TikTok has launched digital gift cards on TikTok Shop in the United States, expanding its e-commerce focus during the peak holiday shopping period.
The feature allows users to buy digital gift cards valued between $10 and $500, giving recipients a simple way to shop from the app’s growing catalogue.
Cards are sent by email and can only be redeemed by users with a TikTok account. Once claimed, the value is added straight to the recipient’s TikTok balance, ready to spend.
TikTok Shop is working to prove it can move beyond impulse buys and creator-led sales into mainstream online retail. In adding gift cards, it is stepping directly into territory long dominated by Amazon and eBay, where gifting is a huge driver of repeat spending.
What stands out is how social the process is designed to be. Buyers can choose from animated designs built for birthdays, weddings, thank-you messages and other occasions. Recipients can reply with a note of thanks or send a gift card back. TikTok says this is only the start.
A spokesperson said future updates will enhance personalisation, including the option to attach recorded or uploaded video messages. The company also pointed to an “interactive unboxing that captures their reaction in real-time,” though details were not disclosed.
For now, the TikTok Shop digital gift cards are only available for purchase in the U.S., with no timeline announced for other markets.
The rollout follows a strong showing during the 2025 Black Friday and Cyber Monday period, when TikTok Shop recorded more than $500 million in U.S. sales over four days.
That figure represents almost 50% growth compared with the same period in 2024. Brands such as Disney and Samsung took part in the holiday push, a sign that TikTok Shop is attracting more established retailers, not just small merchants and influencers.
At the same time, the platform is widening its product mix. Alongside everyday goods, TikTok Shop has moved into luxury fashion and resale items, a clear attempt to increase average order values and appeal to older, wealthier shoppers.
Yet all of this growth sits under a cloud of uncertainty. TikTok’s U.S. operations are being restructured into a new entity, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, which will be majority owned by American investors including Oracle, Silver Lake and UAE-based MGX.
ByteDance is expected to retain roughly 20% ownership, while U.S. partners take control of data security and oversight of the algorithm.
The deal must close by January 22, 2026, to comply with U.S. law. If it fails, TikTok faces a nationwide ban, a scenario that would put TikTok Shop’s U.S. vision at risk just as they begin to gain traction.
