TikTok Shop Fair Pricing Policy: What a 'Was $40, Now $25' Claim Has to Prove
TikTok Shop's Fair Pricing Policy treats a discount as two claims: that the higher price was real, and that the lower one is actually available. This guide maps the platform's 2026 pricing, strike-through, and creator content rules, the FTC's former-price standard at 16 CFR 233, the different consequences for listings and videos, and a pre-publish review you can document.
A $40 list price, a $25 sale price, and a “38% off” badge make an ordinary-looking TikTok Shop product page. It is also two separate factual claims: that the item was actually offered at $40, and that $25 is what a viewer can pay right now. TikTok Shop’s Fair Pricing Policy tests both. The FTC’s price-advertising guides test the first one on their own. When either test fails, the problem is rarely that the copy sounds too salesy. It is that one of the two numbers cannot be backed.
The platform side of this changed recently. Between July and September 2026, TikTok Shop’s US Seller University published or refreshed four documents that together decide whether a discount survives review: the Fair Pricing Policy (September 1, 2026), the Strike-through Pricing Policy (August 27, 2026), the Price and Discount Content Claims Guide (July 16, 2026), and Your Guide to Product Pricing (September 15, 2026). All four were opened for this review on 2026-10-27.
This guide separates the two jobs sellers and creators usually mix together: proving the reference price, and proving the price a viewer can actually get. It covers federal advertising standards and TikTok Shop’s US platform rules. It is not legal advice, and state pricing or consumer-protection statutes are outside its scope.
The short answer: a discount is two claims, not one
The first claim is comparative: the product used to cost more. The second is present-tense: this is the price you can pay. A “was” price can fail because the earlier price was never real, and a “now” price can fail because the viewer will not actually reach it at checkout — because of a coupon condition, a different SKU, shipping, tax, or a promotion that ended before the video did.
Most sellers fix the wrong half. They soften the wording (“up to,” “save big”) while leaving a reference price that was never charged or a price that does not match the link. TikTok Shop’s own guidance is explicit that the safest reference is the showcase price shown when the product is bound to the content, and that a specific price mentioned in a video should not be lower than that showcase price at the time of posting, unless a lower price is clearly supported by an active coupon, selected SKU, or promotion that viewers can reasonably obtain — and the conditions are explained.
What the Fair Pricing Policy prohibits at the listing level
On TikTok Shop, the price displayed to shoppers is the lowest price among all variations (SKUs) in the listing, and the shipping fee is treated as part of the customer’s overall cost. That one design decision creates most listing-level price violations, because a cheap SKU drags the displayed price below what the main image is selling.
The table below uses the examples TikTok Shop’s own pricing pages give. Each one is a way the displayed price stops representing the product being sold.
| Practice | Example TikTok Shop gives | Why the displayed price misleads |
|---|---|---|
| Wide SKU price spread | A $19.99 t-shirt and a $39.99 sweatshirt in one listing | The lowest SKU becomes the price shown for a different product type |
| Broken bundle | Main image shows a toothbrush and toothpaste bundle; a SKU sells toothpaste only | Shoppers see the bundle price but can only buy part of it at that price |
| Cross-category SKU | A crewneck priced at $39.99 with a cheaper t-shirt SKU at $24.99 | The card implies the crewneck is $24.99 |
| Non-shoppable or placeholder SKU | A size listed as “ERROR” at $27.90, or SKUs marked “Do Not Buy” or “Test” | An unbuyable variant is used to hold the displayed price down |
| Accessory-only SKU | A lid-only SKU in a listing whose image shows the full tumbler | The accessory price stands in for the whole product |
| Smaller pack or unit | A 20-pack in the main image, with a 1-piece SKU in the listing | The displayed unit price describes a different quantity |
| Inflated original price | A list price raised shortly before a steep seller-funded discount | The “discount” is measured against a price that was not a genuine selling price |
| Frequent price changes | Repeated changes in a short period that prevent a stable, established price | There is no dependable reference price to compare against |
The policy also names abnormally low pricing (for example, a $100 item listed at $10), abnormally high pricing used to park a listing (such as $9,999), and price gouging during emergencies or periods of high demand. TikTok Shop says it prohibits price gouging and notes that it is prohibited by law in many jurisdictions; whether a specific state statute applies is a separate question this guide does not cover.
