TikTok Search Users API

What is the TikTok Search Users API?

Pass a search query and get matching creators as clean JSON: id + secUid (stable TikTok identity — secUid is what follower/video list calls need), username, displayName, bio, url, followers, following, videos, likes, verified, profileImage, and items[] sample videos when TikTok includes them. Rows are deduped by id — TikTok repeats users across search cards, so totalReturned can be below limit with hasMore false (the honest count, never padding). Every counter carries a per-row *IsApproximate flag (followersIsApproximate, likesIsApproximate, …) computed from the value itself — search display-rounds big totals on some paths. Cursor pagination via nextCursor + hasMore — the cursor is an opaque string that carries the search session, not just an offset, so pass it back verbatim; a creator ranking with several videos can repeat across a page boundary, so dedupe by id when stitching many pages. The native path is TikTok's signed web search (~1 s per page, single-digit seconds at any limit): the dedicated user-search API for the exact-match head where the exit allows it, topped up from distinct authors derived from general-search video rankings — timings.via says which served (signer / signer-mixed / signer-general). If the signer is unreachable the default answer is an empty degraded page (0 credits) — degradedReason names the failure: native-unavailable (page 1 can't be served at all) vs cursor-unsupported (a page-2+ request degraded after page 1 worked). Pass fallback=true to opt into the scraper actor (~2 min, capped at 100 s, degraded-empty on timeout). Prefer id/secUid over @handle for CRM joins — handles change. Envelope includes timings{path,via,nativeMs,apifyMs,totalMs}. Flat 1 credit on every path.

What you get

• Distinct users only — deduped by id, never padded
• id + secUid for stable identity / chaining
• Per-counter *IsApproximate flags on followers/following/videos/likes
• Sample items[] videos when present
• Cursor pagination (nextCursor + hasMore) + timings envelope

Fill in the parameters below and copy a ready-to-run request, or open the live Playground to run it against your account (no API key paste).

curl "https://api.captapi.com/v1/tiktok/search/users?q=khaby" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer capt_live_..."
# or: -H "x-api-key: capt_live_..."

Example response

{
  "success": true,
  "data": {
    "query": "khaby",
    "totalReturned": 2,
    "hasMore": true,
    "nextCursor": "30:20260809225002ADA0CE0CD6A89",
    "users": [
      {
        "id": "127905465618821121",
        "secUid": "MS4wLjABAAAAwAg0rSzO65WQfz4RzQgGv2Xdv108BgPXhRrrmNVIHQZ9PO8-flwwRtEppYTS0OjA",
        "username": "khaby.lame",
        "displayName": "Khabane lame",
        "bio": "Se vuoi ridere sei nel posto giusto😎 If u wanna laugh u r in the right place😎",
        "url": "https://www.tiktok.com/@khaby.lame",
        "followers": 162476412,
        "following": 81,
        "likes": 2650481169,
        "verified": true,
        "profileImage": "https://p19-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-useast8-avt-0068-tx2/08987e23b94057953fd4f1738694bf5f~tplv-tiktokx-cropcenter:1080:1080.jpeg?dr=9640&refresh_token=ef0e9f02&x-expires=1786006800&x-signature=7Mx8iglAOcSlnXlc8QyIBifQV0M%3D&t=4d5b0474&ps=13740610&shp=a5d48078&shcp=81f88b70&idc=useast8",
        "followersIsApproximate": false,
        "followingIsApproximate": false,
        "likesIsApproximate": false
      },
      {
        "id": "6663294979903422470",
        "secUid": "MS4wLjABAAAAbq-1Yqpp1a6u5KbV_sMg93_FK7AN3d6MJeZ3H0Yj3vZXOtqFXXjc2TIkMW7flCxX",
        "username": "espn",
        "displayName": "ESPN",
        "bio": "Serving Sports Fans. Anytime. Anywhere.",
        "url": "https://www.tiktok.com/@espn",
        "followers": 60100768,
        "following": 657,
        "likes": 5769632093,
        "verified": true,
        "profileImage": "https://p16-common-sign.tiktokcdn-us.com/tos-maliva-avt-0068/7310257743653240837~tplv-tiktokx-cropcenter:1080:1080.jpeg?dr=9640&refresh_token=7e4745a7&x-expires=1786006800&x-signature=cJrkoOAcA8KBqdaAWgBgeaE6f6w%3D&t=4d5b0474&ps=13740610&shp=a5d48078&shcp=81f88b70&idc=useast8",
        "followersIsApproximate": false,
        "followingIsApproximate": false,
        "likesIsApproximate": false
      }
    ]
  }
}

Billing metadata is returned in response headers: X-Captapi-Credits (credits charged), X-Captapi-Cache (hit or miss), and X-Captapi-Source. Failed requests (4xx/5xx) are never charged. See the full list of error codes in the error reference.

Response structure

A successful call returns success and a data object with the following fields:

Parameters

Authentication: send your key as Authorization: Bearer capt_live_.... A typical call costs 1 credit. Pass cache=true for a free 24h cache hit; default is always fresh.

How it works

1. 1. Sign up — get 100 free credits, no card required.
2. 2. Create a key from your dashboard.
3. 3. Send one request to /v1/tiktok/search/users and parse the JSON response.

Use cases

Frequently asked questions

More TikTok APIs