Build a TikTok Clone App
With a Swipe Video Feed
Describe a short-video app and Fastshot builds the full-screen feed, For You and Following tabs, likes, comments and follows. Videos play from links, covers and avatars live in image storage, and the rest sits in Supabase tables.
How do you build a TikTok clone app?
Describe a vertical feed where each swipe plays the next video, with likes, comments, follows and a For You tab. Fastshot (fastshot.ai) builds the React Native screens, plays each video from its link with expo-video and saves videos, likes and comments in Supabase. Cover images upload to image storage. Try it in Expo Go and read the video streaming app builder guide for a second layout.
Last updated: November 4, 2026
What Makes TikTok Work?
TikTok opens on the For You feed. This is a personalized stream, and it is the first thing a person sees. TikTok explains that it picks posts from what you liked, commented on, shared or watched, whether the post is popular in your country or new, whether it is longer, and whether you follow the creator. A separate Following feed shows the creators you chose.
Viewers react with Like, Comment, Share and Follow, and they can tell the app they are not interested, refresh the feed, filter keywords or manage topics. An Explore page and an inbox with messages and notifications round it out.
So the product is a loop: one full-screen video, a one-tap reaction, a quick swipe to the next. A clone that gets the swipe feel and the reaction buttons right already captures most of it. The ranking can start as a simple score and improve as real data arrives.
TikTok Features Mapped to Your App
Video playback comes from a link, and every reaction becomes a table row.
| TikTok feature | How it ships in your app | What it stores |
|---|---|---|
| Full-screen video that plays on swipe | Feed screen: a vertical paging list where the visible video autoplays through expo-video | videos: creator_id, video_url, cover_path, caption, tags, created_at; image bucket covers |
| For You feed | For You tab ordered by a score from likes, comments and recency | videos.score and watch_events: user_id, video_id, seconds_watched |
| Following feed | Following tab showing videos from accounts you chose | follows: follower_id, following_id |
| Like | Heart button on the right edge and a double tap on the video | likes: video_id, user_id |
| Comment | Comments sheet that slides up and updates live | comments: video_id, user_id, body, created_at |
| Not interested | Long press menu on a video that hides it and similar tags from the feed | hidden_videos: user_id, video_id |
| Explore | Explore tab with tag chips and a search bar over captions | videos.tags and a trending view of the last 7 days |
| Inbox | Inbox tab with new followers, likes and comments, and direct messages | notifications and messages tables |
Screens in Your Short-Video App
The screen list Fastshot proposes for this prompt.
Feed
Two tabs on top, For You and Following, over a full-screen video with reaction buttons down the right edge.
Comments sheet
A panel that slides over the video, with live comments and a reply box.
Add Video
Paste a video link, pick a cover image from your photos, write a caption and add tags.
Explore
Tag chips, a trending grid of covers and a search bar.
Creator profile
Avatar, follower counts, a Follow button and a grid of that creator videos.
Inbox
Notifications for follows, likes and comments, and a list of direct messages.
Sign in
Email, Google or Apple sign-in and a unique handle on first launch.
Paste This Prompt Into Fastshot
It describes an original short-video app called Zipclip. Change the name, the niche and the tags before you publish.
Make a short-video app called Zipclip for iOS and Android. Black background, white text, one neon lime accent.
Open on the Feed. At the top two tabs: For You and Following. Each video fills the screen, autoplays when visible, pauses when I scroll away, and loops. Swipe up for the next video.
Right edge buttons: creator avatar with a Follow plus, Like heart with a count, Comments count, Share. Bottom: creator handle, caption and tags.
Videos are links to hosted video files. Play them with the expo-video player. Covers and avatars are images stored in an image bucket.
Add Video screen: paste a video link, choose a cover image from my photos, write a caption and tags, then Publish.
Comments: a bottom sheet with live updates.
Explore: tag chips, a grid of trending covers from the last 7 days, and a search bar over captions.
Profile: avatar, handle, followers, following, likes, grid of videos.
Inbox: notifications for new followers, likes and comments.
