About

GIFTok refers to a genre of TikTok video memes which loop a GIF with an added caption and audio, which is usually an underground rap song. Usually, a fade-to-white transition is used each time the GIF is repeated, and the GIF's speed is adjusted each loop, for comedic effect. The trend can be viewed as TikTok's version of GIF Captions. The format was popularized in July 2024, following the Emo Kid Clutching It meme, which many identify as GIFTok's origin. GIFTok memes continued heading into 2025, spawning variant trends like JuggTok, SlimeTok and Female GIFTok, which was its female counterpart.

Origin

Although it is unclear who initially created the GIFTok trend, many TikTokers^[6] have credited the Emo Kid Clutching It meme as the aesthetic's origin. The meme uses a clip from the 2011 Polish film Suicide Room, in which the protagonist, an emo kid named Dominik Santorski, walks away from school and grimaces while clutching a gun in his hoodie pocket.

The clip was first used in a meme by TikToker^[7] @chainswhaa on July 22nd, 2024. The video used the song "hansen" by wokeups^[9] as its TikTok sound.^[10]

On July 23rd, TikToker^[8] @fw_bca used the same TikTok sound and the Emo Kid Clutching It clip. The video looped the GIF and adjusted its speed each time. Each loop was separated by a fade-to-white transition. The caption read, "Stand up, say your name, and also 3 interesting things about you," as if from a teacher on the first day of school. The video received over 209,400 likes in 11 months (shown below). The video's editing style laid the groundwork for the GIFTok aesthetic.

Similar Emo Kid Clutching It memes, with the same looping and fade-to-white transitions, surfaced on TikTok^[11] in late July 2024.

In early August 2024, TikTokers applied the GIFTok format to other clips, like on August 17th, TikToker^[1] @thenontruth posted the original Leland Dancing meme, which used the song "Let Me Know" by Tamar Braxton and Future as its sound. The video gained over 399,200 likes in 10 months (shown below).

Despite these early iterations of the aesthetic, the name "GIFTok" for the genre didn't surface until late August 2024. Currently, TikToker^[2] @kardockforpresident shared the earliest use of the hashtag #giftok in the context of the trend. The video used the Oscar Proud Running meme with the text, "Yo let's skip class." Over 10 months, the video amassed more than 711,800 likes (shown below).

Spread

GIFTok content grew exponentially on TikTok in early September 2024, sparking more than 7,500 videos under the "#giftok" hashtag^[3] by September 4th, 2024.

For example, a series of GIFTok memes using clips from the Nickelodeon show Henry Danger surfaced, like a video shared by TikToker^[2] @youtrynabefunny4 on September 12th, which gained over 107,500 likes (shown below).

At the same time, people posted memes that raved about GIFTok. For instance, on September 1st, 2024, TikToker^[12] @levitatedd posted a photo slideshow which highly ranked "August 2024 GIFTok," gaining over 159,000 likes in nine months (shown below).

On September 30th, 2024, TikToker^[5] @shelovesjake_ posted a video, ranking all of the best GIFTok audios, gaining over 180,500 likes in nine months (shown below).

GIFTok retained relevance in 2025, evident in a video shared by TikToker^[13] @sodasipper16 on March 2nd, 2025, showing a GIF of Druski laughing with the caption, "How prime GIFTok had us laughing," receiving over 33,800 likes in three months (shown below).

On May 18th, TikToker^[14] @juggedgranny posted a similar video, showing Tom Holland laughing at his phone with the caption, "How we was every scroll in prime GIFTok," gaining over 271,300 likes in a month (shown below).

By June 10th, 2025, the #giftok tag on TikTok^[3] had amassed over 72,200 posts. Also, female versions of GIFTok were surfacing on TikTok.^[4]

Female GIFTok

Female GIFTok, also known as Girl GIFTok or GIFTok Girls, refers to the female counterpart of GIFTok, which used GIFs of women and captions with jokes that catered to women. The trend started in June 2025.

Various Examples

Search Interest

External References