Hashtags used to be the main way people found content. Today, platforms mostly decide who sees your video by watching how people react to it. Hashtags still help — but in a different way. Think of them as labels that tell the app what your video is about, not as a magic button for views.
How many hashtags should you use?
For most short videos, 3 to 5 relevant hashtags is plenty. Instagram has publicly recommended using a small number of relevant hashtags, and long lists of 20–30 unrelated tags can make a post look spammy. On TikTok and YouTube Shorts, a few accurate tags plus clear words in your caption do the same job.
Quality beats quantity. Five tags that describe your video exactly are worth more than thirty that don't.
How to pick the right hashtags
Use a mix of three types:
- Topic tag: what the video is about, as specific as possible. #mealprep is better than #food for a meal-prep video.
- Niche tag: the community you're part of. #personalfinance, #gymtok, #studytips.
- Format tag (optional): what kind of content it is. #recipe, #tutorial, #beforeandafter.
A good test: if someone tapped the hashtag, would your video fit in with the other videos there? If not, don't use it.
What about #fyp and #viral?
Tags like #fyp, #foryou and #viral are used on millions of posts and say nothing about your content. They won't hurt much, but they won't help either. Spend your few hashtags on words that describe your video.
Mistakes to avoid
- Banned or broken tags. Some hashtags get restricted because of spam. If a tag shows few or no recent posts, skip it.
- Irrelevant trending tags. Adding a trending tag that has nothing to do with your video can confuse the app about who to show it to.
- The same block every time. Copying one big list onto every post makes your tags meaningless. Adjust them for each video.
- Hiding the real keywords. Hashtags don't replace a clear caption. Write naturally about your topic too.
Keywords now matter as much as hashtags
More people search directly inside TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. These apps read your on-screen text, captions and even what you say out loud. Say your topic clearly in the video, put it in your on-screen text, and use it in the first line of your caption.
Quick hashtag checklist
- 3–5 tags, all relevant.
- At least one specific topic tag.
- At least one niche/community tag.
- Your main keyword also appears in the caption and on screen.
The HookKit tool suggests hashtags from your topic and niche and pre-selects five. Tap to swap any that don't fit, then copy.
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