TikTok Explore API Documentation

GET /api/v1/search?engine=tiktok_explore

The TikTok Explore API returns the videos TikTok features on its Explore page, for all of TikTok or for one of its 20 categories such as Comedy, Sports or Food. Each country has its own Explore feed: set country to read another market's, by default the United States. Each video comes with its caption, hashtags, publish date, duration, thumbnail, sound, view, like, comment, share and save counts, and usually the creator who posted it. TikTok rounds view, like, comment and share counts once they reach 10,000; save counts are exact.

Pass a video's link as url to the TikTok Video API or the TikTok Transcripts API, and a creator's username to the TikTok Profile API. TikTok occasionally returns a batch without creator details; those videos come back without author and link.

API Parameters

Filters

Name

category

Required

Optional

Description

The TikTok Explore category to return videos from. The default value is all. Available options: all, singing_dancing, comedy, sports, anime_comics, relationship, shows, lipsync, daily_life, beauty_care, games, society, outfit, cars, food, animals, family, drama, fitness_health, education, technology.
Name

num

Required

Optional

Description

The maximum number of videos to return. The default value is 16 and the maximum value is 30. TikTok usually returns a few videos fewer than requested, and some categories carry only a handful in some countries.

Localization

Name

country

Required

Optional

Description

The country whose Explore feed to return, as a two-letter code (e.g. JP returns the videos TikTok features for users in Japan). Each country has its own feed. Check the full list of supported TikTok Explore countries. Default: US.

Engine

Name

engine

Required

Required

Description

Parameter defines an engine that will be used to retrieve real-time data. It must be set to tiktok_explore.

API key

Name

api_key

Required

Required

Description

The api_key authenticates your requests. Use it as a query parameter (https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search?api_key=YOUR_API_KEY) or in the Authorization header (Bearer YOUR_API_KEY).

Zero Data Retention

Name

zero_retention

Enterprise Only

Enterprise Only

Required

Optional

Description

Set this parameter to true to disable all logging and persistent storage. No request parameters, HTML, or JSON responses are stored or logged. Suitable for high-compliance use cases. Debugging and support may be limited while enabled.

API Examples

Without a category, the API returns the videos on the Explore page's default tab, which spans every category.

GET

https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search?engine=tiktok_explore

Request

import requests

url = "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search"
params = {
  "engine": "tiktok_explore"
}

response = requests.get(url, params=params)
print(response.text)

Response

{
  "search_metadata": {
    "id": "search_V5Wn6o9cSN5Tm0guyYUvPaCe",
    "status": "Success",
    "created_at": "2026-10-01T02:27:37Z",
    "request_time_taken": 2.37,
    "parsing_time_taken": 0.01,
    "total_time_taken": 2.38,
    "request_url": "https://www.tiktok.com/explore",
    "html_url": "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/searches/search_V5Wn6o9cSN5Tm0guyYUvPaCe.html",
    "json_url": "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/searches/search_V5Wn6o9cSN5Tm0guyYUvPaCe"
  },
  "search_parameters": {
    "engine": "tiktok_explore",
    "category": "all",
    "country": "US"
  },
  "videos": [
    {
      "position": 1,
      "id": "7685415817906834708",
      "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/@thuyphoido_2026/video/7685415817906834708",
      "type": "video",
      "caption": "Sét Áo Váy 2 Chi Tiết Nữ #thoitrangnu #duoctaitro #quangcao ",
      "language": "vi",
      "hashtags": [
        "thoitrangnu",
        "duoctaitro",
        "quangcao"
      ],
      "iso_date": "2026-09-14T15:38:37Z",
      "duration": 10,
      "width": 576,
      "height": 1024,
      "is_duet_enabled": true,
      "is_stitch_enabled": true,
      "views": 585900,
      "likes": 64600,
      "comments": 2445,
      "shares": 2843,
      "saves": 5723,
      "thumbnail": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-p-0037/ooUCVDg6mEMeA1ABgy6ICsKgEoXfjUMQtbfz8m~tpl...",
      "dynamic_thumbnail": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-p-0037/ocp6YXzIQAVBAeU8CA8mJmBAj9KsVMo1DLffCj~tpl...",
      "video_meta": {
        "definition": "540p",
        "ratio": "540p",
        "format": "mp4",
        "codec_type": "h264",
        "size": 1692409,
        "bitrate": 1353927
      },
      "music": {
        "id": "7685415855117863701",
        "title": "âm thanh gốc - Thuỷ Nè",
        "author": "Thuỷ đây",
        "cover": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-avt-0068/f515d46ac426d886baa1ad15a8a490c7~tplv-ti...",
        "duration": 10,
        "play_url": "https://v16m.tiktokcdn-us.com/f5045c43a3a413a2ca92b1023797011c/6abe1984/video/tos/alisg/tos-alisg-v-...",
        "is_original": true,
        "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/music/am-thanh-g-c-thu-ne-7685415855117863701"
      },
      "author": {
        "id": "6800023664039838721",
        "sec_uid": "MS4wLjABAAAAKa1TGjjwRDR32x1hiZ_bTKsXnx449W4TfpVwr9GijOMchC4uM708c6zL55DfIn8R",
        "username": "thuyphoido_2026",
        "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/@thuyphoido_2026",
        "name": "Thuỷ đây",
        "bio": "Đồ em mặc đều có trong giỏ hàng 👗🛒",
        "avatar": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-avt-0068/f515d46ac426d886baa1ad15a8a490c7~tplv-ti...",
        "avatar_hd": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-avt-0068/f515d46ac426d886baa1ad15a8a490c7~tplv-ti...",
        "followers": 23400,
        "following": 1642,
        "hearts": 242100,
        "posts": 332
      }
    },
    "..."
  ]
}

Videos by Category

Set category to read one Explore tab, here sports.

