LinkedIn Video Specifications: The Complete Guide

Getting your LinkedIn video specifications right is the first step to making sure your content looks professional and actually performs. Nail these, and you avoid those frustrating upload errors and quality issues that can kill a campaign before it even starts.

Your Quick Reference Guide to LinkedIn Video Specs

Think of these technical requirements not as annoying rules, but as a blueprint for success. When you stick to the right format, size, and duration, you're guaranteeing your video shows up looking sharp for your audience, whether they're scrolling on a phone or watching on a desktop.

This guide is built for busy teams who need the correct numbers, fast. I’ve broken down the key differences between organic video posts and paid video ads so you can quickly check your files before you hit "post."

To make things even easier, here’s a simple table that puts the most important specs side-by-side.

LinkedIn Video Specifications At a Glance

As you can see, the main differences are in file size and duration. Organic posts give you a lot more room to play with—a 5GB maximum file size and up to 15 minutes of runtime. Video ads, on the other hand, are much tighter, capping you at 200MB. While they can technically run for 30 minutes, let's be real: the most effective ads are short, punchy, and get straight to the point.

Getting these specs down is half the battle. If you want to dive deeper into creating content that grabs attention and gets results, check out our guide on the best practices for video marketing.

Mastering Core Video File Requirements

Getting your video's core technical specs right isn't just a suggestion—it's the absolute foundation for a smooth upload and a professional-looking final product on LinkedIn. Think of these specs as the blueprint for your video file. If you get them wrong, you're setting yourself up for frustrating upload errors, poor playback quality, or the platform rejecting your file outright.

LinkedIn has these standards in place for a reason: to make sure every video looks and sounds great for all users, no matter what device they're on or how fast their internet is.

The go-to container format here is MP4. LinkedIn didn't pick this randomly; MP4s hit that sweet spot between good compression and high quality, which is perfect for streaming online. A key skill for any video creator is learning how to reduce MP4 file size without losing quality to stay within upload limits and ensure quick loading times.

Audio and Video Codec Essentials

Inside that MP4 file, your video and audio streams need to be encoded with specific codecs. For the visual part of your video, LinkedIn requires the H.264 codec, which you might also see called AVC. It's the industry standard for compressing high-definition video, ensuring your visuals stay crisp and clear.

When it comes to sound, the platform prefers the AAC (Advanced Audio Coding) or MPEG4 codec. This is what keeps your audio from sounding distorted or tinny. LinkedIn also has a recommendation for the audio sample rate to keep things sounding professional.

To get that crisp, clear sound on any device, you should really aim for a sample rate of 48 kHz. Going lower can make your audio sound muffled, and going any higher just bloats your file size without any real benefit for the viewer.

Frame Rate and Playback Stability

For a smooth, stable viewing experience, you need to lock in a constant frame rate. LinkedIn accepts anything between 23 to 60 frames per second (FPS), but for most social media content, 30 FPS is the sweet spot. It's reliable and looks great. Avoid using a variable frame rate, as it can cause stuttering or throw your audio out of sync once it's uploaded.

LinkedIn no longer supports older formats like AVI or QuickTime MOV for ads, so sticking with MP4 is a must. A 1080p resolution will keep your visuals sharp, and an AAC audio codec at around 48 kHz will handle the sound perfectly.

Nailing these export settings is pretty straightforward if you have the right tools. You can find out more about the best video editing software that makes it easy to export compliant files every single time.

Choosing the Right Aspect Ratios and Resolutions

Visuals are everything on a crowded professional feed. Nailing the correct aspect ratio and resolution is the difference between a video that looks polished and one that looks amateurish, stretched, or awkwardly cropped. This single decision has a massive impact on how much screen space you own, particularly on mobile devices where every pixel of attention counts.

The right choice really boils down to your content and where you expect people to watch it. While LinkedIn technically supports a wide range from 1:2.4 to 2.4:1, you’ll get the most predictable, high-quality results by sticking to the standard formats.

Common Aspect Ratios Explained

Different video shapes serve different strategic purposes. Once you understand the three most common formats, you can match your video’s dimensions to your campaign goals and really maximize your impact.

• 16:9 (Widescreen): This is the classic horizontal format, usually rendered at 1920x1080 pixels. It's the go-to for repurposing content from YouTube, webinars, or professionally shot interviews. While it looks great on a desktop monitor, it naturally takes up less vertical space on a mobile feed.
• 1:1 (Square): A really versatile format at 1080x1080 pixels, square video is a safe bet for both mobile and desktop viewing. It grabs more of the mobile screen than a widescreen video does, but it won't get awkwardly cropped on a desktop view, making it a solid all-rounder.
• 4:5 (Vertical): This taller format, typically 1080x1350 pixels, is a powerhouse for any mobile-first strategy. It absolutely dominates the real estate on a phone screen, making it much harder for someone to just scroll past. For a deeper dive into how these shapes perform across different platforms, you can check out the best video formats and aspect ratios for maximum engagement.

