TikTok
ByteDance's crawler for TikTok link previews and embed generation.
What is TikTok?
TikTok's crawler generates link previews when URLs are shared on TikTok. It fetches page metadata, images, and descriptions to create the preview cards that appear when users share links in videos, comments, or profiles.
The crawler identifies itself with "TikTok" or "tiktok" in the user-agent string. TikTok's user base skews young and mobile-first, making link preview quality particularly important for brands targeting younger demographics.
TikTok's crawler is separate from Bytespider (ByteDance's AI training crawler), giving site owners the ability to allow social previews while blocking AI training data collection.
User-Agent Strings
These are the known user-agent patterns used by TikTok. Use them to identify this crawler in your server logs or configure robots.txt rules.
robots.txt example:
User-agent: TikTok Disallow: /private/ Allow: /
How to Manage TikTok
Blocking breaks link previews on TikTok.
Separate from Bytespider — manage social vs. AI uses independently.
Optimize Open Graph tags for TikTok's mobile-first preview format.
Use Switch to track TikTok referral patterns.
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