Export wrong and the platform re-compresses your hard work into mush — here are the right specs for every destination.
You can do everything right in the edit and still deliver a soft, banded, badly-cropped video if you export with the wrong specs. Every platform re-encodes what you upload, and the cleaner and more correctly-formatted your file is, the better it survives that compression. This guide is a practical reference for delivering to the platforms that matter most in 2026 — covering resolution, codec, bitrate, frame rate, aspect ratio, and loudness for each. It also explains the principles behind the numbers so you can make smart calls when a project does not fit neatly into one platform's template. Bookmark it and check the platform's own creator docs before any major campaign, since specs do shift.
Almost every export decision comes down to five settings: resolution (how many pixels), aspect ratio (the shape of the frame), codec (how the video is compressed), bitrate (how much data per second of video), and frame rate (how many frames per second). Get these right for the destination and your video survives the platform's re-encode looking sharp.
The sixth, often-ignored setting is loudness, measured in LUFS. Platforms normalize audio to a target loudness, and delivering far above or below it means the platform turns your audio up or down, often unevenly. Matching the platform's loudness target keeps your mix sounding the way you intended.
The universal rule across every platform: master at the highest quality your footage supports, then export a delivery file that meets or slightly exceeds the platform's recommended bitrate. Uploading a high-bitrate file gives the platform's encoder more to work with, so the re-compressed version your audience sees looks better.
For standard YouTube, deliver 16:9 in the highest resolution your project supports — 1080p (1920x1080) at minimum, 4K (3840x2160) preferred, since YouTube serves higher-resolution uploads with a better bitrate even to viewers watching at smaller sizes. Use H.264 for broad compatibility or H.265/VP9 if your tools support it, at YouTube's recommended bitrates (roughly 8-12 Mbps for 1080p and 35-45 Mbps for 4K, higher for 60fps).
Match your project's frame rate rather than converting — 24, 25, 30, 50, or 60fps are all supported. For audio, YouTube normalizes to around -14 LUFS integrated, so mastering near that target avoids having your audio turned down. YouTube also accepts HDR uploads and displays them on compatible devices.
YouTube Shorts is a separate format: vertical 9:16 (1080x1920), under 60 seconds. Treat it like other short-form vertical content rather than a cropped version of your long-form upload, and keep critical elements out of the bottom and right-side UI zones.
The big three vertical platforms — TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts — all center on 9:16 at 1080x1920. Export in H.264 at a bitrate between roughly 8 and 15 Mbps for clean 1080p, matching your source frame rate (commonly 30 or 60fps). All three favor full-canvas vertical content and de-prioritize uploads with black bars.
Safe zones are critical here because platform UI overlaps the video. Keep faces, text, and essential graphics out of the bottom fifth of the frame and away from the right-side action buttons. Caption for muted autoplay, since the default playback state on these feeds is silent.
These platforms also tend to play louder than long-form video. Mixing social cutdowns slightly hotter — around -10 to -12 LUFS — often translates better in a fast-scrolling feed, though over-compressing the master to chase loudness flattens the mix. TikTok accepts 4K uploads, but a correctly-specced 1080p file is the reliable baseline.
Feed video is a different shape from full-screen vertical. Instagram and Facebook feeds favor 4:5 (1080x1350), which occupies the most vertical scroll space the feed allows, or 1:1 (1080x1080) for a cleaner crossover between layouts. Export H.264, match source frame rate, and keep bitrate high enough to avoid feed compression mush — 8 Mbps or more for 1080p.
LinkedIn feed video performs well at 1:1 (1080x1080) or 16:9 (1920x1080), and the audience skews toward professional, captioned, sound-off viewing — so captions and a clear visual story matter even more than on other platforms. Keep files within the platform's size and length limits to avoid forced re-compression.
All feed formats autoplay muted, so design visuals that read without sound and burn in captions. Unlike full-screen vertical, feed UI does not overlap the video canvas during scroll, so safe-zone constraints are looser — but still leave a margin for any text overlays.
