10 TikTok KPIs You Should Be Tracking in 2026

If you are running TikTok Shop seriously in 2026, you already know the painful part: it is very easy to get busy and still not know what is working.

You post more. You go live more. You add affiliates. You launch more products. Views look fine, but revenue is unpredictable and you can’t tell whether the problem is the content, the offer, or the funnel.

The fix is not “track more metrics.” The fix is tracking the right 10 KPIs, in the right order, so you can answer three questions every week:

Did we stop the scroll?
Did we create shopping intent?
Did we turn that intent into orders and GMV we can repeat?

That’s what this post is. It’s built for TikTok Shop operators first, with paid media callouts where they matter.

One quick note before the list

TikTok’s definitions matter because they change how you interpret performance. For example, TikTok defines 2-second video views and 6-second video views with specific counting rules (impression session, replay handling, engagement within the first 6 seconds). TikTok For Business

If your reporting is messy, it’s often because the team is comparing metrics that are not measured the same way across tools.

Keep that in mind and you’ll avoid a lot of false “something broke” panic.

KPI 1: 2-second video views

Think of this as your hook truth serum.

TikTok defines 2-second video views as the number of times your video starts playing for at least 2 seconds in an impression session, with replays excluded. 

If this is weak, you do not have a scaling problem. You have a first-second problem.

When 2-second views drop, it is usually one of these:

• the opening shot is unclear

• the promise is too slow

• the video starts with context instead of payoff

On TikTok Shop, your hook has to do two jobs fast: earn attention and establish what is being sold.

KPI 2: 6-second video views

Two seconds tells you whether you stopped the scroll. Six seconds tells you whether the idea landed.

TikTok defines 6-second video views as the number of times your video plays for at least 6 seconds (or is played in full if shorter), or receives at least one engagement within the first 6 seconds.  

If your 2-second views are fine but 6-second views are not, the usual culprit is pacing. The hook works, then the video stalls.

For TikTok Shop content, the fix is often simple: show the product doing the thing earlier than you think you need to.

KPI 3: Average play time per video view

This is the quality of attention, not just the quantity.

TikTok defines average play time per video view as the average time your video was played per single video view, including replay time.  

If average play time is falling across multiple posts, you’re probably repeating the same structure too often, or your videos have too much filler between beats.

A good mental model is: every two seconds should earn the next two seconds. If it does not, people leave.

KPI 4: Completion rate

Completion rate is an underrated KPI for TikTok Shop because it’s where the content promise either cashes out or falls apart.

If completion is low, you usually have one of these issues:

• the video is too long for the idea

• the payoff is too late

• the middle is repetitive
  
  

If completion is high but orders are not moving, your story is entertaining, but it is not persuasive. That is usually an offer, trust, or CTA problem, not a content problem.

KPI 5: Click-through rate to product

On TikTok Shop, clicks are the first hard signal of shopping intent.

TikTok Shop’s Product Analytics training defines click-through rate as clicks divided by views, multiplied by 100.  

If your retention KPIs are strong but CTR is weak, your content is probably doing one of two things:

• it feels like “content,” not commerce

• it does not make the product feel inevitable

A small shift that often helps is moving from “here’s a product” to “here’s a problem, here’s the product solving it, here’s the proof.”

KPI 6: Click-to-Order Rate

CTR tells you “did they care enough to click?” CTOR tells you “did the click actually lead to a purchase?”

TikTok Shop Seller University defines Click to Order Rate (CTOR) as the percentage of viewers who proceed to purchase after clicking, and frames it as a funnel effectiveness indicator. 

If your CTR is healthy but CTOR is weak, your bottleneck is usually one of these:

• product page clarity (images, title, variant naming)

• price anchoring (no reason to buy now)

• shipping expectations or trust signals

• weak proof (reviews, UGC, demos)
  
  

In other words, the content did its job. The shop page did not.

KPI 7: View-to-Order Conversion Rate

If CTOR is “click to purchase,” conversion rate here is “view to purchase.”

TikTok Shop Product Analytics defines conversion rate as the percentage of individual viewers who placed an order after seeing the product, calculated as orders divided by unique viewers, multiplied by 100. TikTok Seller

This KPI is especially useful when you’re doing a lot of top-of-funnel content, lives, or affiliate volume, because it tells you whether the entire system is converting, not just the people who clicked.

