More conscious, curious and emotional audiences: the TikTok trends coming in 2026

This is indicated by the new TikTok Next Report, based on the analysis of millions of videos, searches, comments and community interactions, which divided the trends that 2026 will have into three large groups: Dose of Reality, Off-Road Discoveries and Emotional ROI. You can consult the report here.

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Dose of Reality refers to the fact that TikTok audiences have left behind pretending nothing is happening and, instead, prefer to “set boundaries, protect peace, and pursue passions out loud.” Faced with this scenario, #delulu, #romanticizing and #digitalescapism stopped being a trend to give way to real stories that make you laugh, reflect and awaken the feeling of being human.

Some keywords on the horizon for 2026 are #lockedin (648,000 posts), where audiences declare a ‘locked-in’ mentality, which builds tribes of affirmation and responsibility; #hygiene (692,000 posts), reflecting a steady rise in creators sharing how they look and feel good by turning their daily routine into a luxury maintenance ritual; and #joblife (235,000 posts), the new version of #worklife, through which creators share a day in their work lives to offer new perspectives.

According to the results of the report, for this year users of millennials and generations X are 1.7 times more likely than those of generation X to try a new brand thanks to their community. Additionally, TikTok users, regardless of age, are estimated to be 1.5 times more likely to repurchase products from a brand when ads allow them to interact with the brand being advertised (for example, through comments or co-creation).

The second trend signal for 2026 is Off-Road Discoverybecause this year curiosity will be the new currency as audiences dive deeper into new journeys of discovery. #Whattowear (930,000 posts), #mymakeuptype (27,000 posts) and #cookinghacks (803,000 posts) are some of the Off-Road Discovery trends coming this year.

“Our community noticed that it was relying too much on technology to get from point A to point B and was missing out on all the exciting discovery that can happen along the way. But behavior on TikTok is changing: audiences now arrive with an intention and leave with curiosity, after finding reliable and unexpected answers that raise new concerns,” states the report prepared by the platform.

In that sense, TikTok consolidates itself as a cultural search engine: one in four users starts searching for something within the first 30 seconds of opening the app and 52% of users continue searching on the platform after finding what they were looking for there.

This is an opportunity for brands creating content on TikTok, as there is no single path to a product, but rather countless opportunities for the audience to discover it through personalized recommendations created from organic interaction, interests and intentions of the audience.

The third sign is ROI Excitesl, which marks that, in a more selective consumption context, users now make purchasing decisions based on emotions, leaving impulse behind. That’s why, before purchasing a product, they go through TikTok: “Purchasing decisions are increasingly validated and audiences value Emotional ROI as much as financial cost. People may get the data from AI, but they come to TikTok for the human spark, the joy, the discovery and the pleasure of connecting with their favorite trendsetters before clicking ‘buy’.”

#Tastemakers will be one of the trends in a year that will be marked by genuine recommendations, reviews in comments and the evolution of the narrative beyond momentum.

2025 was a year of growth for TikTok, which consolidated itself in Peru as a strategic ecosystem for brands, communities and local culture. According to TikTok Insights, more than 1,100 videos are created per second globally, 73% of people feel a greater connection with the brands present on the platform, and 40% of users are more likely to make purchases directly from TikTok thanks to its entertaining and authentic content.

Likewise, some other local data regarding Peru show that:

• 87% of TikTok users in Peru affirm that they discover new topics of interest that they did not know about.
• 2 out of 3 Peruvian users agree that TikTok content has a greater impact on their lives than other platforms.
• 74% of users in Peru consider that brands are better connected to Latin American culture on TikTok.
• 4 in 5 users enjoy when brands interact with local culture in their TikTok content.

Finally, TikTok in Peru experienced a 57% growth in its business during the third quarter of 2025. In turn, if we go to the Key Accounts, the accumulated YoY growth (October 24 vs October 25) is 91%. If we refer to industries, comparing 2025 vs 2024, we notice large growth in general, but particularly in Education (82%), Finance (72%) and Retail (55%). Going deeper, in terms of business today Peru represents almost 40% of the contribution to the entire Andean region, with an even more rising projection for the coming months. These numbers denote a great implementation of the brands in the last 12 months, understanding TikTok as a vital ally for the fulfillment of their sales and performance objectives, reflecting the maturity of the ecosystem.