Until a few years ago, TikTok was mainly associated with dance, jokes and short videos for entertainment. Now it is a full-fledged earning tool, which is especially actively used by young people. Teenagers and students master the new digital economy faster than trends emerge. They build personal brands, collaborate with companies, promote their own products, or simply earn income from views. And all this is done without official work, without higher education and without experience, which until recently was considered mandatory for financial independence. TikTok has become a space where the line between hobby and income is almost erased. However, behind the attractive picture often hides instability, dependence on algorithms and exhausting competition. That is why it is important to understand how popular models of earning on the platform actually work and what is behind the success stories in the feed.
TikTok is not just entertainment: the new frontier of the digital economy
In 2025, TikTok has finally established itself as one of the most influential platforms among young people. What once started as an app for short dance videos has now become a full-fledged medium for self-expression, business and income. Almost every third young user in the world aged 18-24 regularly spends time on TikTok, not just scrolling through the feed, but actively creating their own content: launching sales or looking for their own niche among trends. The numbers speak for themselves. As of 2025, TikTok counts approximately 2.14 billion users worldwide, which is about 26% of the total population of the planet. This also means that 41% of all social media users use the platform. Compared to the previous year, TikTok’s audience grew by 4.2%, and since the beginning of the decade – more than doubled, by 106%.
In Ukraine, the application is also not taking care of its rears: more than 17 million people over the age of 18, which is 53.6% of the country’s adult Internet population already have accounts, and among teenagers, TikTok has long become part of the daily routine. According to Kantar Ukraine / Forbes Ukraine, 40% of Ukrainian youth use TikTok every day, which puts it in 6th place among social networks. For children aged 10-12 years, the level of daily use reaches 65%, and among 13-15-year-olds – about 60%. Even among the adult audience, the coverage is 50%. For some, it’s a way to get distracted, for others, it’s a way to fame. But for an increasing number of young Ukrainians, this platform is becoming a real earning opportunity.
TikTok is no longer just an entertainment platform, but a new form of digital employment. But with many opportunities come new challenges. Algorithms, pressure to be constantly active, income instability create an environment where young people have to navigate almost intuitively. That is why it is important to understand exactly how this system works: what really brings income, and what creates only the illusion of success.
How young people can really earn in TikTok
Although the TikTok platform is actively developing support programs for authors, unfortunately, some of them are not yet available to Ukrainian users. TikTok launched the Creator Fund, a program that pays creators directly for views, back in 2020. But by 2025, it never reached Ukraine. The program officially works in the USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy and several other countries. However, even if you are a talented Ukrainian tiktoker with a million subscribers, you will not be accepted into the fund. Bypassing the system through VPN or fake countries is risky, because TikTok does not forgive violations and can easily block not only payments, but also the account itself. However, this is not the end. After all, earning in TikTok is not only related to the “monetization” button. We are dealing with a whole infrastructure around content.
Advertising is the most common and practical way of making money. Young authors who have an active audience do not expect an “official salary” from TikTok. They sell access to their audience to brands. If you have 10-20 thousand subscribers and videos are steadily collecting views, you can already receive the first commercial offers. Most often, this is native advertising: a mention of the product, a demonstration in the frame, a light review without direct advertising. Authors with a clearly defined topic work best: cosmetics, fitness, gadgets, food, psychology, parenting. For brands, it’s not the number of followers that matters, but their reaction.
TikTok is also ideal as a showcase for business or creative initiatives. An artist, designer, expert in a certain topic can use video to build trust and redirect the audience to external platforms: Instagram, website, Telegram or online store. This is especially useful for coaches, tutors, crafters or consultants.
The function of live streams in TikTok allows you to receive virtual gifts, which are then converted into real money. To have access to this option, you must be 18 years old and have at least 1000 followers. Many authors use streams as an additional channel of communication with the audience and at the same time a source of income.
Partner programs (affiliate marketing) serve as a good option for authors who have the trust of the audience. The essence is simple: the blogger recommends a product or service and leaves a special link. If the subscriber makes a purchase, the author receives a commission from this. This is one of the most flexible ways to make money, especially if you know how to combine profit with creativity.
As you can see, TikTok is one of the most dynamic social platforms in the world. Its algorithms make it possible to “shoot” even beginners, provided that the content is interesting, relevant and has a clear style. Today, Ukrainian-language content, ironic videos, real life stories, educational formats and practical expertise are popular. Of course, the Tik Tok economy is still far from a mature system, because it still lacks stability. Videos can “shoot” and collect 500 thousand views, or they can fail. Algorithms are unpredictable, the audience is changeable, trends live for several days. Earnings here are not fixed, like a salary.
However, there is a plus in this: here everything depends on the author. Examples show that those who are ready to play the long game earn money in TikTok, that is, they know how not only to shoot videos, but also to read the audience, catch trends and broadcast themselves sincerely, without templates. This kind of authenticity works best, because it gives a chance not just to earn money, but to build a whole career out of it.
