How the Instagram and TikTok algorithms work
Neither platform publishes its full recipe, but both have said a fair bit about what they look at. Here’s the useful part, without the guru talk.
There isn’t one algorithm
Instagram has said it uses different ranking systems for Feed, Stories, Explore and Reels, each with its own signals. TikTok’s For You feed is one system, but it weighs many signals together. So “beating the algorithm” is really about giving each surface what it looks for.
Instagram: what it has said it looks at
- Your activity. Which posts and accounts you’ve interacted with recently.
- The post itself. How quickly people are liking, commenting, sharing and saving it, how long they spend on it, and for Reels, whether they watch to the end.
- The poster. How often you’ve interacted with that account in the past.
- Sends and shares. Instagram’s head has repeatedly pointed to shares in DMs as a strong signal for reaching new people.
Instagram has also said original content gets priority over reposted content, and that Reels with watermarks from other apps may be shown less.
TikTok: what it has said it looks at
- User interactions: likes, shares, comments, follows, rewatches and especially whether people finish the video.
- Video information: captions, sounds and hashtags help TikTok understand what a video is about.
- Device and account settings such as language and country, which matter less than behaviour.
TikTok says follower count and past high-performing videos aren’t direct factors in recommendations. That’s why a new account can have a video reach far beyond its followers.
Myths worth ignoring
- “Post at exactly 6:47pm.” Timing matters a bit, mostly because your audience needs to be awake. Across Australia’s time zones, a good time in Sydney is mid-afternoon in Perth.
- “Thirty hashtags or nothing.” Instagram has moved to a small number of precise hashtags. A handful that describe the post do the job.
- “Bought followers boost reach.” They don’t. They change the count, not how your posts perform with real viewers. We sell them and still won’t pretend they do.
What actually helps
Strong openings, original content, a clear niche, and posts people want to send to a mate. Our guide to growing without buying turns this into a weekly routine.