Shipping is not a side issue. The Fair Pricing Policy gives a $4.99 t-shirt with a $19.99 shipping fee as an example of an excessive fee, and it separately prohibits “free” shipping paired with an inflated item price. Shipping templates that exceed the platform’s limits cannot be saved. If an existing fee is judged excessive, the seller receives a 7-day warning; if nothing changes, products linked to the affected warehouse may be deactivated, with an appeal through a Help Center ticket.
Why a “was” price needs a real “was”
Federal law reaches the reference price from a different direction. The FTC’s Guides Against Deceptive Pricing, at 16 CFR Part 233, explain how the agency applies Section 5 of the FTC Act to price advertising. The core test for an advertiser’s own former price is in § 233.1(a): the former price must be the actual, bona fide price at which the article was offered to the public on a regular basis for a reasonably substantial period of time.
That section also supplies the classic failure mode. If the former price is fictitious — an artificial, inflated price set up to enable a large claimed reduction — the “bargain” is false, and the “reduced” price is probably just the seller’s regular price. Raising a list price, waiting a short time, and then “discounting” back to the normal price is the exact pattern the Guides describe.
Two details are easy to miss:
- No sales at the old price does not automatically make it fictitious. Under § 233.1(b), the advertiser must still be able to show the price was openly and actively offered for a reasonably substantial period, in the recent, regular course of business, honestly and in good faith — and not created to establish a comparison.
- A trivial reduction is its own problem. Section 233.1(e) uses “Reduced to $9.99” from a former price of $10 as an example of wording that misleads, because shoppers read the claim as a meaningful saving.
Suggested retail prices get their own treatment. Section 233.3 says advertising a reduction from a manufacturer’s list or suggested retail price can mislead when that price does not correspond to the price at which a substantial number of sales are actually made in the advertiser’s trade area. A list price that only a few outlets honor is not a safe reference.
What the Guides do not do is give a day count. There is no official “30 days” or “90 days” rule in Part 233. The test is qualitative — regular basis, reasonably substantial period, recent, openly offered, good faith — which means the evidence you keep is what matters if the claim is questioned.
Strike-through prices are verified against data, not asserted
The crossed-out price on TikTok Shop is not a seller-set graphic. According to the Strike-through Pricing Policy, TikTok may use Retail Price, List Price, or other sources as references, and discounts are primarily calculated from validated prices, verified using TikTok Shop’s pricing data or prices offered by other retailers, to prevent inflated discount claims. Strike-through pricing is not guaranteed and may be removed when the reference does not align with the product’s historical selling price.
List Price, which the policy describes as the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, is in beta for selected sellers. If TikTok cannot verify a submitted List Price, it will not be used; if no List Price is provided, TikTok validates only the Retail Price. For a newly listed product with no sales history, strike-through pricing may not appear at all until sales align with the retail or list price. In other words, the visible discount is a platform output, not a claim the seller can force into existence — and the way to earn it is to price the product honestly over time.
What the rules say about the price you say on camera
Creator content is judged on the same two claims, with an added timing problem: a video outlives the promotion. TikTok Shop’s Price and Discount Content Claims Guide (July 16, 2026) splits the risk into four areas: misleading price, expired price, misleading discount, and exaggerated price. Violations “may lead to content removal or reduced distribution.”
The guide also gives safer phrasings for the same idea. The table below paraphrases its examples.