Not every deliverable goes to a social platform. For client delivery, archival, or further editing, export a high-quality mastering file in ProRes 422 HQ or DNxHR HQ. These intermediate codecs are large but nearly lossless, so the file can be re-encoded for any platform later without compounding compression artifacts. Keep a master and generate platform deliverables from it.
For self-hosted web embeds and download links, H.264 in an MP4 container at a high but reasonable bitrate balances quality and load time. If your hosting supports adaptive streaming, providing multiple resolutions lets the player serve the right one for each viewer's connection.
When sending review copies to clients, a manageable H.264 MP4 keeps file sizes downloadable, but for final approved deliverables, give clients the highest-quality file they can actually use — a ProRes master for a production house, a clean H.264 for a marketing team uploading to their own channels.
Frame rate mismatches are a common source of stutter. Always export at your timeline's frame rate and avoid converting unless a delivery spec demands it — converting 24fps to 30fps through duplication or 60fps through interpolation introduces judder or an artificial look. If you must convert, use proper frame-rate conversion, not a naive speed change.
Loudness is where many otherwise-clean exports fall down. Each platform normalizes audio, and delivering wildly off-target means the platform adjusts your levels for you. Use a loudness meter to hit roughly -14 LUFS for YouTube and long-form, and a hotter -10 to -12 LUFS for fast-feed social, without slamming a limiter so hard the mix loses dynamics.
On color, deliver in Rec. 709 for standard SDR unless you are deliberately mastering HDR for a platform that supports it. Exporting HDR to a platform that tone-maps unpredictably — or a screen that is not HDR — can leave your video looking washed out or oddly saturated. When in doubt, a clean Rec. 709 grade is the safest, most predictable choice across every platform.
Hand it to our editors — youtube video editing, done to a professional standard.
Hand it to our editors — short-form video editing, done to a professional standard.
Hand it to our editors — color grading services, done to a professional standard.
H.264 in an MP4 container is the most universally compatible choice and survives every platform's re-encode well. For vertical short-form (TikTok, Reels, Shorts) export 9:16 at 1080x1920, around 8-15 Mbps. For feed video (Instagram, Facebook) use 4:5 or 1:1. Match your source frame rate and caption for muted autoplay across all of them.
Roughly 8-15 Mbps for 1080p social and web video, 8-12 Mbps for 1080p YouTube, and 35-45 Mbps for 4K YouTube — higher for 60fps. The principle is to upload a file at or slightly above the platform's recommended bitrate, because a richer source file gives the platform's encoder more to work with and the re-compressed version your audience sees looks better.
Aim for about -14 LUFS integrated for YouTube and long-form content, since that is roughly where YouTube normalizes. Fast-scrolling social feeds often sound better slightly hotter, around -10 to -12 LUFS. Use a loudness meter rather than guessing, and avoid slamming a limiter to hit the target, which flattens the mix and introduces distortion.
If your footage supports 4K and the platform accepts it (YouTube and TikTok do), exporting 4K is worth it — platforms serve higher-resolution uploads at a better bitrate even to viewers watching smaller. For platforms or workflows where 4K adds little, a correctly-specced 1080p file is the reliable baseline. Either way, prioritize correct aspect ratio and adequate bitrate first.
Every platform re-encodes uploads, and a low-bitrate or wrong-spec source gives the encoder little to work with, so the result looks soft or banded. Upload at or above the recommended bitrate, in the correct resolution and aspect ratio, with a clean Rec. 709 grade. A high-quality source file consistently survives platform compression better than a heavily-compressed one.
One wrong crop can bury your subject behind a like button — here is how to frame for every platform from the moment you press record.
Footage you cannot reshoot is one drive failure away from gone — here is a backup and archive system that actually survives disaster.
The difference between a smooth edit and a nightmare is decided before you make a single cut — here is how to set up a project right.
Studio432 edits concert footage, music videos, gaming content, vlogs and short-form for creators worldwide. Send the footage, get a quote by email.
Start a project →