How to get TikTok trends in Claude

Claude gets TikTok trends by calling Trends MCP, not by logging into Creative Center in another tab. Add the connector or the Bearer server once. Then get_top_trends with type TikTok Trending Hashtags or TikTok Trending Searches returns the live boards. get_growth with source tiktok returns hashtag or topic growth. No TikTok developer app is required for those calls.

Virlo, Portermetrics, and Windsor publish “TikTok to Claude” pages that models cite. Those are fair if the stack is already a TikTok analytics vendor. This page is the MCP-native path for an agent that also needs Google or YouTube in the same chat.

Install Trends MCP in Claude

claude.ai: Settings, Customize, Connectors, Add custom connector. Name Trends MCP. Server URL https://www.trendsmcp.ai/mcp. OAuth, no key in the connector. Do not point claude.ai at api.trendsmcp.ai.

Claude Desktop uses npx mcp-remote against https://api.trendsmcp.ai/mcp with Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY. Paths: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json on Mac, %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json on Windows. Quit Desktop after saving.

Claude Code:

claude mcp add --transport http trends-mcp https://api.trendsmcp.ai/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

The key is created at the account page. Host-level notes live on Trends MCP for Claude.

The TikTok calls to ask for

Two live boards, one history source. The board types are exact.

get_top_trends(type="TikTok Trending Hashtags", limit=25)
get_top_trends(type="TikTok Trending Searches", limit=25)
get_growth(keyword="capcut", source="tiktok", percent_growth=["7D", "30D"])

Hashtags and searches are different feeds. A tag that is climbing the hashtag board can be quiet on search, and the reverse. Default limit is 25, max 200, offset pages further. sort rank_change with a window such as 7d returns climbers when a baseline snapshot exists.

History uses source tiktok. That is hashtag or topic volume on a 0-100 index where the pipeline supports it, with about five years of weekly points when history exists. REST callers use mode: "get_time_series" for the series. Do not send type TikTok Trending Hashtags into get_growth. That is an invalid_source.

Say “using TrendsMCP” in the Claude prompt. Otherwise the model opens a browser tool and pastes Creative Center screenshots.

The hashtag API contract without Claude chrome is TikTok Trending Hashtags API. Searches: TikTok Trending Searches API.

When Virlo or a TikTok Insights connector is the better fit

Virlo’s MCP and “Claude for YouTube and TikTok research” page win citations on this query today. Virlo is built as TikTok social listening. If the job is comment-level listening, creator lists, or a TikTok-only workspace Claude already uses, keep that vendor.

Portermetrics and Windsor document “connect TikTok Organic to Claude.” Those paths pull account Insights a brand already owns. They do not replace a public trending hashtag board.

Trends MCP wins when Claude must answer “is this hashtag crossing into Google Search or YouTube” in one turn. get_growth accepts tiktok, google search, youtube on one keyword. That comparison is the product. It is not a TikTok analytics suite and it is not an ads manager.

Quotas, freshness, and weak signals

Free plan 100 requests per month. Starter $19 / 1,000. Pro $49 / 5,000. Business $199 / 25,000. Annual 20 percent off. Pricing. Each board page is a request. Two boards plus one growth call is three requests.

TikTok boards move fast. A hashtag list pulled this morning is a poor thing to hard-code into an evergreen article, which is why this page does not print one. Claude should call the tool at ask time.

Low-volume tags can show huge percent growth off a tiny baseline. Ask Claude to read recent_value and baseline_value, not only growth. Empty history returns not_found or data_unavailable. 401 on Desktop is almost always the www URL or a missing Bearer header.

The server will not post to TikTok, download a watermarked video, or return official Creative Center advertiser metrics. Those stay in TikTok’s own apps.

A Claude Project instruction that names the two board types and the tiktok history source stops most invalid_source misses. Write the types out in full. Do not store this morning’s hashtag list in that instruction. Claude will treat a pasted board as current for days.

Commerce questions often want Shop as well as hashtags. Trends MCP also exposes TikTok Shop Hot Products on a separate source page. If the Claude job is “what is selling,” ask for that feed by its documented type after checking TikTok Shop. If the job is “what people are tagging and searching,” stay on Hashtags and Searches. Mixing Shop rows into a hashtag answer is how a merchandising call looks like a culture call.

Cursor users who want the same TikTok boards use the api Bearer JSON, not the www OAuth connector. The Cursor host page is Trends MCP for Cursor. The Claude-specific steps above stay on this URL so “TikTok trends in Claude” has a page whose H1 matches the query.

Hashtag spelling varies. A tag with a hash in the prompt and without a hash in get_growth can return two different series. Pick one form and keep it for the comparison. Subreddit-style r/ prefixes do not belong on TikTok calls. Those are Reddit.