The law that took aim at TikTok over national security concerns has prompted Americans looking for alternatives to download Xiaohongshu, a social media app that is popular in China.

RedNote, which is known in China as Xiaohongshu, the Mandarin term for “little red book,” is the most downloaded free app on the Apple App Store.

With TikTok's potential shutdown looming, many users are flocking to a new short-form video platform called Red Note. It has quickly climbed to the top of the app store charts,

Marcus Robinson, a 29-year-old fashion designer, created a Red Note account to share his thrifting adventures and promote his clothing company, P-13. He previously had accrued 21,000 followers on TikTok, and estimates that 40% of his brand’s sales came from that app. “I thought I was going to keep building and make a living ultimately,” he says.

I picked my "interests" — all in Mandarin — based on vibes, and yet still Red Note seems to have me figured out already. My Explore page suggested videos from food creator Nick DiGiovanni, Cardi B and Lucky Blue Smith. (Note: Page verification is bound to be slow, so beware of fake celebrity accounts in the interim.)

Among all free iPhone apps, RedNote is currently the top social networking app on the Apple app store rankings. Young people who have used it as an alternative to TikTok are finding humor in being called "TikTok refugees" by Chinese influencers who welcome them to the platform.

With a TikTok U.S. ban looming, American users are downloading an alternative: Chinese-owned social app Xiaohongshu, aka "Red Note."

The US ban on TikTok saw millions of users – predominantly Americans – flock to another Chinese social media pla

To say the rollout of the U.S.’s TikTok ban has been a mess would be an understatement. After years of back and forth in Washington, the Chinese-owned vid