TikTok has become one of the most popular social media platforms, with over 1 billion monthly active users. The app is best known for its short-form videos that showcase trends, challenges, dances, comedy sketches and more.
While most TikTok videos are quite short, usually around 15 seconds to 1 minute long, some videos can be up to 3 minutes. As a result, TikTok has introduced a useful feature that allows you to fast forward or rewind videos to easily skip to the part you want to watch.
Table of Contents
When Is Fast Forward/Rewind Available
The fast forward and rewind feature is not yet available for all videos. Here are some factors that determine whether you can skip ahead or go back in a video:
- Video length – The feature is primarily available for videos that are longer, usually over 1 minute. Shorter videos likely won’t have the scrubbing capability.
- Device – Fast forward/rewind was first introduced on iOS devices and later came to Android. Make sure your app is updated to the latest version.
- Location – The feature does not seem to be available globally yet. It’s rolling out in stages across different regions.
- Video permissions – Certain videos, like sponsored branded content, may not allow skipping. Most regular user videos have the capability enabled.
How to Fast Forward or Rewind on Mobile
If a video meets the criteria above, here are the steps to skip ahead or rewind:
- Tap on a video to start playback
- Look for a thin white progress bar along the bottom of the video
- Tap and hold the small white dot on the progress bar
- Drag the dot left or right to scrub through the video
- The video timecode above the bar displays your updated position
- Release the dot when you want playback to resume from that spot
Here are visual guides:
fast forward gif
rewind gif
How to Fast Forward or Rewind on Desktop
The process works similarly on the TikTok website:
- Play a video and look for the progress bar at the bottom
- Click and drag the white dot left or right to scrub
- The timecode above the bar updates as you skip ahead or rewind
- Let go when you want the video to continue playing
Tips for Using the Feature
Here are some useful things to know about fast forwarding and rewinding TikTok videos:
- Bookmark parts to rewatch – Drag the progress dot to a funny or interesting part of the video. Release to replay that section.
- Skip uninteresting sections – Find boring introductions or talking segments? Skip right ahead to the main action.
- Review quickly – Scrub through a long video at 2x speed to get the gist before fully watching.
- Compare parts – Rewind and fast forward between parts you want to watch back-to-back.
- Fix accidental skips – Accidentally skip too far? Drag the dot back to rewind to the spot you wanted.
What If I Don’t Have the Feature?
Since the scrubbing capability is still rolling out, you may not have it yet. Here are some options if you can’t fast forward or rewind:
- Update the app – Download the latest version of TikTok as scrubbing is not available on old versions.
- Check video length – The feature primarily works on videos over 1 minute long. Shorter videos likely don’t support it.
- Try a different video – Not all videos have the feature enabled. Test it out on different long videos.
- Use a third-party app – If TikTok doesn’t allow skipping on a certain video, try downloading it and watching in a separate video player app.
The fast forward and rewind function completely changes the TikTok viewing experience. While short videos are the app’s specialty, the capability to easily scrub through longer videos makes all the difference.
Give it a try next time you come across a video you want to skip through!
