Video sizes for social media in 2026: dimensions, format and fps to export
The table you check before exporting: what size, ratio, length and fps each network asks for —Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook and X— and which export settings keep your video from being over-compressed.
There's a moment at the end of every edit when everything's done and all that's left is to export. And then the doubt: 1080 × 1920 or 1080 × 1350? 30 or 60 fps? How long can it be?
This page is the short answer, in one table, to check right before you hit the button. Below I explain the reason behind each number and the export settings that make the most difference.
An honest warning: networks change their limits often. These figures were checked in October 2026; if a length limit is critical for your piece, check it in the app before you produce.
The table
| Where it's posted | Ratio | Recommended size | Maximum length |
|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram Reels | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | 3 minutes |
| Instagram, feed video | 4:5 | 1080 × 1350 | Same as Reels |
| Instagram Stories | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | 60 s per story |
| TikTok | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | 10 min recording in the app; longer when uploading a file |
| YouTube | 16:9 | 1920 × 1080 or 3840 × 2160 | No practical limit with a verified account |
| YouTube Shorts | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | 3 minutes |
| 4:5, 1:1, 16:9 or 9:16 | 1080 × 1350 in the feed | 15 minutes | |
| Facebook Reels | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | — |
| Facebook, feed video | 4:5 | 1080 × 1350 | — |
| X | 16:9 or 1:1 | 1920 × 1080 or 1080 × 1080 | 2 min 20 s on free accounts |
If you make a single version for everything vertical, 1080 × 1920 at 30 fps in MP4 works for Reels, TikTok, Shorts, Stories and Facebook Reels at once.
The export settings that actually matter
Every network recompresses what you upload. You can't avoid it, but you can give it the best starting point:
- Container and codec: MP4 with H.264 and AAC audio at 48 kHz. Every network accepts it without odd conversions. H.265 (HEVC) is smaller, but not every platform handles it equally well.
- Frames per second: the same ones you shot at. If you shot at 30, export at 30. Converting 25 to 30, or the other way round, makes motion stutter. If you're not sure which to choose, what FPS means explains it with examples.
- Resolution: the one in the table, no more. For vertical networks, uploading in 4K doesn't look better: the app scales it down to its own size. YouTube is the exception; a 4K video there is usually processed at higher quality, even if the viewer plays it at 1080p.
- Bitrate: generous. As a reference, YouTube recommends about 8 Mbps for 1080p at 30 fps and 12 Mbps at 60 fps. For Reels and TikTok, 8 to 15 Mbps is a good margin. If the exported file is very small for its length, it will probably look worse after recompression.
The areas the interface covers
In vertical video the app puts the account name, caption, buttons and, on TikTok, the sound bar on top of your video. None of that shows in your editor, so it's easy to place a subtitle right under the buttons.
The rule of thumb: keep roughly the bottom fifth of the video clear, plus a strip on the right about a finger wide. Text and faces go in the centre. And keep the important part of an Instagram cover centred: the profile grid shows it cropped to 3:4.
One video, five versions
The usual thing now is to shoot once and post in several places. What saves the most time is deciding that before you shoot:
- If you know there'll be a horizontal and a vertical version, shoot horizontal with room around the subject, or in 4K, so you can crop the vertical without losing quality. We cover it in how to turn a vertical video into a horizontal one and the other way round.
- On-screen text on its own layer, so you can move it in each version without re-editing.
- Subtitles as a file as well as burned into the picture. I explain why in why subtitle a video.
If you work for clients, add the network and ratio to every file name —client_campaign_reel_9x16_v2.mp4— and you won't need to open them to know which is which. Video delivery and archiving has the full naming and master system.
Where to export it for free
In the video editor in the Polimake desktop app you pick the project ratio (9:16, 4:5, 1:1 or 16:9), edit and export to MP4 with no watermark and no export limit. It runs on your Windows computer, and subtitles come from a transcript that's also made locally.
Frequently asked questions
What size is a Reels and TikTok video?
1080 × 1920 pixels, in a vertical 9:16 ratio. It's the same size for Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Stories and Facebook Reels, so a single export works on all of them.
What's the best video format to upload to social media?
MP4 with the H.264 codec and AAC audio. Every network accepts it without problems, and it holds up best to the recompression each platform applies on upload.
What fps should I export social media video at?
The same fps it was shot at, usually 25 or 30. Converting between different frame rates makes motion stutter. Exporting at 50 or 60 fps only makes sense if the footage was shot that way and has a lot of movement, like sport or gaming.
Is it worth uploading 4K video to Instagram or TikTok?
Generally not: vertical networks scale the video down to their playback size, so a 4K file ends up looking like 1080p and takes longer to upload. On YouTube it can be worth it, because higher-resolution videos are usually processed at higher quality.
How long can a video be on each network?
As of October 2026: Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, up to three minutes; TikTok, ten minutes recording in the app and longer uploading a file; LinkedIn, fifteen minutes; X, two minutes twenty seconds on free accounts. Limits change often, so check them in the app before producing a long piece.