Pinterest Hashtags: Yes or No? 

Today we’re going to talk about a controversial Pinterest topic: should you include hashtags in your Pinterest Posts or stay away? The best practices advice on this subject has changed many times over the years, making it hard to keep up. Plus, if you ask three content creators and Pinterest experts about their feelings on hashtags on the platform, you’re likely to get three different answers. But you know who HAS been consistent with their advice about hashtags on Pinterest for all these years? ME! So, I’m going to share my own tried and tested opinion on hashtag dos and don’ts on the platform. I truly believe hashtags can be part of a winning Pinterest marketing strategy if used correctly.

Let’s get started! 

Evolution of hashtag use on Pinterest 

Hashtags as we know them have been around on various social media platforms since about 2007, when a Twitter user named Chris Messina suggested it as a way to categorize information and make it easier to search for groups interested in the same subjects (what a great idea, right?). The same year he made this suggestion, the hashtag was used in tweets sharing information about the terrible fires in San Diego. It became obvious that shared hashtag use was an excellent way to group information and make it searchable quickly. Interestingly enough, Twitter itself resisted its use and did not jump on board until about two years later. This was long after regular users had recognized the power of this little symbol.  

After that, there was no going back. Hashtags because a thing on Instagram in 2011, and other social platforms followed suit. They were such a great way to organize information by specific topic and interest, whether for social causes, brand names, or trending fashions. And because they appeared on other platforms, they started popping up on Pinterest as people shared their Instagram content to Pinterest, etc. Pinterest started officially promoting the use of hashtags on the platform in 2017. At one point around this time, we were actually told to use up to 100 hashtags per Pin description! Can you imagine?  I never took the bait and kept things to 10 and under (if that!). I do think that Pinterest had to consider and think about what to do with hashtags since they were being brought over from Instagram whether they liked it or not.

And that’s where our story gets a bit complicated. Starting in 2018, the platform really started cracking down on what they considered “spammy” content. In 2020, hashtags lost their functionality completely on the Pinterest platform. What I mean by functionality is that we could no longer click on hashtags and search that topic. The official word from Pinterest at this time was that it was no longer important to use hashtags for Pinterest Pins and we should focus on keywords. This is why a lot of people abandoned hashtags altogether. And the idea that hashtags will get you flagged as a spam account still hangs around. But, the official advice did not say we should abandon them completely or that we would be punished for using them! It just said they were “out”. 

And, there’s more to the story. Around this same time I looked into the Pin source code along with another trusted Pinterest coach who helps me in my program Pin Potential. We noticed that the long detailed code for each Pin still had a record of whether or not it included hashtags. If hashtags were completely “out”, then why record them in the code? I was not convinced we should give them up entirely. I always consider the evidence and what we are being told are best practices from Pinterest… And in this case, I decided it was best to keep a balance (and one foot in the door). So, what I continued to teach in my courses was that we would continue to tastefully use one or two hashtags at the end of our Pin descriptions and we would stick to using broad category hashtags. We would listen to the official advice to pay attention to keyword use, but we would cover our bases with hashtags too.

In 2022, Pinterest removed any recommendation or information about whether or not to include hashtags in Pin descriptions. This sounds like evidence that we should not use them, right? Not necessarily. In 2023, hashtags quietly became functional (clickable) again. In the UK in 2023, Pinterest took it one step further and re-added their suggestion to include popular hashtags as part of Pinterest users’ Pin optimization strategy. Now what the? Are you confused yet?

So, hashtags must have something to do with good Pin performance after all! There is currently no official advice one way or the other for hashtags. I find that interesting. The fact that there is no definitive answer from Pinterest itself makes me think that as always, we need to balance what we are being told (or not told) by Pinterest itself and how actual users are behaving with their search bar habits.  

In the last six months, I have noticed that Pins with hashtags have been ranking higher than Pins without them. I do not know exactly why. I also know that the Pinterest search technology is fairly intelligent and will translate hashtag searches into keyword results. BUT, the Pinterest Trends tool does not recognize hashtags at all. Very. Interesting. In early 2025, I also noticed less hashtags on top ranking Pins so I suspect we will continue to see hashtags come and go.

So, what do we do with that information?

Do hashtags work in Pinterest?

So, what does all this history and changing policy mean? SHOULD we be using hashtags on Pinterest or not?  As usual with all things Pinterest, the answer is “it’s complicated”, “it depends”, and “maybe”. First of all, hashtag usefulness appears to be industry- and niche-specific. So the first thing you should do is research to find the top-ranking Pins in your own area. If these top-ranking Pins have no hashtags, maybe don’t use them. (Or, you can still choose to use one or two and see what happens.) While researching hashtag use, check for differences in results between your phone (mobile) and desktop! You might be surprised to see how much either format affects your search results. You can use this information to decide based on your own audience and how they search.

