TikTok surfaces reviews tab in the comments section, usurping Google Maps
TikTok has already secured its status as Gen Z's ultimate search tool, and now it's dipping its greedy little app toes into reviews.
The social media app hosts plenty of content creators who make a living off showing their audience reviews of tech, restaurants, and clothes they've bought. But now, TechCrunch reported that TikTok has started surfacing reviews for some places — like stores and restaurants — inside the comments section of a video.
Right now, if you see a place you want to visit on your For You Page, you'll need to navigate to Google Maps or Yelp to learn its exact location, reviews, hours, and other information. This new TikTok feature has the potential to circumvent that additional step.
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According to TechCrunch, TikTok reviews are currently being tested for select users, who might see a "Reviews" tab on the right of a video's comments. App researcher Jonah Manzano posted a screenshot of his TikTok comments section on Threads, showing that the feature currently only works "on selected videos with a tagged location."
We don't know when, if at all, the feature will be launched publicly, and who knows how users will actually feel about the feature once it launches. Will it be met with annoyance for crowding up the comment section, or glee that the social media giant is slowly morphing into a super app?
Topics TikTok
Christianna Silva is a senior culture reporter covering social platforms and the creator economy, with a focus on the intersection of social media, politics, and the economic systems that govern us. Since joining Mashable in 2021, they have reported extensively on meme creators, content moderation, and the nature of online creation under capitalism.
Before joining Mashable, they worked as an editor at NPR and MTV News, a reporter at Teen Vogue and VICE News, and as a stablehand at a mini-horse farm. You can follow her on Bluesky @christiannaj.bsky.social and Instagram @christianna_j.
