Best TikTok life hacks: Top 5 ft. ketchup shaking, pasta draining & more

Georgina Smith
Best TikTok life hacks

TikTok is home to some of the internet’s most viral life hacks, with some of the most simple tricks changing people’s daily routines entirely. Here’s our list of the top five TikTok hashtags.

Short-form video platform TikTok is continuing to gain more popularity every day, with new users constantly joining the app to see what the hype is all about.

With such a huge user base and the notorious For You Page algorithm, new videos and trends are going viral on the app constantly. Whether that’s dances, recipes, storytimes, or just about any other kind of content you can think of.

One thing that has found a home on the platform is life hacks. Life hacks are simple tricks you might never have thought of that can make your life a whole lot easier and can range from beauty tricks to cooking techniques and more. Here are some of our favorite TikTok life hacks.

TikTok loading screen on phone in grass
TikTok has become one of the most popular social media apps.

1. Using up all the ketchup in a bottle

We all know the struggles of trying to get the last of the ketchup out of a bottle. The banging. The shaking. It can be a stressful process.

But TikToker has found a solution to this, and it’s so much easier than you might think.

“If you want to get the whole bottle—” Rieger said, stepping back from the camera before swinging the bottle in a wide circular motion.

When she finished, all the ketchup had been pushed to the bottle’s opening due to the centripetal force. Evidently impressed, Rieger called the life hack “genius” and said, “How cool is that?”

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2. The “neck trick” for buying jeans

Shopping at stores in-person has some major benefits compared to perusing online retailers — namely, that customers can try on clothing before committing to buying it (and avoiding sending ill-fitting items back through the post). but TikTok has shared a genius hack to save you time in the store.

The trick is simple; simply pull the waistline of the jeans around your neck. If the ends of the waist just barely touch, then the jeans are supposedly a perfect fit. If there’s too much excess fabric, the pants may be too big, and if they don’t touch at all, they might be too small.

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3. Draining pasta

You might think the process of straining pasta is so simple that it wouldn’t need a hack, but some TikTok users were left shocked when they realized they may have unintentionally been making the process harder for themselves.

Several TikTok creators went viral for showing a more effective way to drain pasta, garnering hundreds of thousands of likes. Instead of just tipping your pasta straight into the strainer, try placing the strainer inside your pot and then tipping the whole pan carefully over the sink.

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This way you don’t have to worry about transferring your pasta back over again, and makes the whole process a lot more efficient. However, make sure your strainer and pot fit together securely before trying this hack, as it could be risky.

4. Cutting bell peppers

If there’s one thing TikTok is great for, it’s teaching people the most simple and effective way to prepare food, and it’s always these kinds of hacks that end up going insanely viral on the app.

This simple way of cutting a bell pepper demonstrated by user wellbymel was a huge hit on the app, as people demonstrated using a series of simple cuts and slices to prepare a bell pepper quickly and mess-free.

A yellow bell pepper being cut
People loved this simple way to prepare peppers.

Comments were filled with people marveling at the new method, some even going as far as to say they will “never cut peppers the same again.”

5. Cuffing pants

Many people have had the frustration of buying a new pair of pants only to find that they’re way too long. But if you still like them and don’t want to return them, this viral fashion hack means you’ll be able to easily adjust the length of the leg.

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As user yourbrobrandon demonstrates in his video with 1.5 million likes, a couple of simple folds and tucks make it easy to cuff your pants in a secure way that also looks sufficiently neat.


New life hacks are going viral on TikTok on a near-constant basis, as people continue to discover simple ways of making their lives easier.

About The Author

Georgina was formerly an entertainment writer for Dexerto. She covered all aspects of influencer culture on TikTok and more, including creators such as Charli D’Amelio and Addison Rae. She also wrote about hit reality shows such as Love Island and Below Deck.