You finally decided to jump on the Facebook video train to enhance your social media marketing strategy.

Rightfully so! Social media posts with videos boost views by 48%. Facebook also reported that 75 million people visit their own video platform—Facebook Watch—every day, so it definitely feels like the right place to be when it comes to video.

But there are so many formats you can use and approaches you can take. From regular Facebook feed videos to stories and even carousel ads, it’s difficult to be sure which length and size should your Facebook video be.

If that’s how you feel, this is the right guide for you. In this guide, you can find not only about the minimum requirement for each of the video formats available on Facebook but also the recommendations to ensure they perform the absolute best they can.

Here we go.

Facebook Video Specs for Feed Videos (Organic + Ads)

We can’t say much about the standard Facebook feed video that you don’t already know. It’s what keeps most of us scrolling for longer than we intended to—especially with the fact that videos auto-play on your feed by default.

As the video specs listed below indicate, this might be the most flexible video format on Facebook. That’s good news because it means you can test many styles until you find those that work the best for your unique audience and brand.

Facebook Video Specs for Stories (Organic + Ads)

After the Stories feature exploded on Instagram, it was introduced on Facebook and now allows you to create short photo and/or video updates that disappear after 24 hours.

This creates a space to share organic, real-life updates from your business such as behind-the-scenes videos without worrying about the quality of production. You can create Facebook Stories directly with your phone’s camera inside the app or upload a video you’ve recorded and edited beforehand.

Again, use .MP4 or .MOV file format whenever you can, with up to 4GB in file size. Also, consider leaving roughly 14% of the top and bottom of the video free of text as this is where your profile icon and a call-to-action will cover the video partially.

Facebook Video Specs for Cover Videos

If you still haven’t tried using a video instead of your Facebook page cover image, you’re missing out. A Facebook cover video can quickly grab attention of anyone who lands on your Facebook Page and tell your story in the matter of seconds, which can help you turn a casual Page visitor into a loyal follower.

Creating a Facebook cover video is easier than you might think. Here’s a helpful tutorial that can walk you through the process.

Facebook Video Specs for Carousel Videos (Ads)

With Facebook Carousel video, you can showcase up to 10 videos (or images) within a single ad. Each one can have its own link, which allows for more creativity, specificity, and space to highlight various aspects of your promotion.

These ads are effective because users can scroll through a range of related videos before taking action: clicking a link.

Make sure you also add a headline (40 characters), link description (up to 20 characters), and text with up to 125 characters. Your videos can be up to 4GB in size.

Facebook Video Specs for Collection Videos (Ads)

Facebook collection ads are an eCommerce dream. A Collection ad includes a cover video (or image) with product images listed below it.

Source

You can use it as an instant storefront, a lookbook, or for product demonstration purposes. You can even tell a story about your business and encourage people to take specific action. If they want to easily browse your products, a Collection ad is the way to make it possible.

When someone clicks on your Collection ad, they will open a Facebook Instant Experience, also known as Canvas, that’s optimized for smartphones and features rich media—with your Collection ad video at the top.

As a result, the same minimum requirements and recommended length and dimensions apply to Facebook Canvas ads.

Facebook Video Specs for Slideshow Videos (Organic + Ads)

Facebook Slideshow ads resemble a video, but can actually be made out of images or short video clips.

They load quickly (using five times less data than videos!) so they work well on all connection speeds. They can be created in minutes and from any device and can be enriched with music and other audio.

Facebook Video Specs for 360 Videos

The 360 video on Facebook allows viewers to have unique, immersive experience by turning their device or dragging their fingers to explore every angle.

From turning panorama photos from your smartphone into a so-called 180 video to using a special camera to capture the full scene, you can use these videos to take your viewers deep into your universe.

 

Facebook’s 360 videos are so versatile and bring so much opportunity with the right equipment and planning that, once you’re inside the above video length and resolution restrictions, you can pretty much create anything you want—which is why we won’t suggest a recommended video length or dimensions beyond the above.

Devour some 360 content from your favorite brands and get inspired by their product launches, event livestreams in 360, and much more.

Final Tips For High-Performing Facebook videos

Now that you know the specifications for any Facebook video you want to create, here are some final tips on how to create outstanding Facebook videos that help you reach all your business goals.

Focus your Facebook video on a single message

Resist the temptation to cram in as much information as possible into just one video. Too many details will confuse and repel your viewers, but one strong takeaway will make your video memorable and encourage the viewer to take the best next action.

Get specific in your call-to-action

In our recent pole on Twitter, 63% of participants voted the lack of a call to action as the biggest video ad mistake.

11 Facebook Ad Mistakes You’re Probably Making (& How to Avoid Them)
👉https://t.co/rS678IVU6H via @Impactbnd
Vote for the biggest video ad mistake 👇📢#facebook #ads #videomarketing #socialmedia #marketingtips

— Wave.video (@wave_video) March 12, 2019

A call-to-action (CTA) is the next step you want your viewer to take. From clicking through the link, subscribing to the newsletter, or even purchasing from your online store, your CTA should align with the goal you have for your video.

Once you’ve defined your Facebook video CTA, make sure it’s obvious through text, visual cues, and even audio elements.

Keep your Facebook video short

As you’ve seen earlier, some Facebook video formats allow for hours of content to be shared on the platform in a single video.

This is a great asset to have, but it should be used sparingly. In other words, your viewer’s attention is only there while it’s interesting, so if you fill your videos with redundant content, they will keep scrolling.

Keep your videos as short as you can while still telling the whole story, and ensure every scene and image has earned its place in it and contributes to the big picture.

Don’t rely on sound in your videos

While sound can add a lot of value to your videos, you shouldn’t rely on it to tell the video’s story. If you do, you might miss out on a chance to leave an impression on a viewer—simply because they didn’t understand the video without the sound on.

Use the order of your scenes, graphic effects, text overlay, and captions to replace the impact of sound in those silent viewing situations.

Facebook Video Specs FAQs

Let’s answer some questions most people have about Facebook videos and Facebook video specs.

Why is my Facebook Cover Video Blurry?

Using the right dimensions according to the most recent Facebook video specs is key to getting the best possible results in terms of clarity and engagement. The right dimension for cover videos is at least 820 x 312 pixels. If your image is smaller than  that, it will be stretched to fit, which makes it blurry.

Are 360 videos VR?

No, 360 videos are not the same as VR, although most people will have their first 360-degree viewing experience with 360 videos. The main difference is that virtual reality takes you into a digital world, while 360 videos are live-action.

How long can a Facebook video be?

The longest Facebook videos can be up to 240 minutes long. However, if you’re trying to catch and retain people’s attention, you might want to make shorter videos.

Does Facebook reduce video quality?

Yes, Facebook compresses your video file to optimize it for playback at different internet speeds. However, you can always change your videos settings so that it plays in HD by default.

Can I upload 4K videos to Facebook?

It took a while, but Facebook now supports 4K videos. It began testing this feature way back in 2010, and now 360 videos can be uploaded in 4K.

What resolution does Facebook live stream?

The maximum resolution for a live video is 720 x 1280 at 30 frames per second. You can stream at this quality for four hours.

What is the best video format for Facebook?

To play it safe and maintain quality after uploading your video, regardless of your type of video or channel, go with MP4 (MPEG-4). MPEG-4 compresses both your audio and video to reduce file sizes while maintaining quality.

Over to you

You now have the Facebook video specifications and you’re ready to start creating videos to wow your Facebook audience.

With the wide range of formats across organic and paid video options, there’s definitely something for every type of audience and for any business goal you want to reach.