Explaining the Yellow Font Trend on TikTok: Meaning, Origins & More

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Plus, learn why some TikTok users are posting pink font

Co-authored by Bailey Cho

Last Updated: December 14, 2025 Fact Checked

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Yellow Font Trend Explained

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Origins

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Pink Font Trend

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More TikTok Trends

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Video

If you’ve been seeing TikTokers writing in a yellow font on their videos and wondering what the significance of the color choice is, you’re not alone. The yellow font theory is consuming everyone’s feed (and confusing them), but luckily, we’re here to break it down for you. In this article, we’ll explain everything you need to know about the yellow font trend, including what it means, where it comes from, and how to participate. Plus, we'll get into why some TikTok users are using a pink font in their videos!

An Overview of the Yellow Font Theory

The yellow font theory is about being emotionally vulnerable online. TikTok users post deep, personal details about their lives in yellow text, with the phrase “yellow font” or “yellow font theory” at the end. Alternatively, some use yellow font to confuse others and increase their post engagement.

Section 1 of 4:

Yellow Font TikTok Trend Explained

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The yellow font trend is all about being vulnerable in TikTok posts. In this viral trend, TikTok users upload videos sharing their deep, emotional, and personal thoughts. They overlay yellow text on their videos and add the phrase “yellow font” (or “yellow font theory”) at the end. The majority of these videos are set to Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross's song “(You Made It Feel Like) Home” from the soundtrack of the film Bones and All, along with an audio clip of the film's protagonist, Maren, saying, "Doesn't matter if I'm right or wrong about that, it just matters that I feel it."^{[1]
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- Why are people using a yellow font? There’s not a super deep meaning behind the trend, but some believe that using yellow as the font color signals vulnerability. That said, some people use a yellow font to confuse everyone and increase their post engagement.
- Examples of the yellow font trend: Check out this TikTok from @bubblegumqueef69, who writes, “how i sound when im trying to explain to someone how there being a bad friend but they don’t understand the principle of it yellow font.” Or, this TikTok from @shhhhisasecret.xox, who writes, “when i try explaining to someone that im not mad abt the act of the situation im mad about the principle of it because if the roles were reversed it would be the end of the world yellow font.”

Section 2 of 4:

Origins of the Yellow Font Trend

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The yellow font trend first emerged in November 2025. While the exact origins of the trend are unclear, the first TikTok videos using the phrase “yellow font theory” appear to be from late November 2025. The yellow font trend is still going strong in December 2025, with the hashtag #yellowfont having over 20,000 posts on TikTok.^{[2]
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- In the comments on this TikTok from @jetty._wetty, user @furlolo explains that the yellow font trend originates from Snapchat. Apparently, people used to post stories in yellow font to indicate that the story is public and the creator wants them to read the text.

Section 3 of 4:

Why are some TikTokers using a pink font?

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A pink font is used to show that something is relatable or about love. Like the yellow font trend, using a pink font means you’re about to talk about something love-adjacent or that others can relate to. The color pink symbolizes love, innocence, youth, and femininity, so it’s just another way Gen-Z is using font color to express themselves.^{[3]
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- Alternatively, some TikTokers simply use pink font because it looks pretty. This TikTok from @noirjournal7 argues that pink is an elite color compared to yellow.
- People are also using a rainbow font for chaotic or celebratory moments.https://www.ypulse.com/newsfeed/2025/12/09/gen-z-has-developed-a-color-coded-system-for-emotional-vulnerability-on-tiktok/

Section 4 of 4:

More TikTok Trends

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Here are more popular TikTok trends taking over the platform. New trends and challenges are constantly popping up on the app, and if you want to be in the know, check out our quick trend overview below:
- Potato Bed Trend: This viral sleep hack transforms your normal bedding into a cozy, potato-shaped cocoon.
- Lying Game Challenge: This TikTok trend involves couples trying to guess if their partner is lying about having a hidden object.
- “One Tooth” Challenge: This silly trend involves users pursing their lips together so it looks like they only have one front tooth. Celebrities, like Doja Cat, have increased the popularity of the challenge.
- “Come On Superman Say Your Stupid Line” Trend: In this trend, people are posting TikToks of themselves with the lyric “Come on Superman, say your stupid line” from “The Less I Know the Better” by Tame Impala.
- 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, Release 'Em Trend: “1, 2, 1, 2, 3, release 'em” comes from a TikTok of Neace Robinson performing her song “I Wished That Heaven Had a Phone” at a funeral balloon release. The moment went mega-viral, with users including the audio in their posts.