The best products that have gone viral so far in 2022

No two TikTok FYPs are the same. But amidst the tarot pulls taking over one person’s page and the dogs testing enrichment toys on another, one thing is all but guaranteed to show up: a viral product.

While some types of viral posts are exclusive to their respective platforms, a ton of products that popped off on TikTok are also big on Facebook or Instagram. (It’s how your cousin who’s three months behind on memes immediately knew what the butt leggings were.) There’s just something universally convincing about a regular person expressing excitement about something they bought — not because they got paid to make a calculated Youtube video about it, but because they genuinely thought others would like to know about it.

TikTok virality isn’t always short lived. Items that got their big break in 2021 are still consistently reeling in stans, like the ChomChom(opens in a new tab), which has yet to die down on PetTok, or the Charlotte Tillbury Hollywood Flawless Filter(opens in a new tab), which is still hard to find in stock.

Naturally, though, 2022 is seeing its own slew of products that have gained the attention of doomscrollers. Here are our favorite products that have gone viral since the start of the year — without creating a controversy like Pink Sauce, that is.

Credit: Windmill / Mashable photo composite

Windmill Air has adopted the overdue task of de-clunking the humble window air conditioning unit — because can any of us genuinely recall ever seeing an air conditioner that doesn’t look older than we are? The unit, which resembles a smart speaker with chic curved edges, isn’t necessarily smaller than your typical AC, but it is way easier to install. Temperature is displayed on the LED screen as well as the app, and can be tweaked or turned off completely from anywhere.

Credit: Solawave / Mashable photo composite

When tales of the SolaWave’s staple status for celebrities like Lil Nas X and Sydney Sweeney started surfacing in winter 2022, the internet had to try it. The grip this device has on skincare TikTok (and Instagram ads) continues to hold strong after being backed in a recent Get Ready With Me video from Joey King.

The slim, portable device uses red light therapy to target wrinkles, fine lines, dark spots, and more, plus administer your daily dose of de-puffing. Mashable contributor RJ Andersen says results are visible after one use.

Credit: Happy and Polly / Mashable photo composite

Cat trees aren’t good at being inconspicuous. They can’t be built into the TV stand or a planter like litter boxes can. But when there are options as ridiculously precious as the ones from Happy and Polly, turning your living room into a whimsical feline wonderland is the way to go. The brand works with colorful palettes involving flowers, swirly candy, to fruit, but TikTok’s favorite seems to be the purple night sky design called Moonlight.

Credit: Youthforia / Mashable photo composite

Your new perfect shade of blush is just whatever this color-changing blush oil comes up with. Youthforia, the company that tests all of its makeup by sleeping in it, is getting love on TikTok for the ahead-of-its-time blush serum that appears transparent at first but reacts to your skin’s natural pH to transform into a naturally rosy, dewy glow.

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Trader Joe’s hive, please rise. The grocery chain resurrected its popular Ube Mochi Pancake and Waffle Mix for a second run in May 2022. Breakfast fans of TikTok are simply obsessed with that nutty vanilla flavor, chewy texture, and iconic purple tint. The surge in stores was so intense that many locations are limiting each customer to two boxes.

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The Amazon description says “Ideal for parties and home discos.” TikTok says “Ideal for any room at any time.” Maximalist home decor is outshining the strictly curated two-tone aesthetics of the past few years (a shift predicted by an astrologer). A slew of users are going the middle school skating rink route by outfitting their living areas with disco balls, which create a cool speckled lighting situation that a sunset lamp could never. They don’t require electricity, so they’re pretty easy to set up, too.

Credit: EMDMAK / Mashable photo composite

Flight attendants have taken to TikTok to give the public a look into an average workday in the air. With this fun insight, we’ve also been introduced to some crucial safety tips for traveling solo, like door stop alarms. This genius device slides under the door like a regular wedged door stop but will sound if anyone tries to enter your hotel or rental.

Credit: Glow Cube / Mashable photo composite

Icing your face to temporarily de-puff and reduce redness isn’t necessarily a new trend on the skincare side of the internet. But freezable rollers for facial ice specifically didn’t seem to blow up until 2022. Not only are they a more targeted approach than holding an ice cube in a washcloth, but they make it easy to incorporate skin-friendly ingredients like aloe or lemon. The Glow Cube is one popular pick with lots of color options and few reviews about leaking.