TikTok allows its users to delete or deactivate their account at any time on the app. If you can’t seem to find someone’s TikTok account, you may be wondering if they deleted or deactivated it.

There are a few ways to tell if this is the case, or if something else is going on like if the user blocked you.

Note that Deleting and Deactivating an Account Looks the Same

To other users, deleting and deactivating an account will have the same effects. This means that there is no way to tell if another user either deleted their account or just deactivated it. The only difference to the user is that deletion is permanent and deactivation is just temporary (they can reactivate their account at any time). You can tell the difference though between a user deleting or deactivating, and something else like blocking you.

There is a small possibility that an account could be banned too, but this is quite rare. It would also look the same as the account just being deleted. It would just be deleted by TikTok instead of the user doing it themselves. There are quite a few things that can get you banned from TikTok. Be sure to avoid those things yourself to keep your account safe and active!

How to Tell If Someone Deleted or Deactivated Their TikTok Account

The steps below can help you determine if another user deleted or deactivated their account.

1. Try Searching For Their Username

Go to the search bar on the TikTok app and type in their username. If their account doesn’t appear in the results, the account is either deleted/deactivated or they have blocked you.

To check for the difference, have a friend who is definitely not blocked search for their username too. If they can find the account, but you can’t, you are blocked. If neither of you can find it, then it is probably deleted or the user might have changed their username.

Since changing your username on TikTok is actually quite easy, try searching for their actual name or display name too if you suspect their username was changed.

2. Try Searching For Their Username Through a Search Engine

Go onto Google or another search engine and search for their exact TikTok username. If you find links to their TikTok posts or account that don’t work when you click them, then it is likely that their account is deleted or deactivated. This is because search engines will still have cached results that show the page, but the account is no longer active on the TikTok website.

3. Check Your DMs

If you ever exchanged direct messages or DMs on the TikTok app with this user, then your conversation is an easy way to tell if their account was deleted or deactivated. Go to your Inbox tab, and scroll to find your conversation with the person. If their account was deleted or deactivated, you will notice their profile picture and username are blank, but all of your messages are still there.

If you see Account not found where their username should be, then unfortunately you have been blocked. Their profile picture will also have been removed.

Deleting TikTok Accounts

There are many reasons why someone might delete or deactivate their TikTok account. Sometimes people need a break from social media, or want to start fresh by creating a new account. Whatever the reason may be, TikTok makes it easy to do so, and you can tell for yourself if someone deleted or deactivated their account.