Which TikTok influencer tier is right for your campaign?

Paying for an influencer means betting that their audience will care about your product. TikTok creators fall into five tiers by follower count: nano, micro, mid-tier, macro and mega. 

Here’s how those tiers compare on cost and engagement, so you can make that bet with a clearer idea of what you’re buying. 👇

What are the five types of influencers on TikTok?

The five main influencer tiers on TikTok are nano, micro, mid-tier, macro and mega. They group creators by the number of followers on their TikTok account.

Here’s a simple breakdown of the follower ranges used in this guide:

I’d check recent video views alongside follower count. TikTok’s For You feed can recommend a creator’s videos to people who don’t follow them, so even a small account can get substantial attention. Looking at several recent posts helps you see whether that happens consistently.

You can see why this matters in Tiger Finder’s comparison of two US-based makeup creators. One had 112,500 followers, with recent posts averaging 387 views. The creator with the smaller following averaged 12,200 views.

That would make me curious about the smaller account. I’d look at whether those views came from videos relevant to our product and whether the audience was in a market we could serve.

For example, a makeup brand would want to see how the creator’s tutorials and product reviews perform. That gives us something concrete to discuss when deciding whether a partnership makes sense.

TikTok engagement and views by influencer tier

Mega creators recorded the highest median engagement rate in Tiger Finder’s sample at 7.11%. They also had the highest median views per video at 40,700.

Tiger Finder calculates engagement rate as the total number of likes, comments, shares and saves divided by views, multiplied by 100.

This guide defines nano creators as having 1,000 to 9,999 followers. The nano figures in this sample cover creators with 3,000 to under 10,000 followers, reflecting Tiger Finder’s current collection threshold.

Across the tiers, median engagement stayed within a 0.79 percentage point range. Median views per video increased with each tier.

The median is the middle value, so a few unusually large results have less influence than they would on an average. I’d use these figures as a starting point, then compare creators in the niche and market your campaign targets.

Nano influencers with 1K to under 10K followers

Nano influencers have 1,000 to 9,999 followers. Consider them when you want to test a focused community or start a small creator program.

• Follower range: 1,000 to 9,999.
• Typical TikTok engagement: 6.91% for creators with 3,000 to under 10,000 followers.
• Indicative cost per video: $25 to $200.
• Best for: Reaching a specific community and running small paid tests.
• Watch out for: Limited campaign experience or little data from previous partnerships.

Say you’re promoting a neighborhood Pilates studio. A local instructor who regularly talks about classes nearby could be an interesting person to approach. You already have a connection between their content and what you offer.

You can check audience location in Tiger Finder before reaching out. It shows an estimated country breakdown based on the people who comment on a creator’s content.

Keep the first collaboration easy to follow. Agree on what the creator will publish and when they’ll get paid. If you’re sending a gift, clarify whether you expect a post. It’s an awkward misunderstanding you can avoid with one conversation.

Micro influencers with 10K to under 100K followers

Micro influencers have 10,000 to 99,999 followers. For a modest budget, they’re a useful place to start exploring several possible partnerships.

• Follower range: 10,000 to 99,999.
• Typical TikTok engagement: 6.64%.
• Indicative cost per video: $200 to $1,250.
• Best for: Testing product demonstrations with several relevant creators.
• Watch out for: High engagement on videos that have little connection to your product.

Let’s say you sell food containers. Creators who show how they prepare work lunches give your product a natural place in their videos.

You could watch how they pack the food and read what viewers ask about. For example, a comment about a leaking lid is relevant to your product. It gives you a specific problem the creator could demonstrate solving in a sponsored video.

Pay attention to which videos produce the engagement rate. If most interactions come from unrelated comedy clips, we still need to understand how their product-focused content performs. A high percentage becomes much more useful once you know what’s behind it.

Mid-tier influencers with 100K to under 500K followers

Mid-tier influencers have 100,000 to 499,999 followers. They’re worth exploring when you want to expand a campaign within a relevant content category.

• Follower range: 100,000 to 499,999.
• Typical TikTok engagement: 6.32%.
• Indicative cost per video: $1,250 to $5,000.
• Best for: Expanding a campaign within a relevant content category.
• Watch out for: A viral video that makes the account’s overall performance look stronger than its usual content.

Staying with our food-container example, imagine a cooking creator who publishes a weekly meal-prep series. Packing lunches already appears in their videos, and viewers know what to expect from the format. I can see a clear starting point for a collaboration there.

Watch several episodes and compare their views. A viral video about restaurant drama tells us little about how a meal-prep partnership might perform. Results from similar sponsored videos would be especially helpful.

What is a macro influencer?

A macro influencer has 500,000 to 999,999 followers in this guide. I’d explore this tier when a campaign needs substantial visibility through one established creator.

• Follower range: 500,000 to 999,999.
• Typical TikTok engagement: 6.63%.
• Indicative cost per video: $5,000 to $10,000.
• Best for: Larger launches built around an established creator.
• Watch out for: A high fee that recent views and audience fit don’t support.

For example, a sportswear brand launching running shoes could look at a macro running creator. Their equipment reviews and comments about fit or comfort could help us understand the opportunity.

We’d want evidence that viewers are interested in their product recommendations alongside the entertaining race-day videos.

If one partnership takes up a large part of your budget, give yourself room to ask questions before committing. Ask for comparable post results and audience information.

If something looks unusual, our fake-influencer checklist can help you investigate. Low views alone don’t prove fraud. They’re a reason to ask what has changed.

What is a mega influencer?

Mega influencers have at least one million followers. This group includes creators who built their audience on TikTok and celebrities with a substantial presence there.

