We’ve named 2022’s ten most influential Scots on TikTok, from wild swimmers to Love Island and everything in between.

We looked at Scottish TikTok influencers with more than 25,000 followers and ranked them according to how often other users interacted with their content, rather than the number of followers alone. The top ten most influential users of the social media platform range from comedians to make-up artists, with a Gaelic language activist and cold water swimmer taking the top spot.

Calum Maclean (‘caldamac’, pictured above) leads the table with an engagement rate of more than 56% amongst his 257,500 followers, meaning his posts are liked and shared more often by those who see it than any of his fellow Scots on TikTok.

Three comedians also make it into the final list. Former Love Island winner Paige Turley (paige_turley) is second with an engagement rate of 29% amongst her 420 000 followers. Scots singer Lewis Capaldi (@lewiscapaldi) comes sixth with an engagement rate of 7% amongst his 4.7m followers.

Jennifer Robertson, our founder, said:

“It’s a diverse list that makes the top ten of our Upfluence list of the most influential Scots on TikTok. What’s really interesting is that these results demonstrate the impact of posting about issues that really matter to you personally. Our top influencer, Calum Maclean, has led renewed interest in the Gaelic language amongst young Scots in particular, which just goes to show the passion we have for our Gaelic heritage. His posts about our breathtaking landscape and waters have also performed really well – in particular, his post where he filmed in the depths of Loch Ness went viral and helped him reach an audience of over four million. Ultimately, the results show the power of innovative content and how quality can trump celebrity.”

SPEY worked with influencer marketing platform Upfluence to gather the results.

Vivien Garnès, Co-Founder and Co-CEO of Upfluence at Upfluence, said:

“TikTok creators are becoming a key driver of online engagement and we can expect this trend to grow in 2023. It’s exciting to see Upfluence data used to power performance analysis and industry insight. SPEY’s Scottish influencer shortlist shows the huge value that TikTok creators offer to brands. TikTok’s algorithm allows top-performers like Calum Maclean to distribute content outside of his following, achieving an engagement rate of over 56%.”

The top 10 are:

1. Calum Maclean @caldamac – Gaelic language activist

2. Paige Turley @paige_turley – former Love Island winner

3. Lewis Buchan @lewisbuchan – Comedian/content creator

4. Jamie Genevieve @jamiegenevieve – Make-up artist and entrepreneur

5. Paul Black @paulbiack – Comedian

6. Lewis Capaldi @lewiscapaldi – Singer

7. Millie @Whatsername1.0 – Content Creator/Cosplayer

8. Eddie Walker @eddiefadewalker – Trans activist

9. Yasser Inayat @the.silent.shopkeeper – Comedian/newsagent

10. Emma Cassidy @emmacassidy.x – Content creator