| Situation | Avoid | Safer approach |
|---|---|---|
| A specific price that depends on a coupon or SKU | “Everyone can get this for $9.99.” | “Final price may vary by coupon, SKU, shipping, and checkout.” |
| A discount that only applies to some variants | “50% off everything.” | “Discount may apply to selected SKUs only.” |
| Free shipping with location or order-value conditions | “Free shipping for everyone.” | “Free shipping may depend on location, order value, or eligibility.” |
| Strong language with no visible price reduction | “Massive discount!” or “Triple discount!” | “There may be a promotion available. Check the product page.” |
| A benefit that is not a price cut | Calling free shipping, a gift, or a giveaway a “discount” | Describe the benefit as what it is, and only call it a discount when there is a real price reduction |
| A time-limited offer | “Today only” left up after the offer ends | State the window, then update, remove, or unlink the content when it closes |
The guide also warns against making the entire video a recording of a shopping page or checkout screen, and against promoting a price during a preheat or preview stage before the offer is live. The product pricing guide adds the concrete mismatch examples: a video showing “$2” when the lowest price available to all viewers was $7.90, a video saying “16–40” when the real lowest price was $19.99, and a LIVE showing $2.95 when checkout came to $13.99 or more.
One problem, four different consequences
Sellers often assume every price issue is an account-health event. The platform’s documents describe different outcomes depending on where the failure sits.
| Where the failure is | What TikTok Shop’s guidance says can happen |
|---|---|
| Listing pricing that violates the Fair Pricing Policy | Account Health Rating points, listing removal, revocation of access to sell, and refunds to customers |
| Misleading SKU or price disparity found on review | Product deactivation or other account-level action |
| A price in a video or LIVE that is lower than checkout | Content removal or reduced distribution |
| An expired offer left in an old video | The product anchor may be removed; the guide describes this as a content-cleanup measure and not a direct penalty |
| An excessive shipping fee | A 7-day warning, then deactivation of products tied to the affected warehouse if unchanged |
The distinction between an expired price and a false one is the one worth keeping straight. TikTok Shop says that when an offer simply ends, creators who follow the recommended cleanup steps generally should not expect additional impact on account health. A reference price that was never genuine is a different problem: it can fail the federal standard at the same time, and it is not cured by unlinking the video. For how platform penalties accumulate, see the TikTok Shop violation points guide.
A pre-publish review for sellers and creators
A price review is mostly a documentation exercise. Run it before the listing or video goes live, not after a violation notice.
- Choose the price of record. Note the showcase price at the moment you publish and the total a new US buyer actually sees at checkout, including shipping and tax where shown. These two numbers are what every other claim has to match.
- Test the reference price. Write down when the higher price was offered, for how long, and whether it was openly available. If the answer is “two days last week,” do not use it as a “was” price.
- Audit every SKU against the main image. Check product type, size, pack count, and whether the image shows an accessory or a bundle. Split listings that mix materially different products.
- Delete SKUs you do not intend to sell. That includes placeholder, “Do Not Buy,” “Test,” and “contact us first” SKUs, which the pricing guide specifically prohibits.
- Put conditions in the sentence. If a coupon, variant, shipping threshold, or eligibility rule changes the price, say so where the price is stated, not in a footnote or a pinned comment.
- Give every time-sensitive claim an expiry and an owner. “Ends tonight” needs someone who will take it down tomorrow, or the anchor may be pulled later.
- Reconcile the script with the live link. Film against the current product page, not a screenshot taken during preheat, and re-check the number after any price change.
- Check shipping as part of the price. A low item price with an outsized shipping fee is a pricing violation, not a clever workaround.
Worked examples (hypothetical)
These are illustrative rewrites, not approvals for any product or promotion.
Example 1 — the seller who invented a list price. A seller lists a $25 item with a $40 list price and a $25 sale price. The item sold at $25 for the past year, and $40 was entered two days ago. What fails: the former price is not a bona fide price offered on a regular basis for a reasonably substantial period (16 CFR 233.1(a)), and the platform documents name artificially inflating the original price to exaggerate a discount. Strike-through pricing may also be removed when the reference does not align with the historical selling price. Safer version: sell at $25 with no reference price, or run a genuine reduction from a price that was actually charged, with the dates documented.
Example 2 — the creator quoting a coupon-only price. A video says “only $9.99” while the linked product is $12.99. The $9.99 appears only for new accounts with a first-order coupon. What fails: the specific price is lower than the showcase price and depends on user eligibility that most viewers do not meet. Safer version: “The link price is $12.99, and new accounts may see a first-order coupon at checkout.” That sentence names the price and the condition in the same breath.