When view-to-order conversion drops, it’s often a mix problem:

• too much low-intent reach

• too many products pushed at once

• content that wins views but does not create buyer confidence
  
  

KPI 8: GMV

GMV is the scoreboard for TikTok Shop.

TikTok Shop defines GMV (Gross Merchandise Value) as the total value of products sold, and notes it does not include returns, shipping costs, or platform fees. TikTok Global Shop

Also, TikTok Shop’s Shop Tab analytics training calls out GMV as a core metric alongside orders, units sold, and conversion rate. TikTok Seller

Here’s how operators should treat GMV:

• GMV is the outcome.

• The earlier KPIs tell you what is driving the outcome, or what is blocking it.

If GMV is flat but retention is strong, you likely have a mid-to-lower funnel problem (CTR, CTOR, conversion rate, offer, product mix).

KPI 9: Direct GMV

GMV tells you overall performance. Direct GMV helps you diagnose content performance.

TikTok Shop’s metric definitions explain that GMV reflects overall performance and commission attribution, while Direct GMV is used for content diagnosis, evaluating content’s ability to drive transactions. TikTok Seller

If you work with affiliates or have multiple attribution influences, Direct GMV can help you answer, “Did this content actually sell, or did it just show up near the sale?”

In practice, I like to use Direct GMV as the creative truth metric for content teams, and GMV as the business metric for leadership.

KPI 10: Cost per order (and why attribution settings can change your story)

If you run paid support for Shop content, you need a cost KPI that stays honest.

TikTok Ads Manager defines cost and efficiency metrics like cost, cost per conversion, and CPC (destination) in its basic metrics documentation. TikTok For Business

For TikTok Shop ads specifically, TikTok’s Ads help content explains that attribution windows determine how orders are credited after a click or view. TikTok For Business+1

This is where teams accidentally confuse themselves: they change attribution windows or reporting settings, then compare “before” and “after” as if nothing changed.

TikTok Ads Manager’s attribution overview defines an attribution window as the period where eligible conversions can be claimed, and notes each conversion is attributed to only one touchpoint type (click, view, or engaged view). TikTok For Business

So if cost per order “spikes” overnight, check attribution settings before you rewrite your strategy.

How to use these 10 KPIs without turning reporting into a second job

The easiest way to make this operational is to review them in three layers.

First, look at attention (2-second views, 6-second views, average play time, completion). If those are weak, do not blame the shop funnel yet.

Then look at shopping intent (CTR, CTOR, conversion rate). This is where TikTok Shop businesses usually win or lose because it tells you whether people want the product enough to take action.

Finally, look at outcomes (GMV, Direct GMV, cost per order). That is where you decide whether to scale, pause, or change the offer.

If your weekly report does not help you make a decision, it is not a report. It is decoration.

FAQs

What are TikTok KPIs?

TikTok KPIs are the metrics you track to understand whether your content and ads are creating attention, intent, and business outcomes. On TikTok Shop, that means going beyond views into CTR, CTOR, conversion rate, GMV, and Direct GMV.  

What is the most important KPI for TikTok Shop?

If you’re choosing one, pick GMV as the outcome metric, but pair it with conversion rate or CTOR so you can diagnose what is driving it. TikTok Shop documentation treats GMV and conversion rate as core performance metrics in Shop analytics.  

Where do I find TikTok Shop KPIs?

Most are in TikTok Shop Seller Center analytics and Product Analytics training resources. TikTok Shop’s university content provides definitions and guidance for CTR, conversion rate, and Shop analytics metrics.

If you are running TikTok Shop seriously in 2026, you already know the painful part: it is very easy to get busy and still not know what is working.

You post more. You go live more. You add affiliates. You launch more products. Views look fine, but revenue is unpredictable and you can’t tell whether the problem is the content, the offer, or the funnel.

The fix is not “track more metrics.” The fix is tracking the right 10 KPIs, in the right order, so you can answer three questions every week:

Did we stop the scroll?
Did we create shopping intent?
Did we turn that intent into orders and GMV we can repeat?

That’s what this post is. It’s built for TikTok Shop operators first, with paid media callouts where they matter.