This screenshot from LinkedIn’s own documentation drives home the point, highlighting the recommended resolutions for different ad formats.

It’s pretty clear from their table that vertical and square formats are fully supported—and in some cases, even encouraged—for certain ad types. This really underscores the platform's mobile-centric approach.

Matching Resolution to Aspect Ratio

No matter which aspect ratio you land on, maintaining a high resolution is non-negotiable if you want your video to look sharp. For LinkedIn videos, the professional standard is 1080p (Full HD).

So, if you’re making a 16:9 video, your dimensions should be 1920x1080 pixels. If you’re going with a 1:1 square video, make it 1080x1080 pixels. Sticking to these specs ensures your content looks crisp and high-quality, which reflects well on your brand's attention to detail. Uploading something with a lower resolution will almost always result in visible pixelation and ugly compression artifacts that can completely undermine your message.

Getting the Most Out of Your LinkedIn Video Ads

Making a video ad for LinkedIn isn't the same as just posting an organic video. While some of the technical specs overlap, paid campaigns need a much more strategic game plan to squeeze every bit of value from your ad spend. The name of the game is grabbing attention fast, getting your point across clearly, and pushing viewers toward a specific action—all while they're scrolling through a busy, competitive feed.

This means every little technical detail, from the video's length to its accessibility features, has a real impact on your click-through rates and how many people actually finish watching. If your video drags on too long or makes no sense without sound, you're just throwing money away.

Key Ad Specs and Best Practices

When you're putting together an ad, your mantra should be "short and punchy." LinkedIn technically allows ad durations from 3 seconds all the way up to 30 minutes, but let's be realistic—the sweet spot is way, way shorter. LinkedIn’s own data reveals that videos under 30 seconds see completion rates between 35% and 45%. Push past a minute, and that number takes a nosedive. That’s why we always tell clients to aim for that 15- to 30-second window.

Here are the hard-and-fast technical rules you need to follow for video ads:

• File Format: It's MP4 or nothing. That’s the only format LinkedIn accepts for ads.
• File Size: Keep your file under 200MB.
• Audio: Stick with AAC or MPEG4 audio codecs for crisp, reliable sound.
• Frame Rate: A steady 30 frames per second (FPS) is required to keep things looking smooth.

Don't Forget Accessibility (It Boosts Engagement, Too)

Most people watch videos on LinkedIn with the sound off, especially when they're scrolling on their phones. That makes closed captions an absolute must-have for any successful ad. You can easily upload a separate SRT (SubRip Subtitle) file right in Campaign Manager when you set up your ad. It's a simple step that makes your ad accessible and guarantees your message gets through, sound or no sound.

A killer ad is where technical perfection meets smart creative. When you optimize for short, silent viewing, you're aligning with how people actually use the platform. That's how you grab their attention and get real results.

Seeing how these rules play out in the real world is a great way to get inspired. Take a look at our breakdown of some high-performing LinkedIn video ad examples to see what top brands are doing right.

Driving Engagement with Organic Video Content

Organic video is one of your best tools for building real brand authority and creating genuine connections on LinkedIn. Unlike paid ads that interrupt the user's flow, organic videos have to earn their attention by delivering immediate value. This is exactly why they’re so good at sparking authentic engagement and starting conversations in your network.

The secret to a great organic video strategy is authenticity. Overly polished, slick corporate productions can feel a bit out of place in the feed. What really resonates with an audience that's there to learn and connect is content that feels direct, helpful, and, well, human.

Why Native Video Is King on LinkedIn

Uploading your video files directly to LinkedIn—instead of just sharing a link from another platform—is a non-negotiable for performance. There's a simple reason for this: native videos autoplay silently in the feed. This feature is brilliant for grabbing a user's attention as they scroll, encouraging them to pause and watch.

The data backs this up. Video posts on LinkedIn see an average engagement rate of 5.60%, putting them among the platform's top-performing content types. This trend really highlights how native, value-packed video is a perfect match for LinkedIn's professional audience.

If you really want to make sure your videos pop, it's worth checking out resources like a complete guide on how to post a video to LinkedIn, which gets into the nitty-gritty of specs and optimization.

Top-Performing Organic Video Formats

Not all videos are created equal on LinkedIn. After spending countless hours on the platform, we've seen a few formats that consistently pull in more interaction because they align perfectly with how professionals consume content.

• Text-Based Animated Videos: These are fantastic for the sound-off viewing experience. They use dynamic text and simple graphics to get key stats or quick tips across effectively.
• Talking Head Videos: Nothing builds trust and authority quite like an expert sharing insights directly with the camera. It creates a personal, one-to-one connection with your audience.
• Quick Demonstrations: Short screen recordings or product demos that solve a very specific problem offer immediate, actionable value. People love them.

