to sponsor you.
For example, accounts that are centered around one core topic (such as skateboarding for example) will earn far more money per sponsorship deal than a general account that talks about everything.
As far as earnings go, the average sponsorship seems to be between $500 and $1,000 per video.
However, earnings from other accounts that have done brand sponsorships have indicated that they’ve managed to earn around $9 per every 1,000 views on average.
While this may be a rough benchmark, there are many different factors that can go into what a brand is willing to pay. Still, considering that the TikTok Creator Fund pays only 2 to 4 cents per 1,000 views, brand sponsorships are able to make you far more money – even with a small following!
3. Affiliate Marketing
If your account isn’t yet big enough to attract the attention of brands or you simply want to supplement your TikTok income further, another option is to utilize something called affiliate marketing.
The idea behind affiliate marketing is simple. You discuss a product, and encourage your viewers to purchase it by clicking a special affiliate link on your profile.
If somebody does, you typically earn a percentage of the sales price, called a commission.
On physical products, this often ranges from 2-10%, where as on digital products (like courses or eBooks), the commissions can be as high as 75%.
So, if you sell a makeup kit for $50 and earn a 5% commission, you’d be earning $2.50 for every sale. If you manage to sell 20 of them, you’ve made $50.
With a sizeable audience, we’ve heard of people pulling in $10,000 a month from affiliate marketing alone.
Of course, as your following and your connection with your audience grows, so will the amount of money you make via commissions.
Most commonly, TikTok creators promote products off of Amazon. Everyone already knows and trusts Amazon, so more people are willing to buy from them.
If you want to learn more about Amazon’s affiliate program, click here.
I also sell a guide on maximizing Amazon affiliate program earnings, which you can view on my products page. While it’s more geared for websites than TikTok, many of the same concepts still apply.
Conclusion
Ultimately, there isn’t an exact number of likes required to begin making money on TikTok.
Even small accounts with less than 1,000 likes per video can make decent money through affiliate marketing or brand sponsorship deals. To make money through TikTok’s Creator Fund however, you will generally need a much larger account.
I hope that you’ve found this article helpful. If you have any other questions about making money on TikTok, please ask them using the comment form below.
Wishing you the best,
– James McAllister