Supabase tables: profiles, videos, likes, comments, follows, watch_events, hidden_videos, notifications. For You orders by score, where score rises with likes, comments, completed watches and recency. Following filters by follows. A long press on a video offers Not interested and Report.
Turn on realtime for comments and notifications. Row level security so users edit only their own rows.How to Build Your Swipe Feed
Choose a niche before the prompt
Pick what every video in your app is about: five-minute recipes, speedcubing, street style or language practice. Put it in the first line so the tags, covers and empty states fit your topic.
Approve the plan
Fastshot asks one or two questions and returns a screen plan. Keep Feed, Add Video and Profile for a first release and let Explore wait if you want a smaller build.
Connect Supabase and seed three videos
Connect Supabase from the chat prompt. Add three rows to the videos table by hand, each with a link to a hosted video file and a cover image, so the feed has something to play.
Test the swipe on a real phone
Open the app in Expo Go through the QR code. Swipe through the three videos, like one, comment on another and follow a second account. The video feel matters more than any other detail, so test it on a phone.
Tune the For You score
Ask Fastshot to weight completed watches higher than likes, or to boost videos from the last 48 hours. Each change is one chat message.
Add moderation, then publish
Ask for Report Video and Block User actions, then publish with your own Apple and Google Play accounts. The IPA generator page shows what the iOS build produces.
Make It Your Own
You will not beat TikTok at being TikTok. You can beat it at being the app for one topic. Short cooking tips, chess puzzles, guitar riffs, home workouts, a campus, a language or a local scene all work, because the audience arrives with a shared interest and the feed has no noise.
Then change the loop. Add a daily challenge that everyone answers, a duet-style reply video linked to the original, a weekly top-ten, or a feed with no autoplay for calmer browsing. A different loop gives you a reason to exist and is easier to describe in a store listing.
Revenue can follow the topic. A paid channel for coaches, sponsor banners from AdMob or a members-only tier all fit, and the subscription app builder page shows how a paywall works. Name the app after your niche and design your own icon so nobody mistakes it for the original.
Short-Video Apps People Built With Fastshot
Published community apps with vertical video feeds. Open one to browse the screens.
Vibe Me
A short-video network with Following, Suggested and For You tabs, plus follows, likes, comments and shares. See Vibe Me in the gallery.
Nexa
A short-video platform with a personal content feed and real-time messaging between members. See Nexa in the gallery.
NCA Short Video
A small, beginner-friendly short-video app with sign-in, a vertical feed, likes and captions. See NCA Short Video in the gallery.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make a TikTok-like app without code?
Yes. You describe the feed and the buttons in plain English, and Fastshot writes the React Native app for iOS and Android. The first version appears in about 5 to 7 minutes, and you adjust the look by chat.
How do the videos get into the app?
Each video is a row with a link to a hosted video file, a cover image, a caption and tags. The feed plays the link with the expo-video player. Cover images and avatars upload to image storage, which accepts images up to 10 MB each by default.
How does the For You feed choose what to show?
TikTok says its feed reacts to what you like, comment on, share and watch, plus what is new and popular. Your app can start simpler: order videos by a score built from likes, comments and recency, then add a watch_events table so a video watched to the end counts for more.
Can I build the vertical swipe the way TikTok does it?
Yes. Ask for a paging list where each video fills the screen, autoplays when it is in view and pauses when you scroll away. Fastshot builds this with a full-height vertical list and the expo-video player.
Does the app have a Following tab?
Yes. TikTok splits For You from Following, and so can you. Following filters the videos table by the accounts in the follows table, newest first, so people can catch up on creators they chose.
Can I earn money from a short-video app?
Add AdMob ads between videos, or sell a creator subscription with an Adapty paywall. The monetization guide explains the options. Pick one that suits your niche.
Can I put my video app on the App Store?
Yes, with your own Apple Developer account ($99 a year) and Google Play account ($25 one-time). Fastshot builds and uploads the app. User-generated video apps need a Report Video button and a Block action to pass review, so ask for both in chat.
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Build Your Short-Video App Today
Paste the prompt, add a few video links and swipe through your own feed on your phone.