These formats just work. They're direct, they're informative, and most importantly, they respect the viewer's time.

Troubleshooting Common Video Upload Problems

Even when you’ve meticulously followed all the technical guidelines, upload errors can still pop up. There's nothing more frustrating than a failed upload or a video that looks terrible after processing, but don't worry—most of these issues are surprisingly easy to fix once you know what to look for. Think of this as your practical checklist for the most common video upload headaches.

The very first thing you should check is your file format. While LinkedIn is pretty flexible, sometimes a specific export setting can cause an unexpected conflict. If your video is stuck processing or just plain fails to upload, the safest bet is to go back and re-export it as an MP4 with an H.264 video codec and AAC audio. This combo is the gold standard and almost always resolves simple upload failures.

Diagnosing Quality and Sync Issues

What if your video uploads successfully but looks pixelated, or the audio is frustratingly out of sync with the picture? This kind of quality drop is often a result of LinkedIn's own compression clashing with your video's original bitrate.

• Quality Loss: If your video looks blurry or blocky, it might be due to a low original bitrate. Try exporting it again with a higher bitrate—something around 5-10 Mbps for 1080p usually does the trick. You could also try using a constant bitrate (CBR) instead of a variable one (VBR) to see if that helps.
• Audio/Video Sync Problems: This is a classic symptom of a variable frame rate. Before you export, jump back into your project settings and make sure it’s set to a constant frame rate like 30 FPS. This simple change can prevent the audio from drifting away from the video.

File size can also be a sneaky culprit. For larger organic videos that are over the 200MB ad limit but still under the 5GB native post cap, smart compression is your best friend. If you need to shrink your file size without turning your video into a pixelated mess, our guide on how to compress a video has some great techniques.

Here's a pro tip that's often overlooked: check your audio specs. LinkedIn prefers a sample rate of 48 kHz. Using a different rate can sometimes cause processing errors or weird audio distortion. It's a quick thing to double-check in your video editor and can save you a lot of trouble.

Frequently Asked Questions

When you're trying to get video right on LinkedIn, a few common questions pop up again and again. Let's cut through the noise and get you some clear, straightforward answers to the most frequent hurdles people face.

What Is the Best Video Format for LinkedIn?

If you want to play it safe and avoid headaches, your go-to video format for LinkedIn should always be MP4. It’s the sweet spot between solid visual quality and a file size that won’t take forever to upload and process.

To really nail it, make sure that MP4 file is encoded with an H.264 video codec and an AAC audio codec. Think of this as the universal language LinkedIn’s platform understands best. Sticking to this combo will sidestep most of the common upload errors you might run into.

Can I Upload a Vertical Video to LinkedIn?

You sure can. Vertical video is fully supported on LinkedIn and, honestly, it’s one of the best ways to grab someone's attention while they're scrolling on their phone.

There are two main vertical aspect ratios that work well:

• 4:5 (e.g., 1080x1350 pixels): This is the one we usually recommend. It fills up a good chunk of a mobile screen without being so tall that it gets awkwardly cropped on a desktop feed.
• 9:16 (e.g., 1080x1920 pixels): This is your classic full-screen vertical, like a Story. It works perfectly fine for organic posts, but just be aware that if you're running video ads, this taller format will only be shown to users on mobile devices.

How Do I Fix Poor Video Quality After Uploading?

That frustrating, pixelated look you sometimes see after uploading is almost always the fault of LinkedIn's compression. The platform has to shrink your video file to make it stream smoothly for everyone, and that process can sometimes strip away the quality.

The trick is to give the compression algorithm a really good file to start with. Always export your video at a high resolution—1080p (1920x1080 pixels) is a great baseline. Also, exporting with a healthy bitrate and a constant frame rate (like 30 FPS) helps preserve the details, leading to a much cleaner final result on the platform.

A huge mistake we see people make is uploading a file that’s already been heavily compressed to save space. You're better off uploading the highest-quality version you have that still fits under LinkedIn’s file size limit. That gives the platform’s algorithm more data to work with, resulting in a sharper video.

What Is the Maximum Length for a LinkedIn Native Video?

The max length for a standard, organic video post depends on where you upload it from. If you're on a desktop, you can post a video up to 15 minutes long. If you're using the LinkedIn mobile app, that limit is a bit shorter at 10 minutes.

Now, for LinkedIn video ads, the rules are different. Technically, an ad can be up to 30 minutes long, but you'd almost never want to do that. To actually keep people’s attention and get results, LinkedIn itself recommends keeping your video ads short and sweet—ideally under 30 seconds.