Measured Updated dailyMarkdown copy
Running total ticks up with every part
A viral gaming format on TikTok and Instagram
Price a build or setup component by component with a visible running total, saving the most expensive item for last.
3
accounts it worked for
7x
median, times their usual
#33
of 35 in gaming
Editing trick
Green screen, Talking head, Screen recording
Why it works
The climbing counter makes people wait for the final number, and the inflated totals trigger price-outrage comments. Toastybros, Techtesseract and Linustech all use it.
Hook formulaHow much would it cost to build [past item] today?
How to make it
- 1Show the original or starting price first
- 2Hold up or add each component and flash its price
- 3Keep a total pinned on screen
- 4Reveal the shocking grand total at the end
Examples
Best first, one per account. Each links to the original post.
- @toastybros
33K followers, Instagram
“DO YOU REMEMBER”
30x their usual views, green screen, setups and gear
- @techtesseract
1.1M followers, Instagram
“How much my husband's PC today?”
8.7x their usual views, talking head, setups and gear
- @linustech
1.8M followers, Instagram
“Total Cost: $0”
3.1x their usual views, screen recording, setups and gear
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How this is measured
- Every post is compared with its own account's usual reach, not with other accounts. "14x their usual" means the post got 14 times the median views of that account's recent posts.
- TikTok videos and Instagram Reels are measured on views. Instagram carousels have no view count, so they are measured on likes against the account's usual likes, and say so.
- A post makes the library at 2x its account's usual or more. A format is a repeatable move (what is said or shown, or how it is edited) that several accounts used in breakout posts. It is listed here once it worked for 3 or more different accounts.
- Formats rank on how many accounts they worked for and how far above usual, damped so a fluke on one tiny account cannot outrank a format that worked for ten.