TikTok Video Specs Guide (2026)

Aspect Ratio

9:16 vertical is the only ratio TikTok shows full-screen in the For You feed.

• Recommended: 1080×1920 (Full HD vertical)
• Anything else gets letterboxed or cropped
• Square (1:1) and landscape (16:9) work but waste screen space — both are heavily down-ranked by the algorithm in 2026

If you have a horizontal video, re-frame to 9:16 before uploading. Most editing apps have a "TikTok preset."

Video Length

• **Min**: 3 seconds (anything shorter rejected)
• **Max in-app recording**: 10 minutes
• **Max upload (from gallery)**: 10 minutes
• **Sweet spot for engagement**: 21–34 seconds (per 2026 TikTok creator data)
• **Loops well**: any video where the last frame matches the first — invisible loops dramatically boost replay rate, a top ranking signal

Resolution & Bitrate

• **Recommended resolution**: 1080×1920 (Full HD)
• **Min resolution**: 720×1280 (HD) — anything lower is auto-upscaled, looks blurry
• **Max resolution**: 4K accepted, but down-scaled to 1080p before serving to viewers
• **Bitrate**: TikTok re-encodes everything. Upload at 8-12 Mbps for best post-processing quality
• **Frame rate**: 24, 25, 30, or 60 fps. 60 fps videos look best for fast motion

File Format

• **Accepted formats**: MP4 (recommended), MOV
• **Codec**: H.264 (AVC) — most compatible. H.265 (HEVC) also accepted in 2026
• **Audio codec**: AAC, 44.1 kHz, stereo
• **Max file size**:
• - In-app upload: 287.6 MB on iOS, 71.4 MB on Android
• - Desktop upload (tiktok.com): 10 GB
• For long or high-bitrate videos, upload from desktop

Sound & Music

• TikTok's built-in sound library is fully licensed — use freely
• Original audio is preserved if you turn off "use original sound" toggle
• Music you add via TikTok's library auto-becomes a "sound" others can reuse — boosts discovery
• External licensed music (from streaming services) gets muted on upload — use TikTok's library instead

Cover & Thumbnail

• **Cover dimensions**: 1080×1920 (same as the video)
• **Profile grid view**: cropped to 1080×1350 (4:5) — important visual must fit in the center
• **In-feed thumbnail**: shows the first frame by default — choose your cover deliberately
• **Cover text**: TikTok's built-in cover text editor saves cover overlays that don't affect the video itself

FAQ