How to Permanently Delete Your TikTok Account on iPhone or Android

Going by the latest report, the ByteDance-owned video-sharing platform — TikTok — seems to be on a record-breaking spree with over 2 billion downloads. Boasting a massive community of passionate creators of all ages, the platform is never short of exciting videos that can woo anyone. That said, despite being so popular, TikTok has long been controversy’s favorite child with a series of sensational accusations. Whether it’s the obscene content, data selling, or being the Chinese government’s nefarious spy tool, the video-sharing platform’s list of accusations is quite long. Needless to say, the app has been banned several times in many countries, and the call for a permanent ban never seems to die down. If these reasons or some personal reasons of your own have compelled you to remove TikTok, follow along to permanently delete your TikTok account on your iPhone or Android device.

How to Permanently Delete TikTok Account without Losing Data

But before going to shut down the TikTok account, let’s check out a few important points that warrant immediate attention!

What Are the Aftereffects of Deleting TikTok Account

No social networking apps want to let you go, and TikTok is no different. So, if you have decided to say goodbye to your TikTok account, you should keep in mind the aftereffects. Once you have deleted your account, you will no longer be able to sign in to TikTok with that account. Moreover, all the videos that you have uploaded will be gone for good. The video-sharing platform won’t offer you a refund on any items you have purchased. Another notable thing worth keeping in mind is that the information (i.e chats) that is not stored in your account, might still be visible to others.

Want a Temporary Break – Deactivate Your TikTok Account

Just in case you think that the tradeoff of wiping out TikTok account is too big or rather want to take a temporary break for any personal reason, you can choose to deactivate your TikTok account. When you hit the delete button, the social networking app first deactivates your account for 30 days. During deactivation, your account remains hidden from the public. At any time you wish to reactivate your account within the 30 days, simply sign in to your account to get started again.

Download Your TikTok Data

Well, if you decided to flip the page on TikTok, the first thing you should do is download your TikTok data. That is the right way to approach deleting any account. Whether you want to delete Facebook or TikTok, you should get your data back first. Luckily, it’s pretty easy to request a download file from TikTok. The only pain point (if any) is that you don’t get to choose what to keep and what to keep away in the download file that consists of a variety of data.

• Your Profile: It consists of your username, profile photo, a profile description, and contact information such as your phone and email address.
• Your Activity: It comprises videos, comment history, chats history, the purchase history, likes, and favorites.
• Your App Settings: It consists of privacy settings, notification settings, and language settings. 

1. Open TikTok on your device and tap on the profile tab at the bottom right corner of the screen.

2. Now, tap on the horizontal/vertical ellipsis at the top right corner.

3. Next, tap on Privacy and safety.

4. Next up, tap on Personalization and data.

5. Up next, tap on Download your data.

6. On the next screen, you should see the list of all the data your request will consist of. Now, tap on the Request data file.

Now, the “Download Data” tab will be automatically selected, with the pending request visible on-screen. When your TikTok data is ready, the app will alert you. Then, return to this very place to download the file.

Keep in mind, TikTok will remove the download file four days after it’s created. So, make sure to download it as soon as possible.

How to Permanently Delete your TikTok Account

1. On your iOS or Android device, launch TikTok and tap on the profile tab at the bottom right corner.

2. Now, tap on the three horizontal/vertical dots at the top right corner.

3. Next, tap on Manage my account.

4. Next up, tap on the Delete account at the bottom.

5. Based on how you had set up your account, you will need to verify your account to proceed.

6. Now, a confirmation page showing details about deleting the TikTok account will appear. Again, make sure to read all the aftereffects. Once you read the text, tap on the Delete Account button.

7. Finally, tap on Delete to confirm that you wish to permanently shut down your TikTok account.

As mentioned above, your TikTok account will now be deactivated for 30 days. During this period, the account will be invisible and so will be all of your videos that you have uploaded on the video-sharing platform. After that, it will be automatically deleted. If you ever happen to change your mind within 30 days and decide to revoke the account deletion, all you need to do is just sign in to your account.

Use Digital Wellbeing and Screen Time to Stop Overusing TikTok

One of the prime reasons why many want to get rid of TikTok is its addictive nature. Thanks to a ton of fascinating videos, people never seem to get enough of the app. If you often find yourself overusing the video-sharing app and wish to find a way to curb the usage, I would recommend you to try out Digital Wellbeing on your Android device and Screen Time on your iOS device to automatically lock yourself out of the app after a set time.

On Your Android device: open Settings app -> Digital Wellbeing -> Dashboard -> TikTok and then set the custom time limit.

On iOS device: Head into Settings app -> Screen Time -> See All Activity -> TikTok > Add Limit, and then set the time.

Shut Down Your TikTok Account with Ease

So, that’s how you can delete your TikTok account without losing your data including all the videos you have uploaded on the video-sharing platform. As the process is quite straightforward, I guess you have wiped out your account without having to deal with any pain-points. Since we are talking about TikTok, I would like to take your attention towards some related posts such as the best TikTok lights, quick way to change a username, and also set up parental controls to ward off obscene content.