Having high quality videos on Facebook is important for engaging your audience and standing out in the news feed. With Facebook prioritizing native video content, you want to ensure your videos look crisp and professional.
The good news is that making high quality Facebook videos is not as complicated as it may seem. By following best practices for resolution, aspect ratio, bitrate, and compression, you can optimize your video quality.
What resolution should I use?
Resolution determines the dimensions of your video in pixels. For Facebook, the recommended resolution is 1280×720 or higher. This is the minimum resolution for HD video.
Higher resolutions like 1920×1080 (full HD) or 2560×1440 (2K) will look even sharper, but come with larger file sizes. As long as your resolution meets the 1280×720 minimum, your video will display in high definition quality.
Recommended Facebook video resolutions:
- 1280×720 (HD)
- 1920×1080 (Full HD)
- 2560×1440 (2K)
What aspect ratio works best?
Aspect ratio refers to the ratio of width to height in your video frame. On Facebook, videos display in either a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio or 9:16 vertical aspect ratio.
16:9 is the standard widescreen ratio used for HD video. This landscape orientation works well for horizontal footage like landscapes, interviews, and action scenes.
9:16 is a tall, vertical aspect better suited for mobile content. Use this portrait orientation for videos showcasing products, Portrait mode footage, or content designed for Stories.
| Aspect Ratio | Dimensions | Use Case |
|---|---|---|
| 16:9 | 1280×720, 1920×1080, etc. | Landscape video like interviews, travel, and action scenes |
| 9:16 | 1080×1920, 720×1280, etc. | Vertical video for mobile and Stories |
What bitrate should I use?
Bitrate refers to the amount of data used per second of video playback. It is measured in kilobits per second (Kbps).
Higher bitrates result in better quality, but also generate bigger file sizes. For Facebook, a bitrate between 5,000-8,000 Kbps is recommended.
This table provides suggested bitrates based on your video resolution:
| Resolution | Bitrate Range |
|---|---|
| 720p (1280×720) | 3000 – 5000 Kbps |
| 1080p (1920×1080) | 5000 – 8000 Kbps |
| 1440p (2560×1440) | 12,000 – 20,000 Kbps |
Tips for managing bitrate:
- Use higher bitrates for higher resolution videos
- Favor quality over smaller file size when possible
- Consider your target playback environment – higher bitrates for TV vs lower bitrates for mobile
What video compression should I use?
Video compression reduces file size while maintaining quality. Facebook recommends H.264 video compression, also known as MPEG-4 Part 10.
H.264 compression is highly optimized for HD video. It provides great visual quality at lower bitrates compared to older codecs.
Most modern editing software like Premiere Pro, Final Cut Pro, and iMovie support H.264 export. For the highest Facebook quality, export your finished videos with H.264 compression.
Benefits of H.264 compression:
- Efficient compression optimized for HD
- Better quality at lower bitrates
- Wide device compatibility
What are the ideal video export settings?
When exporting your video from an editing program, use these recommended export settings:
- Resolution: At least 1280×720 (720p HD)
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9 or 9:16
- Bitrate: 5000 – 8000 Kbps
- Compression: H.264
- Frame Rate: 23.976 or 29.97 FPS
With these optimal export settings, your video files will meet Facebook’s specifications for high quality. Your videos will playback smoothly in up to HD resolution.
How to export high-quality video from common programs:
Adobe Premiere Pro
- Sequence Settings: 1920×1080, Progressive, 23.976 FPS
- Export Settings: H.264, 5-8 Mbps bitrate
Final Cut Pro
- Timeline Resolution: 1920×1080 (1080p HD)
- Export Settings: H.264, 5120×2880
iMovie
- Project Settings: 1080p
- Export Settings: 1080p, High Profile
How can I optimize videos for mobile?
With most Facebook video views happening on mobile, it’s important to optimize your video quality for smaller screens:
- Use a 1280×720 resolution for sharper image quality on mobiles
- Reduce bitrate to 3000-5000 Kbps to accommodate slower connections
- Export videos in portrait 9:16 aspect ratio
- Add text overlays/captions with key info for sound-off viewers
Testing your videos on actual mobile devices can help catch any quality issues before publishing. Pay attention to details, sharpness, and playback speed when reviewing on mobile.
How can I check and improve video quality?
Review video quality
Before uploading your video to Facebook, do a quality check by:
- Watching the entire video yourself looking for distortion, pixilation, focus issues etc.
- Testing video playback on multiple devices – desktop, mobile, tablet, TV
- Asking others to review the video for quality issues
Refine quality issues
If quality issues are found:
- For compression artifacts – increase bitrate or use a higher quality codec
- For pixelation/blurriness – increase output resolution
- For focus issues – improve lighting or replace blurry footage
- For color banding – apply color grading adjustments
Re-export an updated version and re-test until the video meets your quality standards before publishing.
Use video editing software
Advanced editing software like Adobe Premiere Pro gives you more control over video quality settings compared to basic tools.
Leverage pro software features like:
- Sharpening filters
- Anti-aliasing
- Noise reduction
- Color correction
These can help enhance video quality and fix issues from compression or decoding.
How can I prevent quality loss on upload?
Facebook re-encodes and compresses videos upon upload to optimize delivery. This can potentially result in quality degradation.
To help prevent excessive quality loss:
- Start with the highest quality master footage available
- Follow the recommended export settings earlier in this article
- Upload the video directly instead of screen recording
- Avoid re-encoding the video multiple times
Also, check the video quality after it fully processes on Facebook to spot any potential issues early.
What’s the best video format for Facebook?
Facebook supports several popular video containers and codecs:
- .MP4 – Recommended format, offers best quality and compression
- .MOV – Works well but can have larger file sizes
- .AVI, .WMV, .FLV – Supported but not ideal formats
For maximum compatibility and quality, encode your videos as MP4 files with H.264 video and AAC audio.
Avoid older formats like AVI, WMV, and FLV which use inferior compression or may lack codec support.
Ideal video settings:
- File Format: .MP4
- Video Codec: H.264
- Audio Codec: AAC
What are the video size limits?
Facebook enforces maximum video size limits on uploads:
- 240 minutes (4 hours) maximum video length
- 4GB maximum file size for uploads
Longer or larger videos may fail to upload or process correctly. If needed, break larger videos into segments under 4GB before uploading.
For optimal delivery, aim to keep most videos under 120 minutes long and 1-2GB file sizes when possible.
How can I improve video encoding performance?
Encoding video can be CPU and GPU-intensive for your computer. Here are tips to speed up encoding times:
- Use proxy files during editing to lighten resource load
- Simplify projects by reducing tracks and effects
- Enable GPU acceleration for encoding
- Use multi-pass encoding
- Upgrade to faster CPU, GPU, RAM and drives
Faster encoding allows you to export videos more efficiently and iterate quickly while optimizing quality.
Conclusion
Optimizing video quality on Facebook comes down to following recommended specifications for resolution, aspect ratio, bitrate, and compression during export. Proper encoding settings help your videos shine with crisp high definition playback.
Testing videos across devices, reviewing footage closely, and using advanced editing tools can further refine quality. With robust export settings and some quality checks, you can confidently upload professional, high-quality videos to Facebook.