If you decide to jump on board with my strategy, here’s some specific Pinterest marketing advice for incorporating a few hashtags in your Pinterest Pin descriptions:

• Treat hashtags like broad keywords…because that’s exactly what they are!  So, for example: your hashtag #fallmakeup will show up in the search results for “fall makeup”. Pinterest is that smart. Your keyword research is also your hashtag research in some ways.
• Use hashtags to fit a few extra keywords at the end of your description that you didn’t work into the copy itself (and try to use different keyword variants). This allows you to fit a few more relevant keywords into your description without the appearance of keyword stuffing. Win win win!
• Make sure your hashtags contain DIFFERENT keywords than your description to add relevant context (e.g., #makeuptutorial) to your pin to widen your search and discoverability.
• Rather than making unique statements or using identifiers like you would on Instagram, use Pinterest hashtags strictly as a searchability tool.
• Make your hashtags as broad as possible. Go for categories rather than specifics
• Seasonal hashtags can be very successful. For example, #christmasnails.
• Don’t use specific brand, event, or trend identifiers.
• Don’t use hashtags in your Pin titles or bio. Just put them at the end of your descriptions.
• Use no more than 1-2 hashtags per description to avoid the appearance of hashtag stuffing.
• The experience of hashtags will likely continue to change, especially between desktop and mobile experiences

Remember, Pinterest will NOT punish you for using one or two hashtags. We know that in most cases, they are converted to keywords in search. So really, what’s the harm? This way you are covering your bases whether they are IN or OUT!

I often get asked what’s the difference between tagged topics when you upload a Pinterest post and using hashtags. Think about tagged topics on your Pins as a way to reinforce your categories or interest tags for your Pins. Selecting tagged topics allows you to clearly mark what the content is relevant to which reinforces the SEO element. Remember, although tagged topics are nice, we have ZERO data on tagged topics and can’t see them after we publish them. We can’t research them, they seem to come and go… and so, we use them but they are just an aspect of our strategy.

Should you use hashtags on Pinterest in 2025?

Remember that my Pinterest philosophy is all about getting the basics right for the best results. If the “bones” of your strategy are good, the little tweaks you make here and there really don’t matter too much. These are tiny tactics in your overall Pinterest strategy. Current trends and types of Pin (and whether or not hashtags are clickable) may all change, but the underlying strategy of creating quality content stays the same. This is straight from a Pinterest expert.

So, I believe that moderate hashtag use fits right in with my general overall strategy for Pinterest, and I’ve been over here quietly using them the whole time. Pinterest is a social network and so many of its users are active on other platforms where hashtags are just a regular part of posting and searching. My gut has always told me that the same is true on Pinterest! All this to say that YES, I think you should use hashtags on Pinterest as part of a basic strategy.

So, what is my basic strategy that works over time, and how does this work for hashtags specifically, you ask? 

Be consistent

For years, I was one of the only people using hashtags because of all the negative information swirling around about them. But jumping from theory to theory is definitely not consistent, so I decided to stick with it. Plus, I could see that the Pinterest source code still captured hashtag use, even when so many others were saying it didn’t. I stayed the course and I believe it has benefited me and my content. So, my new Pins will continue to feature hashtags just like my old Pins did, no apologies. 

Create quality content for Pinterest

I don’t want to harp on this next point too much because I have covered it elsewhere on my blog. But the truth is that quality content is the real way to make your Pinterest account grow, not worrying about small strategy points like hashtags or no hashtags. Your hashtag strategy should just be a small part of your overarching commitment to delivering quality content to the people who will appreciate it. So, keep the following in mind with every Pin you create and every marketing campaign you undertake:

• Optimize your account. 
• Use high-quality images for eye-catching Pins. 
• Pay attention to what types of Pins do best and plan your new content accordingly. 
• Have a robust keyword strategy for your Pin descriptions and titles. 

If you are doing all these things, feel free to play around with adding a few hashtags to the end of your Pin descriptions! Why not? Don’t “pin” all your hopes and dreams on something like hashtags, or you will spend all your time flitting about from trend to trend and rumour to rumour instead of doing the (sometimes) unsexy hard work of building your brand the right way. 

Don’t be spammy

Again, this has always been true whether you use hashtags or not. The thing that got people in a lot of trouble with hashtags in the 2018-2021 years was stuffing their Pin descriptions FULL of a long list of just hashtags. Keyword stuffing has always been a bad idea and one of the most common mistakes people make on Pinterest, so why wouldn’t the same be true of hashtags? Avoid being spammy and make sure your hashtag use is consistent with your anti-spam policy:

• Don’t create misleading content 
• Don’t participate in hashtag stuffing 
• Consider Pinners/the end user reading your Pin description

So, don’t use irrelevant hashtags just to get clicks, and don’t stuff your Pin description so full of hashtags that it looks fake or desperate or both. Remember, this is a visual search engine and first impressions really matter! The Pinterest algorithm recognizes authentic content with great descriptions and differentiates it from content that has been thrown together with the intention to mislead. Don’t get caught trying to be successful the easy way.

Be respectful 

Don’t forget that your audience is full of real, actual people who have come to Pinterest as a powerful search engine to find a product or a solution to a problem. Your number one winning strategy will ALWAYS be providing quality content that does just that for the people who need to find you. If your hashtag helps better explain your Pin content that offers a product or answers a question, go ahead! Just remember that people will see efforts to mislead or try too hard. Provide the kind of content YOU want to look at when you are searching the platform.

So, should you always listen to everything the internet says? No! If your gut tells you there’s something to hashtags on Pinterest, there are actually good reasons to use them and your gut is not wrong. While there is a lot of confusion, trust me when I say that hashtags can be a significant part of any Pinterest strategy and another way to get your Pins noticed in search. Give it a try and let me know how it goes! 

Happy pinning, Pinterest family!

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