How TikTok LIVE shopping works

In TikTok LIVE shopping, the host also answers viewers’ questions on the spot and demonstrates the product.

How much of TikTok Shop selling happens on LIVE?

In the US, short videos drive about half of TikTok Shop sales and the Shop tab about a third, but LIVE is growing. For 2025, Momentum Works reported LIVE at about 14% of US TikTok Shop sales, with its share rising year on year. We have not found comparable public figures for the UK or the EU.

For a creator, LIVE adds something a video cannot: you hear the objection and answer it while the viewer is still deciding.

What do you need to start TikTok LIVE shopping?

Requirements differ by market. The common ones:

• Age 18 or older for shopping features and, in most regions, for going LIVE.
• LIVE access, commonly from 1,000 followers, as Social Tale and Hubfluence report.
• A way to sell: a TikTok Shop with listed products if you are a seller, or TikTok Shop affiliate access if you are a creator.

In the UK and the EU, TikTok’s creator eligibility policies ask for 500 followers for affiliate access (in the EU, in the country you apply for). In the US, affiliate creators under 5,000 followers start in a pilot period of at least 30 days, with up to three shoppable LIVEs a week; How to become a TikTok Shop creator explains the pilot and how its limits lift. TikTok Shop is not open locally in the UAE, Saudi Arabia or Türkiye, so these requirements do not apply there. Where it is open lists each market with its status.

In the UK and the EU, mark affiliate content as an ad, upfront; the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority prefers a clear “Ad” label and says “aff” or “affiliate” on its own is likely not enough. In the US, the FTC expects a clear disclosure of any material connection, such as commission or a free product. Check your country’s advertising rules.

How does a shopping LIVE run, step by step?

1. Pick the products. Creators add products from the Product Marketplace to their shopping bag; sellers add products from their catalog.
2. Set up the LIVE. TikTok’s EU guide to LIVE Events lets you schedule a stream with a name, date and description; TikTok then reminds your followers when it starts.
3. Go live and pin. When you show a product, pin it. A product card appears for viewers, who tap the basket and buy.
4. Talk to the room. Answer questions by name, demonstrate, compare, and repeat the offer for people who just joined.
5. Close and review. After the stream, check which products sold and when viewers dropped off.

Who does what during a shopping LIVE?

You can run a LIVE alone. Bigger streams usually split the work:

• Host: presents, demonstrates and keeps the energy up.
• Moderator: answers comments, removes spam and passes good questions to the host.
• Producer: switches the pinned products and watches stock and timing.

Some creators stream with the support of a LIVE agency.

Which products sell best on LIVE?

TikTok’s own guidance for creators on choosing LIVE products recommends:

• At least 10 products in your shopping bag.
• Strong products: positive review rates above 90% and shop ratings above 90%.
• A mix: mostly hero products that viewers want most, plus a few popular “traffic” products to draw people in and a few new products to test.
• Competitive prices compared with other online stores.

TikTok’s EU guides for creators cover how to present them. While a product is pinned, describe its features, its benefits and why someone would buy it. Show it from several angles, and greet viewers and talk about their comments.

What should you check before your first LIVE?

TikTok’s UK and EU guides point to a few things to set up first:

• Products in your LIVE shopping bag, and a script for the LIVE. TikTok’s LIVE Script tool suggests an opening, a product introduction and a closing that you can edit.
• Enough light to show the product’s details, a tripod or another way to keep the phone steady, and a quiet room so viewers hear you clearly.
• A moderator, if you can, to manage comments and products from their own phone. TikTok’s EU guide says they must be 18 or older, in your country and following you.
• A bundle or special offer to pin, if the seller has one.

How to become a TikTok Shop creator puts LIVE in the order of everything else you set up, and How TikTok Shop free samples work covers getting products to test before you go live.

How do creators earn from a shopping LIVE?

Creators earn their commission on products sold during a LIVE, calculated like any other sale. See How TikTok Shop commission is calculated.

LIVE gifts are a separate system. Gifts are virtual tips viewers send during any LIVE, managed in TikTok’s LIVE programs and often through LIVE agencies. They have nothing to do with TikTok Shop commission. A creator can receive gifts and earn commission in the same stream.

How do brands use LIVE without hosting every stream?

A brand can combine its own LIVEs with affiliate creators who go live with its products and earn commission on what they sell. A LIVE calendar, a short brief and samples sent on time give those creators what they need. How to sell on TikTok Shop covers the setup on the seller side.

Rules change. LIVE requirements and features differ by market and change over time.