TikTok dropshipping lets business owners sell products from a TikTok Shop account without needing to manage inventory and fulfillment.
A TikTok dropshipping business uses TikTok Shop, which launched in 2023. Just two years later, TikTok Shop already accounted for nearly 20% of social commerce sales, growing 108% from the year before, according to Emarketer.
In this article, learn how to start dropshipping on TikTok Shop and how to promote your products to TikTok users.
What is TikTok dropshipping?
TikTok dropshipping is an ecommerce model in which store owners market and sell goods through TikTok Shop, while a third-party vendor handles product sourcing, inventory management, and the order fulfillment process. Dropshippers earn a profit by selling products at a markup from a supplier’s wholesale price.
To launch a dropshipping store through TikTok Shop, you can either upload products directly to the platform or connect it to your ecommerce store via an official integration, such as the TikTok app for Shopify. There aren’t any specific TikTok Shop dropshipping requirements, but you must meet the general requirements to register as a seller on TikTok Shop.
TikTok Shop seller fees
TikTok charges fees when sellers list their products for sale in the app. Be aware of these TikTok dropshipping costs when using the platform to sell products:
| TikTok Shop fees | Cost |
| Commission fee | 5% to 6% per order (subject to change by category or promotion) |
| Withdrawal fee to cash out your earnings | 5¢ for bank accounts, or 0.9% of the transaction amount for PayPal withdrawals; minimum withdrawal amount of $2. |
| Sales tax (if you’re obligated to collect it) | Sales tax rates vary by state |
How to dropship on TikTok Shop
- Choose products to sell on TikTok
- Decide on a dropshipping supplier
- Create a TikTok Shop
- Upload your products
- Market your products
Follow these steps to start a dropshipping business on TikTok:
1. Choose products to sell on TikTok
Start by researching the products you want to dropship on TikTok. There are a few methods you can try.
Kamil Sattar, a dropshipping entrepreneur known as The Ecom King on YouTube, recommends choosing a niche you’re already familiar with.
“That route can sometimes be better long term because when it comes to creating the market … you’re going to know [your target market] better than anyone, because you’re a potential customer,” Kamil says on an episode of the Shopify Masters podcast.
“You love that industry. For example, you love dogs; you love cats. You know what other cat owners, other dog owners want, so you know what to provide them.”
Here are a few other strategies for finding dropshipping products:
Look at market reports
Market reports tell you about the growth of an industry and what kind of products consumers want. For example, a Toy Association report found that 60% of US parents looked for STEAM (science, tech, engineering, arts, and mathematics) toys in 2025.
Find trends before they take off
Exploding Topics, a tool by digital marketing platform Semrush, identifies new topics including descriptive phrases, ingredients, or products, before they’re “everywhere.” Ideally, it reveals opportunities to leverage the upswing of terms in the market or culture.
Exploding Topics compiles data from different social media platforms, search engines, articles, and online forums, revealing emerging trends across a variety of sources.
Search hashtags
Search the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt hashtag to see videos featuring products that have gone viral on TikTok. Or, visit the TikTok Creative Center to see which hashtags are currently trending on TikTok. Click on an individual hashtag to learn about interest over time and audience demographics.
Use TikTok’s top products
The TikTok Creative Center also has a section for top products on the platform (based on ad impressions). Select a product category to learn about its popularity over time and view audience insights.
2. Decide on a dropshipping supplier
Your choice of dropshipping supplier can affect your shop performance. TikTok gives each store a Shop Performance Score (SPS), which is based in part on processing and delivery times. With dropshipping, your supplier handles fulfillment and logistics, so this component of your SPS isn’t something you can control beyond selecting a reliable dropshipping supplier.
A higher SPS opens more opportunities for you on TikTok Shop and lends credibility to your store. For example, a 3.5 or higher gives you access to affiliate marketing, and a score of 4 or higher means you qualify for a gold or silver star seller badge, which are designed to show your business’s reputability.
When choosing a dropshipping supplier, consider product quality and whether they can support fast, reliable shipping. You can vet suppliers yourself by ordering product samples, which also gives you the opportunity to create original content featuring the products you sell.
Read: The Complete Guide To Requesting Samples for Your Store
If you’re on Shopify, you can browse the Shopify App Store for dropshipping apps that allow you to add products to your store directly from your Shopify admin. You can read the App Store reviews to learn more about other dropshippers’ experiences with the different suppliers.
3. Create a TikTok Shop
If you have Shopify, you can create a TikTok Shop from your Shopify admin by downloading the TikTok app.
Follow these steps to set up your TikTok Shop:
- Go to your Shopify admin and click “Settings” and then “Sales channels.” Select “Shopify App Store.”
- Search for TikTok. Open the product listing and click “Add channel.” That’ll direct you to the Set Up TikTok Shop page in your Shopify admin. Click “Connect.”
- A Sign Up dialog will appear. You will either sign in to your account or register as a business owner on TikTok. You’ll fill in your phone number, email, and password, and then select “Register as a merchant.”
- Review TikTok’s terms of service and then click “Connect.”
- Verify your shop information and upload your documents.
- Choose “Finish setup.”
If you don’t have a Shopify account or an ecommerce store, you can still sign up for a TikTok Shop directly through TikTok.
4. Upload your products
Once you’ve created your TikTok Shop, it’s time to add products.
Shopify store owners can manage this process from the Shopify admin. Sync your existing product catalog with TikTok by installing the TikTok app, and add or remove dropshipping products from your catalog via dropshipping apps.
