Have you noticed that the description for your TikTok videos doesn’t show up? When you post a new TikTok video, you likely add a detailed description to provide more context and information to viewers. However, sometimes that description doesn’t actually display on your posted video.
This can be frustrating if you took the time to write an informative or compelling description. When the description is missing, viewers miss out on that additional content and context you wanted to share.
Below I’ll cover some reasons why your TikTok video description may not be showing, along with troubleshooting steps to help fix this issue.
Why Your TikTok Video Description Isn’t Showing
There are a few potential reasons why your written TikTok video description fails to display:
The Description Didn’t Properly Save
It’s possible when you entered the video description, it failed to properly save when you posted the video.
As a result, there is no description that can display. Always check to confirm your description was saved after posting.
There’s a Lag Time
TikTok may have a lag between when you post a new video and when the description you entered saves and displays properly.
Give it some time and check back to see if your description now shows up on your video page.
Your Description Contains Blocked Words
TikTok automatically filters out video descriptions that contain banned or blocked terms and keywords.
If your description isn’t showing, it may have been blocked automatically. Review it and remove any potentially questionable phrases.
The Description Text is Too Long
TikTok places a character limit on video descriptions. If your description exceeds this length, part or all of the text could get cut off from displaying.
To troubleshoot, go back and edit the video to shortened description text under the length limit. The maximum seems to be around 1100 characters. Try keeping descriptions under 1000 characters to be safe.
You can add line breaks and paragraph spacing as that formatting does not count towards the limit. This allows you to still have descriptive but more concise description text.
TikTok Temporary Server Outages
Very occasionally server outages at TikTok lead to minor display issues on parts of the app. Video descriptions may sometimes be impacted and not show during these intermittent server problems.
Fixes For TikTok Video Description Not Showing
If your TikTok video description fails to show up, don’t panic. Here are some troubleshooting steps you can take:
Before jumping to more complex solutions, it’s essential to rule out the simplest one: a possible TikTok outage.
Here’s how to check if TikTok is down and potentially fix your video description issue:
Use outage reporting websites. On such website is Down Detector.
This website provides real-time information on outages for various services, including TikTok. Visit TikTok’s outage status page and see if others are reporting similar problems.
Double Check Description Saved Properly
When posting a new video, ensure you fully enter your description text into the available field.
After posting the video, immediately check to confirm your description was saved with the published video on your profile. You’ll need to enter and save it again if it failed to stick.
Wait for Lag Time
As noted above, give TikTok some time to fully publish your video, including any descriptive text entered.
Descriptions may take minutes or longer to finally display, due to processing lag. Check back after 1-2 hours.
Review Description for Blocked Words
Carefully review your video description and edit out any phrases or terms that TikTok could flag as questionable.
Avoid potential violence, hate speech, adult content, or rude language. Once you remove problem text, save description again.
Check Description Length
Make sure your video description is within the allowed character limit. If it exceeds the limit, it might not be displayed properly.
Edit description to meet length rules. You can also split extra details into the first comment.
a surprisingly simple one often does the trick: deleting and re-adding the description.
This straightforward method can seemingly eliminate minor glitches and formatting errors that might be preventing your description from showing correctly. Here’s how it to do it:
1. Access the Edit Screen:
- Open the TikTok app and locate the video with the missing description.
- Click on the three dots in the bottom right corner of the video.
- Select “Edit” from the menu that appears.
2. Delete the Existing Description:
- Tap on the description box where your text currently appears.
- Select all the text by tapping and holding your finger until the entire description is highlighted.
- Click on the “Delete” option to remove the description completely.
3. Re-Add the Description:
- Tap back on the description box.
- Type your desired description, ensuring it adheres to the character limit and formatting guidelines.
- Double-check for any typos or errors that could affect the display.
4. Save the Changes:
- Once you’re satisfied with the revised description, click on the “Save” button in the top right corner.
- This will update your video with the newly added description.
5. Check for Success:
- Navigate back to your video and refresh the page.
- Verify that the new description is now visible and displayed correctly.
Why This Works:
- Deleting and re-adding the description forces the app to reload the information, potentially clearing any temporary glitches or errors that were causing it to not display initially.
- This simple act can often refresh the presentation and fix the visibility issue effectively.
Repost Your TikTok Video
You can attempt reposting the video with description attached. Delete the initial video having issues, revise description as needed, then upload the video again as a new post.
Reposting essentially creates a new version of your video, potentially eliminating any glitches or bugs that might have caused the description to disappear.
This gives you the opportunity to re-write or tweak your description, ensuring it’s within the character limit and properly formatted.
Reposting can sometimes give your video a visibility boost, pushing it back into the “For You” pages and potentially reaching a new audience.
Here’s how to repost your TikTok video:
- Download the Original Video: Save the original video to your camera roll.
- Create a New Draft: Open the TikTok app and start a new draft.
- Upload the Downloaded Video: Select the downloaded video from your camera roll.
- Edit and Re-write the Description: Make any necessary edits to your video and rewrite the description, ensuring it’s accurate and within the character limit.
- Publish the Repost: Add relevant hashtags and caption, then finally, publish your video.
Double Check Your Hashtags
Hashtags can sometimes interfere with descriptions getting displayed. If you have both a long description AND a long list of hashtags, the description may get cut off.
Try removing some hashtag and seeing if it allows the description text to show properly when shorter.
Also check hashtags for any special characters, emojis, or text abbreviations. These could be interpreted wrong and break the descriptions as covered earlier.
Embed Descriptions in Captions
While posting detailed descriptions with TikTok videos is best, you can also embed some helpful descriptive text directly within your captions.
This ensures viewers get some additional context right away without needing to click “more.” However, captions still have limited text space available. So focus on the most important description details to embed this way when needed.
Contact TikTok Support
If you’re still struggling to add a proper video description that will save and display appropriately, get in touch with TikTok’s support team.
They can troubleshoot technical issues or glitches prevent descriptions.
Here’s how to contact TikTok support from the app:
1. Open the TikTok app and navigate to your profile:
- Tap the “Profile” icon at the bottom right corner.
2. Access the settings menu:
- Tap the three horizontal lines at the top right corner and tap on “Settings and Privacy.”
3. Select “Report a problem”:
- Scroll down and look for “Support” section.
- Tap “Report a problem” under “Support”.
4. Choose the relevant topic:
- Select a topic from the listed options that best describes your issue. These include account issues, safety concerns, feedback, and more.
5. Specify the category:
- Choose the specific category within your selected topic that applies to your situation.
- If you can’t find a suitable category, select “Other”.
6. Provide details and submit your report:
- Clearly explain your concern in the provided text box.
- Include any relevant screenshots or videos to support your claim.
- Tap “Submit” to send your report to TikTok support.
Prevent TikTok Description Issues Going Forward
To avoid battling missing descriptions with future TikTok videos, keep these tips in mind:
- Review descriptions carefully before posting to spot blocked words
- Write concisely to meet character limits
- Confirm description saves properly immediately after posting
- Allow 1-2 hours for processing delays
- Bulk upload videos to avoid excess lag time
By troubleshooting diligently and preventing repeat issues, you can consistently add helpful and informative video descriptions for your TikTok viewers.
Let me know if this draft post on troubleshooting missing TikTok video descriptions is helpful! I’m happy to build out or refine any section in more detail.