Example 3 — the bundle that is not a bundle. The main image shows a 20-piece set; the listing includes a single-piece SKU at roughly a twentieth of the set price, so the card displays the single-piece number. What fails: the displayed price misrepresents the quantity in the image, which is one of the prohibited SKU patterns. Safer version: list the single unit separately, with its own image and its own price.
What a claims checker can and cannot do
A text review can catch the language that tends to precede a price violation: “lowest price,” “cheapest,” “massive discount,” “today only,” “everyone gets,” and unconditional price statements that ignore coupon, SKU, or eligibility conditions. It can also flag the same problem across a listing, an ad, and a spoken script, which is where price claims usually diverge.
It cannot verify that a former price was bona fide, that a coupon is live, what a viewer will pay at checkout, whether an offer is available to everyone, or whether the reference price belongs to the product being sold. Those require your own pricing records, a live checkout test, and the platform’s verification. TikTok makes the enforcement decision, and the FTC or a court makes the legal one.
To review the wording before it goes live, run the copy through the TikTok Shop Claim Checker, and check a LIVE or video script with the TikTok LIVE Script Checker. For claim types outside pricing — health, medical, and wellness language in the same video — see how to review TikTok Shop health claims in video and LIVE, or read the broader TikTok Shop compliance check workflow.
Frequently asked questions
Is a “was and now” price illegal in the US?
Not by itself. It becomes deceptive when the former price is not bona fide — for example, an inflated price created to support a claimed reduction (16 CFR 233.1(a)). The platform rule is separate and stricter in places: TikTok Shop can remove a reference price or a listing even where no regulator has acted.
How long does an old price have to have been live?
Part 233 does not set a fixed number of days. It asks whether the price was offered openly and actively, for a reasonably substantial period, in the recent, regular course of business, honestly and in good faith, and not for the purpose of creating a fictitious comparison (§ 233.1(b)). Keep dated records of the price you actually charged rather than trying to hit an unofficial threshold.
If a promotion ends, do I have to delete every video that mentioned it?
TikTok Shop tells creators to update, remove, unlink, or stop promoting outdated prices where possible. It says the platform may also remove the product anchor, and describes that as a content-cleanup measure rather than a direct penalty. The obligation gets harder if the price was never genuine in the first place — that is not a normal expiry.
Can I say “lowest price” or “cheapest” if I checked competitors?
TikTok Shop tells creators to avoid those terms unless they are clearly accurate and supported, and suggests describing value instead. A comparative claim also has to be substantiated, and the comparison has to be to a price at which the same or comparable merchandise is actually sold — that is the logic of §§ 233.2 and 233.3.
Does free shipping count as a discount?
Not on its own. TikTok Shop says not to describe non-price benefits such as free shipping, free returns, gifts, or giveaways as a product discount unless there is also a real product price reduction. Separately, free shipping offered alongside an inflated item price is prohibited.
Do these rules apply to LIVE selling, or only listings?
Both. TikTok Shop’s product pricing guide states that the guidance applies to sellers and creators who set or display prices in listings, videos, or livestreams, and its content guide includes LIVE examples such as a $2.95 price on camera against a $13.99 checkout.
Sources
- TikTok Shop US Seller University, Fair Pricing Policy, page dated 09/01/2026, reviewed 2026-10-27. seller-us.tiktok.com
- TikTok Shop US Seller University, Strike-through Pricing Policy, page dated 08/27/2026, reviewed 2026-10-27. seller-us.tiktok.com
- TikTok Shop US Seller University, Price and Discount Content Claims Guide, page dated 07/16/2026, reviewed 2026-10-27. seller-us.tiktok.com
- TikTok Shop US Seller University, Your Guide to Product Pricing, page dated 09/15/2026, reviewed 2026-10-27. seller-us.tiktok.com
- Electronic Code of Federal Regulations, 16 CFR Part 233, Guides Against Deceptive Pricing (§§ 233.1–233.5), current as of the October 1, 2026 edition, reviewed 2026-10-27. ecfr.gov
This article explains published platform rules and federal advertising guidance for general information. It is not legal advice, and TikTok Shop, the FTC, or a court makes the final decision.
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