While you don’t technically need an ecommerce store to dropship on TikTok, you’ll be limiting yourself to a single sales channel. The Shopify Starter plan is designed for social selling, so you can dropship across other platforms like Instagram in addition to TikTok Shop.
If you want to dropship on TikTok without an ecommerce website, you’ll have to manually list your items, paste individual product URLs from other websites, or upload product listings in bulk from an Excel spreadsheet.
5. Market your products
Develop a TikTok marketing strategy, combining advertisements, influencers, and organic content to drive traffic to your TikTok Shop. Here are a few ideas:
- Use tools like TikTok Creative Center to discover ad trends and top-performing content formats.
- Create a TikTok Ads Manager account to monitor how your video advertisements are performing and adjust your campaigns based on which are performing well.
- Film compelling videos featuring the products you’re selling. For example, you could create an entertaining dance video featuring footwear products or a makeup tutorial video demonstrating the effect of an eyeshadow product.
Ways to advertise dropshipping products on TikTok
There are a few ways to market your dropshipping products on TikTok, including:
Influencer marketing
Influencer marketing involves working with creators on TikTok who can promote your products to their viewers. Influencers in the United States sway US viewers on TikTok Shop: According to a PartnerCentric survey, 48% of purchases US viewers made on TikTok came from influencer recommendations.
One way to get started with TikTok influencers is by seeding products, or sending free products to creators in hopes that they’ll post about it. Beauty Brand Three Ships finds this strategy effective.
“You’re not paying anything,” says Laura Thompson, cofounder of Three Ships, on Shopify Masters. “You’re just giving them free product. [Product seeding] works very well because it’s authentic. People will post the product [if] they really love it.”
Paid advertisements
On TikTok, ads blend in with other content. “[TikTok Ads] really feel like part of the platform,” says growth strategy expert Jaclyn VanSloten, who runs marketing firm Femra Consulting. “They’re very snappy; they don’t feel like they’re inserted. It just feels like a natural flow.”
Ads can also influence customers to make purchases. Forty-five percent of respondents to a 2025 YouGov survey said they made a purchase on TikTok Shop because of an ad.
With the TikTok app for Shopify, you can create ads from your Shopify admin or on TikTok Ads Manager and retarget customers who have taken an action on your ecommerce site. The app lets you install the TikTok pixel, a piece of code that tracks consumers who visit your site, on your Shopify store.
Paid advertisements work well with other strategies, too. Dropshipping expert Kamil uses ads to promote content that is performing well organically.
He creates a TikTok page for each product or niche and uploads content about it that isn’t too promotional. When he sees what content resonates with viewers, he runs TikTok ads. “You can basically turn that organic video into an ad and that sometimes works even better than just creating a one-off ad,” he says.
Affiliate marketing
With affiliate marketing, content creators can earn commission by promoting your products on TikTok, usually with a unique code or affiliate link. There are a couple of ways to get started with TikTok affiliate marketing.
TikTok Shop has a built-in affiliate program available to stores that meet eligibility requirements, including a SPS score of 3.5 or higher. The TikTok Shop affiliate program allows creators to add your products to a curated storefront called a TikTok Showcase.
If you don’t meet the requirements for the built-in platform or want more flexibility and control, you can start your own affiliate program with an app like Shopify Collabs. You can use Collabs to find new influencers to work with and manage existing partnerships from your Shopify admin.
Livestreaming
Use TikTok Live to sell your products. You can demonstrate how your products work and answer customer questions.
TikTok lets you link directly to your TikTok Shop to encourage viewers to make a purchase in the moment. Thirty-seven percent of respondents to an Adobe study said they purchased a product during or after watching a live shopping stream, and viewers make more impulsive purchases during livestreams on TikTok.
TikTok SEO
TikTok has evolved to be a discovery platform in addition to a social media app. Younger demographics rely heavily on its search functionality: In an Adobe Express study, 65% of Gen Z respondents said they use TikTok for search. Overall, 49% of consumers use TikTok for search.
TikTok search engine optimization (SEO) increases the odds of your content appearing in your target audience’s search results.
Leslie Ann Hall, CEO and founder of social agency Iced Media, suggests approaching each post through an SEO lens. Start by conducting keyword research on Google Ads Keywords Planner to find rising search opportunities. Then use those keywords in text elements like captions.
TikTok dropshipping FAQ
How do I promote my dropshipping store on TikTok?
Promote your dropshipping store on TikTok by creating paid advertisements through TikTok Ads Manager, partnering with influencers who can promote your products, and livestreaming.
Can I sell on TikTok with Shopify?
Yes, you can sell on TikTok with Shopify by connecting your Shopify store with your TikTok business account and applying for TikTok Shop, an in-app marketplace for products. The free TikTok app for Shopify allows you to integrate TikTok Shop with your Shopify site.
Can you dropship on TikTok Shop?
Yes, you can dropship on TikTok Shop. You’ll need a dropshipping supplier, an online store to facilitate those orders, and a TikTok business account. You can also sync your product catalog to TikTok Shop using the TikTok for Shopify app.
What are the best products for dropshipping on TikTok?
The best products to dropship on TikTok depend on your interests, seasonality, and market research. However, the bestselling products on TikTok Shop include fashion items, electronics and gadgets, home products, food and beverage, and beauty products, according to YouGov.
Does TikTok allow dropshipping?
TikTok allows entrepreneurs to dropship products through the app, either through a TikTok Shop or by listing products for sale on your own dropshipping website.
Is TikTok dropshipping profitable?
A TikTok dropshipping store can be a profitable online business model because users already rely on the app to discover and buy products. Maximize profits by selling high-ticket dropshipping products, building a strong relationship with your followers, and creating high-quality content consistently.
