How to Solve Tiktok Effects Not Showing?

Tiktok is popular and addictive for sharing and creating viral short videos. Users love using filters and effects on Tiktok. They record video clips, apply effects or filters to them, to customize the look and feel of the final Tiktok video. By adding catchy tunes, pop songs, or earworms, Tiktok videos become even more entertaining. Sometimes, Tiktok effects and filters face some glitches, like not loading, not compatible with your device, or not working for some reason. In this blog post, we will tell you the steps to take to fix the tiktok effects not showing issue.

What are the root causes and corresponding fixes for "Tiktok Effects Not Showing"?

Tiktok effects and filters may sometimes stop working on Android and iPhone smartphones. We will go through the different scenarios when filters and effects break, and how to fix them.

Issue #1: "This effect does not work with this device"

When you are watching another's Tiktok video, you can choose the filter they used in it. Usually, this filter can be applied to your own videos. But sometimes, Tiktok gives you the error message "This effect does not work with this device".

Fix #1: Hold the record button before selecting effect/filter

While this fix can sound peculiar, users facing the above issue were able to solve it with a hack. Normally, you can see the selected filter applied to your camera feed, even when you are not recording. So, you can point the camera anywhere and understand how the filter makes the view look. But if you are getting "this effect does not work with this device", you can instead try to hold the record button so it starts shooting. Then you find the filter working.

It is possible that this peculiar behavior was due to a bug in Tiktok codebase. So, we expect that this scenario will not be a common one for the newer versions of Tiktok apps for iOS and Android.

Issue #2: App functionality breaks due to cached data

When you open Tiktok app and tap on the small + icon to start the camera, it shows you list of filters and effects. You can also search for a particular filter or effect by its name. When you select any filter, it is applied to the camera feed and you can preview the filter. However, there are times when the list of filters and effects is appearing blank, or the icons/thumbnails are not loading. This is simply a glitch due to local data in the cache causing the app to not fetch data from the cloud.

Fix #2: Clear Cached Data

Tiktok apps for iOS and Android have the option to Clear Cached Data in its Settings. Open the Tiktok app > Go to your Profile > Tap on Hamburger menu icon > Settings & Privacy > Scroll down to find "Clear Cache".

Issue #3: Tiktok has updated its app, but you have the older version

You have been using Tiktok and everything has been working OK. Then suddenly, one day you encounter some glitches like effects not loading. This may be due to Tiktok updating its app, but you still having the older version. This causes incompatibility between your app version and Tiktok's current codebase in the cloud.

Fix #3: Update the Tiktok app

Go to the Apple App Store for iPhone / iPad, or the Google Play store for Android. Search for Tiktok, and if it shows "Update" button, you know that a new version is available. Use it to download and install the latest version of the app.

Issue #4: Tiktok app installation on your phone has glitches

Even when you have the latest Tiktok app version on your device, it can malfunction. There can be errors while downloading and installing the app, or due to some local package files missing or corrupting.

Fix #4: Uninstall and Reinstall Tiktok

Delete the app completely from your device, restart the device, and then freshly download and install Tiktok again.

Make sure to back up your Tiktok drafts, before uninstalling the app. Otherwise, they will be lost. How to Save a Tiktok Draft to the Camera Roll?

Issue #5: There is some incompatibility between Tiktok app and your device

Some app issues can arise due to device-specific issues that cause the app to have glitches. It can be related to the particular model of your mobile or tablet, or even be specific only to just your device.

Fix #5: Try using your Tiktok account on another device

You can borrow or use another device, install Tiktok, and login to your account. The effects and filters will be working without any glitches on the other device.

Summary

Tiktok effects or filters not showing or working is a solvable issue, by trying out a number of possible fixes. We have discussed the various root causes for this problem, and the corresponding solutions to tackle them. Do let us know in the comments if you succeed in getting your Tiktok filters and effects working smoothly again!