TikTok closes in the US, where do users go?

Xiaohongshu started out as a shopping-focused platform. Over time, the app evolved into a social network popular with young users, focusing on travel and lifestyle content. Photo: Shutterstock .

Before the US Supreme Court decided to ban TikTok this weekend, thousands of users migrated away from the platform and turned to Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), another Chinese social media app.

Known as “Little Red Book,” Xiaohongshu quickly rose to the top of the Apple App Store charts in the US, despite the language barrier and lack of an official English-speaking version.

“Rather use Xiaohongshu than Mark Zuckerberg's social network”

In just a few days, Xiaohongshu has attracted thousands of new users, many of whom are self-described “TikTok refugees.” The app, which has been dubbed the “Chinese version of Instagram,” has more than 300 million active users, mostly in China.

The app’s primary language is Chinese, but that hasn’t stopped a wave of American users from migrating, using translation tools to discover and rebuild the communities they once had on TikTok.

Americans "landed" in Xiaohongshu. Photo: The Verge.

“I’d rather see a language I don’t understand than use a platform owned by Mark Zuckerberg,” one user shared in a video posted on January 12 on Xiaohongshu. Similar shares quickly attracted thousands of likes and comments from both the Chinese community and new users.

The Supreme Court’s ruling on the TikTok ban takes effect on January 19. TikTok will be forced to sell its US operations to a US company or be removed from app stores here. In that case, users will still be able to keep TikTok on their devices, but will not be able to download or update the app.

Some users are gradually turning to platforms like Instagram or YouTube. But many are deliberately choosing Chinese apps like Xiaohongshu to protest what they see as unfair policies.

As a longtime TikTok user, UserMag writer Taylor Lorenz called Xiaohongshu “the hottest social media app in America right now.” She shared a link to her account on the Bluesky platform.

The appeal of Xiaohongshu - “Chinese version of Instagram”

According to Wired , the Xiaohongshu community in China seems to be quite welcoming to the appearance of “people from TikTok.” A video posted by American user Ryan Martin attracted more than 24,000 likes when he greeted the Chinese community on Xiaohongshu in a robotic voice.

Xiaohongshu login interface.

“Hi everyone, my name is Ryan. I am from TikTok. The US government is banning TikTok, so we are looking for an alternative,” the video reads. Comments below the video reply: “It’s okay, you guys are not disturbing anything. When you are active, we are sleeping.”

Sarah Fotheringham, a TikTok user from Utah, also said that the experience on Xiaohongshu was "surprisingly interesting," even though she had to rely on Google Translate. For Sarah, it was her first time seeing "the other side of the Chinese wall."

In addition to video, live audio chat rooms on Xiaohongshu are also very active. American and Chinese users discuss culture, society, and misunderstandings between the two countries. One popular chat room attracted nearly 30,000 listeners.

Founded in 2013 in Shanghai, Xiaohongshu started out as a shopping information sharing platform. But it quickly expanded into a social network with more than 300 million monthly users and a revenue of more than $1 billion by 2024.

The app is very different from TikTok because it focuses on photos and posts rather than short videos. Xiaohongshu’s “masonry grid” interface has inspired other social media platforms such as Lemon8, an app by ByteDance.

Analysis of Xiaohongshu's masonry grid interface. Unlike TikTok, Xiaohongshu focuses mainly on photo and text posts, accompanied by a few short videos. Photo: Christie Tang.

What makes Xiaohongshu special is that it is also a useful tool for overseas Chinese communities, tourists, and people interested in Chinese culture. The app is highly regarded for providing trustworthy user reviews on everything from restaurants to beauty products.

However, amid political tensions between the US and China, Xiaohongshu could also be targeted by the Protecting Americans from Apps Controlled by Foreign Adversaries Act. While the app is not specifically mentioned in the law, the general terms of the law allow it to apply to any platform controlled by companies from “foreign adversaries.”

In other words, there's no guarantee that Xiaohongshu won't follow TikTok's lead and be blocked by the US government, Wired noted.