GET

https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search?category=sports&engine=tiktok_explore

Request

import requests

url = "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/search"
params = {
  "engine": "tiktok_explore",
  "category": "sports"
}

response = requests.get(url, params=params)
print(response.text)

Response

{
  "search_metadata": {
    "id": "search_JZf6nTAxjWQgbuVtWIzkPsMd",
    "status": "Success",
    "created_at": "2026-10-01T02:25:31Z",
    "request_time_taken": 2.1,
    "parsing_time_taken": 0.03,
    "total_time_taken": 2.13,
    "request_url": "https://www.tiktok.com/explore",
    "html_url": "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/searches/search_JZf6nTAxjWQgbuVtWIzkPsMd.html",
    "json_url": "https://www.searchapi.io/api/v1/searches/search_JZf6nTAxjWQgbuVtWIzkPsMd"
  },
  "search_parameters": {
    "engine": "tiktok_explore",
    "category": "sports",
    "country": "US"
  },
  "videos": [
    {
      "position": 1,
      "id": "7665689914939428116",
      "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/@himgyap/video/7665689914939428116",
      "type": "video",
      "caption": "PAU CUBARSI FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 Best Young Player with family members. Awesomeness 2026 World Cup #iamwithmessi \"As a true football lover, I am a Messi fan who deeply respects Ronaldo and the other legends of the game.\" #lovefootball ",
      "language": "en",
      "hashtags": [
        "iamwithmessi",
        "lovefootball"
      ],
      "iso_date": "2026-07-23T11:52:07Z",
      "duration": 100,
      "width": 576,
      "height": 1024,
      "is_duet_enabled": true,
      "is_stitch_enabled": true,
      "views": 25700000,
      "likes": 2800000,
      "comments": 23600,
      "shares": 79200,
      "saves": 227562,
      "thumbnail": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-p-0037/osAiBA8y2lPEZmliIhG2TLYABAIaAimAwBSAE~tplv...",
      "dynamic_thumbnail": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-p-0037/osAiBA8y2lPEZmliIhG2TLYABAIaAimAwBSAE~tplv...",
      "video_meta": {
        "definition": "540p",
        "ratio": "540p",
        "format": "mp4",
        "codec_type": "h264",
        "size": 22885984,
        "bitrate": 1813343,
        "bitrates": [
          {
            "gear_name": "normal_540_0",
            "bitrate": 1813343,
            "fps": 30,
            "codec_type": "h264",
            "format": "mp4"
          },
          "..."
        ]
      },
      "music": {
        "id": "7628934746975209489",
        "title": "We Are Strong",
        "album": "We Are Strong",
        "author": "Rames Juliet",
        "cover": "https://p16-common.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-v-2774/owTNQeVaFGIR3AAAc20CeLBTgDgeVQA1ztvd8A~tplv-tik...",
        "duration": 204,
        "play_url": "https://sf19.tiktokcdn-us.com/obj/tos-alisg-ve-2774/ogzOiDZiFfUYQgBTutgLIgzvQCkehGdf8AGbaj",
        "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/music/we-are-strong-7628934746975209489"
      },
      "author": {
        "id": "6640782356075692038",
        "sec_uid": "MS4wLjABAAAAayhGsxa5Jwne2CvOrEPZm-DyhhusLzAq-ZHkddSmvznF0TlEci-m6OEdKMUZj2xE",
        "username": "himgyap",
        "link": "https://www.tiktok.com/@himgyap",
        "name": "Mr Him",
        "bio": ":Visited Countries:🇳🇵🇺🇸 🇯🇵 🇮🇳 🇨🇦 🇩🇪 🇨🇳 🇸🇬 🇶🇦 🇮🇱 🇫🇷 🇳🇱 🇨🇭 🇦🇹 🇮🇩 🇺🇿 🇷🇺 🇹🇭 🇧🇭 🇴🇲 🇹🇷 🇦🇪 🇻🇨 ⚽️MESSI 🐐 MARADONA 🤟🇦🇷*",
        "avatar": "https://p19-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-avt-0068/2e285a1deba107b28832fca7f4b12611~tplv-ti...",
        "avatar_hd": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-alisg-avt-0068/2e285a1deba107b28832fca7f4b12611~tplv-ti...",
        "followers": 287200,
        "following": 60,
        "hearts": 6600000,
        "posts": 423
      }
    },
    "..."
  ]
}