• Follower range: 1 million or more.
• Typical TikTok engagement: 7.11%.
• Indicative cost per video: $10,000 to $25,000 or more.
• Best for: Large awareness campaigns where the creator’s recognition matters.
• Watch out for: A large share of the audience living in countries you don’t serve.

I’d consider a mega creator when their recognition is part of the campaign idea, or when a brand can use attention across several markets. An international launch might fit that situation.

If you ship to one country, check how much of the audience lives there (you can do it in Tiger Finder). A huge following can include plenty of people who won’t be able to buy from you.

Celebrity deals can go substantially higher than the range above. Treat every tier’s prices as a budgeting reference. The quote needs to cover your actual deliverables and usage rights, which can vary considerably between deals.

Micro vs macro influencers: which should you pick?

For a modest-budget test, I’d start with micro influencers. A macro creator makes sense when their recent performance supports the larger investment. Here’s what we can compare.

In Tiger Finder’s sample, micro and macro creators had almost identical median engagement rates. Macro creators had about 11.7 times the median views per video.

I’d compare actual quotes and recent results from the creators on my shortlist before deciding what that extra exposure is worth.

In a macro influencer vs micro influencer comparison, neither tier guarantees conversions. Ask for evidence from comparable campaigns and agree how you'll measure your own results.

You can also give the tiers different jobs. A macro creator could introduce a launch, with micro creators showing specific product uses. That mix needs a budget and workload you can support.

Nano vs micro influencers

Choose nano creators if you’re still testing what works. Their typically lower fees can give you room to try different approaches. For our Pilates studio, I’d start with a creator whose viewers live nearby and show interest in attending classes. That’s a useful first test before paying to reach a wider audience.

Choose micro creators if you have a promising idea to expand. Look for someone whose relevant videos consistently reach more potential customers. This can make a higher fee worthwhile, especially if you’d otherwise need several smaller partnerships to reach your goal.

If one micro creator costs the same as four nano creators, compare recent video views and audience fit across both options. I’d choose the micro creator if they offered similar exposure with less coordination. I’d choose the nano group if testing several creative approaches was the priority.

How to choose the right tier for your campaign

Choose a tier by defining the campaign goal, then testing whether suitable creators fit your budget and the number of partnerships your team can manage. Let’s make that more concrete.

1. Define the result you want

Choose one primary result to judge the campaign by. If we want people to discover the brand, we need different evidence from a campaign focused on purchases.

For awareness, look at relevant video views and audience geography. For sales, ask about comparable campaign results and plan trackable links or creator codes. Agree on when you’ll review the results so everyone judges the same period.

2. Budget for the whole collaboration

Leave room for campaign costs beyond creator fees. A quote can fit the budget and still leave you short.

For example, you might want to promote a video after it goes live. TikTok’s Spark Ads let brands advertise through organic creator posts with authorization. You’ll need permission and a budget for the ad spend.

Let’s try a hypothetical $5,000 budget. I’m using assumed quotes and view counts below so we can walk through the calculation. These figures are illustrative.

The calculation is creator fees ÷ baseline views × 1,000. Both options produce the same fee-based figure under these assumptions. The micro option leaves room for other costs and requires more coordination.

3. Check how closely the content fits

Look for a believable place for your product in the creator’s existing videos. You should be able to picture the collaboration before sending a message.

With food containers, that could be someone packing lunches. A restaurant reviewer also makes food content, though the connection to your product needs more thought. Getting specific helps you explain the opportunity to the creator.

4. Match the program to your team's capacity

Choose a number of partnerships you can give proper attention to. Every extra creator adds coordination, even when the fee is small.

Think about who will review content and handle payments. If that’s you alongside the rest of your marketing work, allow time for delayed replies and revisions.

I’d start with a smaller group to understand the workload. You can expand once the process feels manageable.

Other ways to classify influencers

Follower tiers describe account size. Other influencer categories tell you about the creator’s subject or the kind of collaboration you could have.

• Niche describes a creator’s main subject. Within fitness, that could be running or strength training. If you’re promoting running shoes, I’d look for creators who already discuss running gear.
• UGC creators may produce paid videos for your brand to publish, with no post on their own accounts. In that case, focus on the content you need them to make. Our TikTok UGC guide explains this collaboration.
• A Gen Z creator’s audience can span several age groups. Check audience age data when targeting a particular generation. Our guide to working with Gen Z influencers goes into more detail.
• KOL (key opinion leader) and KOC (key opinion consumer) refer to where someone’s influence comes from. A KOL has expertise or standing in a field. A KOC shares a consumer perspective, often based on using a product.
• Celebrity influencers can be famous beyond social media and have a TikTok account of any size.

How to find influencers in each tier on TikTok

Start with Tiger Finder to find relevant TikTok creators across tiers faster. Describe the content you need, and its AI can analyze creators’ videos to find matching profiles in 15 seconds. 

If you’re still deciding what kind of creators would suit your product, use Search by website to get ideas. Paste a link to your website or a product page, and Tiger Finder suggests three editable creator searches based on your products and audience. You can adjust a suggestion to fit your campaign before running it.

For our food-container campaign, I’d search for: 

“Creators who show how they prepare and pack lunches for the working week.”

Set Followers to 10,000 to 99,999 for micro creators. To explore nano creators, change the range to 3,000 to 9,999 and keep the same search description.

Compare engagement and average views alongside the matching profiles to decide whom to shortlist. 

Use Audience location to focus on countries where you sell. Set a minimum country share to narrow the results before reviewing individual profiles. Tiger Finder estimates this share from commenters’ locations.

Save promising creators to a list, then review their recent videos before reaching out.

Turn your campaign idea into a shortlist of relevant TikTok creators. Try Tiger Finder for free to find matching profiles in seconds and filter them by follower count and audience location.