What does “POV” mean online and how is it used?

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POV stands for “point of view” and is commonly used to tell the viewer of an online video that it contains a story or experience from a certain perspective. That can be the perspective of the video creator or someone else’s point of view entirely.

Have you ever wondered what POV means in a video title or hashtag? This descriptive tag is commonly seen on some of the most popular video apps and websites, but its use can sometimes be confusing.

Point of view

POV is an acronym that stands for “point of view.” It is mainly used to highlight that a video shows or explains something from the creator’s perspective, literally or figuratively. You’ll often see it added to video titles on sites like YouTube, but it can also be used in memes or as a hashtag.

Its use as a hashtag is most common on TikTok and other social media apps. But unlike other popular acronyms like IDK or BRB, POV is rarely used during private online chats or SMS text conversations.

POV can also occasionally be used to mean “in my opinion”. An example would be a social media post or status like “We are overfishing the ocean #POV.”

The history of point of view

The term “Point of View” has been used to describe different perspectives in film, art, and literature for tens, perhaps hundreds, of years. Its use on video sharing and social networking sites is obviously much more recent.

Point of view shot of a mountain view from inside a tent.
Davide Angelini/Shutterstock.com

POV has probably been used to tag certain types of online video for as long as online video has been around. Originally it was used only for videos or images that seemed to show what the photographer was seeing with their own eyes. It then evolved, quite recently, to also include mental as well as visual points of view.

More recently still, in the past few years, POV has become a very popular hashtag on TikTok, where its usage has evolved once again.

What does POV mean on TikTok?

Using POV on TikTok can be a bit confusing. It is sometimes used in videos that share an experience from the creator’s perspective, such as a personal story about themselves. But more often than not, a #pov video will be a humorous look at a subject from someone else’s perspective, like that of a dog, a mom, or a teacher.

It can also be verbatim, showing something the way the video creator saw it. An example would be a mountain biking video shot on a helmet-mounted GoPro. This is much less common, particularly on TikTok, but these types of videos commonly include the POV hashtag.

#POV is a popular hashtag on the video-sharing app, racking up more than 679 billion views. Many POV videos go viral, getting millions of views in a very short time, and are pretty easy to do. The appeal for creators is obvious.

How to use POV online

POV is usually written in all caps in a video’s title or description. If used in a hashtag, it will often be in lowercase. You’ll most likely see it in apps and websites that contain videos, but it can also appear in typed text and as a caption on static images.

Here are some examples of how POV can be used online:

  • “POV: My mom when dinner is ready”
  • “Amazing Theme Park Ride – POV”
  • “Bees are amazing and we have to save them #POV”
  • “#pov: you come home after a busy day and see this…”

POV is a descriptive tag, mainly for videos. That means you won’t see much of it if you don’t spend a lot of time on apps like TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram. But if you do see it, now you know what kind of content to expect.

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