As TikTok progressively enhances its search capabilities, the platform is now displaying reviews for specific locations directly within the comments section of a video. This nascent feature, which appears to be undergoing trials, obviates the necessity of initiating a fresh search or accessing Google when encountering a place on TikTok about which one desires further details.

TikTok users with access to this new feature will find a new "Reviews" tab on the right when they navigate to the video's comments section.

For example, encountering a video of Central Park in New York City with a location tag would enable you to view users' star ratings, written reviews, and uploaded photographs for that specific site.

Clicking a reviewer's username in this section allows access to their TikTok profile, a distinction from a previous Google Maps feature identifiable by its specific icon.

While the new feature could be a beneficial enhancement for certain users, others might perceive it as cluttering the user experience when accessing content.

This strategic manoeuvre is the latest indication of TikTok's intent to broaden its search capabilities in direct competition with Google.

In 2022, a Google executive posited that TikTok was encroaching upon its foundational services, Search and Maps, especially among younger demographics. Presently, TikTok has mounted a significant challenge to Google's preeminence across various domains.

Furthermore, building on its popularity for location discovery amongst Gen Z, TikTok introduced image search functionalities last year enabling users to capture or upload a photograph to locate comparable items within TikTok Shop.

Commencing in September 2024, TikTok additionally enabled advertisers to specifically target its search results page via "TikTok Search Ads Campaigns," a keyword-centric search solution devised to exhibit brands' advertisements within search outcomes.

Whether TikTok intends to implement its reviews tab more widely remains uncertain, particularly as the company refrained from offering a statement prior to publication. Nevertheless, our testing at TechCrunch revealed that merely a subset of location-tagged videos displayed this feature.