The real consequences of digital naivety
TikTok creates the impression of a space where anyone can become an “expert” in 15 seconds. And therein lies its greatest strength, but also its greatest danger. Young people, who are used to looking for answers to any situation, often do not distinguish real advice from manipulation, and useful information from dubious, even popular, information. Such trust in the platform is already beginning to have serious consequences. One of the most vivid examples was the so-called “life hack” with student debt cancellation. He aptly shows how TikTok can not only misinform, but also worsen the financial situation of thousands of people.
For example, a 30-second video, a few persuasive phrases, and the tuition debt allegedly disappears after a “secret request” to the credit bureau. Such videos get hundreds of thousands of views, share life hacks on how to “get a student loan foreclosure with a privacy complaint,” and create the illusion of an instant solution to a difficult financial problem. But behind the spectacular picture lies a dead end. A common “trick” is based on a distorted interpretation of FERPA, the act that protects the privacy of students’ educational information. The creators of TikTok content assure that if you file a complaint, the credit will be updated, and the debt will simply disappear. At best, the record can actually be temporarily removed from the credit report, but that’s where the “miracle” ends. The debt is not cancelled, and the loan remains valid in the databases of the private lender. Any manipulation of the report does not cancel the obligations, and the refusal of payments only starts a chain of problems: fines, deterioration of the credit rating, restrictions on access to mortgages and other financial products.
In the first months after the “life hack”, the student can really see positive changes in the credit report. It can be tempting to say that everything works. But over time, the countdown to default begins. Late payments lead to fines, and as a result, the loan can be turned over to collectors. If the debtor continues to ignore the obligations, the case will be brought to court, and further tax refunds or wages will be garnished. In the worst-case scenarios, many years of debt remain without a chance to repair the reputation.
TikTok in this context is not just a place where misinformation is spread. It is a platform where the short form and visual emotionality make it possible to perfectly package financial danger as a “life hack”. So instead of relying on TikTok’s dubious guidelines, it’s worth looking at the real relief mechanisms available at the federal level. It is also worth noting that the problem lies in the fact that the platform rewards simple answers to complex questions. In the pursuit of views, authors often mix the truth with half-truths.
For a young audience, who are often under financial stress, this becomes a dangerous temptation: a quick fix instead of a long-term strategy. TikTok can provide an idea, a push, or even motivation, but it’s no substitute for real problem-solving tools. Removing an entry from a credit report is not a discharge of the debt. It’s a short-term trick to the system that costs dearly in the long run. Debts don’t disappear with the help of favorites and filters. They disappear due to plans, budget, negotiations with the lender and time. Young people should treat finances as seriously as they treat their own content, that is, with analytics, strategically, and with the understanding that TikTok can be anything but legally guaranteed debt relief.
Every day, TikTok is becoming a factory of dreams, but next to this idea is a factory selling shortcuts to success. While some upload videos and wait for the “takeoff”, others make money on their waiting. This is a kind of digital “Sorochyn Fair”, where they trade not in content, but in the belief that success can be bought. The main product here is not views with subscribers, but hope, which is easily sold every day. For a certain price, you can buy 1000 “live” subscribers. Sellers have a choice of bots with human names, bots without avatars, bots from Asia or Europe. You can even buy favorable comments. Such videos give the impression of being popular, but Tik Tok’s algorithm quickly detects fake activity. Account blocking usually does not happen, but such a profile simply ceases to exist for the audience.
Titles like “How to make 100K in 30 days.” “TikTok Millionaire Secrets.”
“Algorithms that no one talks about but us” fill Instagram, Telegram and TikTok itself. Training courses, marathons, intensives costing from UAH 500 to several thousand. And all with promises like “you can do it too, most importantly, believe in yourself and use hashtags correctly.” In reality, the customer of such services will receive a presentation from Pinterest, advice in the spirit of “shoot vertically and don’t forget to smile” and, of course, a bonus: “a list of hashtags that are “guaranteed to work” in 2025.” It is obvious that there is no smell of learning here.
This is a kind of “motivational injection for money” format, which works right up to the moment when your videos are not uploaded. As a result, the author returns to where he started: without a result, but already with a minus on the card. This market is not a scam in the classic sense, however, it is an entire industry fueled by digital naivety. Young people believe that success lies in “pumping up the account”, but they forget that likes are worthless without trust.
As you can see, TikTok has turned into a real digital universe where everyone can try on the role of a star, entrepreneur or expert. But behind the bright picture of likes and views hides a complex, changing and sometimes cruel world, where success does not always depend on talent, but rather on the ability to read algorithms and survive in the ocean of content. Young people growing up in this environment have a unique experience with the digital economy, but with the opportunities come the dangers of gullibility.
Belief in “quick fixes” and “secret schemes” often leads to the fact that hopes turn into illusions and dreams into disappointment. This market is a new format of the game, where the main currency is not money, but attention and trust. And if it is bought with cheap bots and cheats, sooner or later the algorithm will put a cross on such an account. So, the question is not whether you can make money on TikTok, but how not to lose yourself in this pursuit of likes. Because real success comes to those authors who do not treat their subscribers as “living wallets”, but value trust, which is the only currency that does not lose its value over time.
