As a millennial, it’s no surprise that Instagram is one of my favorite social media platforms. This network is the third most popular social media site for Gen Z audiences and millennials.
While the easiest way to scroll the website is, getting the right content out for your audience is not.
As a marketer, you’ve probably wondered what type of Instagram content is best for your audience. To help you out, we decided to ask consumers what type of video formats they watch most often.
This post will tell you what video format users like to watch on Instagram and what size, length and aspect ratio these videos should be.
Best video format for Instagram
Instagram is extremely popular, but did you know there is more than one video format you can use for your content?
To find out which is the most popular, we surveyed more than 300 people to see which videos they watch most often.
Ultimately, Instagram story videos were the most popular video format watched on the social media site, with 43% of respondents seeing this type of video content the most.
In addition to respondents who did not use Instagram, live videos and then videos shared directly in the feed were the next highest video format.
The least popular video formats on Instagram were Instagram Reels and IGTV, with only 19% and 13% of respondents watching them, respectively.
To see the results, see the graphic below.
Data Source
Now that we know what kind of video formats users like to see, let’s figure out how to get the best video content out there on Instagram.
Instagram video size
To post a video on Instagram, the video should be at least 1080 x 1080 pixels. You can use different types of files including MP4, MOV, or GIF. The aspect ratio should be 4: 5 and the maximum file size should be 250 MB.
This is the correct video quality for a post on the Instagram feed. It will look something like the screenshot below.
For an Instagram story, the video should be 1080 x 1080 pixels with an aspect ratio of 9:16. The maximum file size should be 250 MB.
It will look something like this screenshot:
While these are the main types of videos uploaded to Instagram, you can explore other technical requirements on the Instagram website.
Instagram video aspect ratio
You can upload videos with an aspect ratio between 1.91: 1 and 4: 5 to Instagram. For this aspect ratio, your dimensions are likely to be around 1080 x 608 px or 1080 x 1350 px.
While all of these statistics are important, one way to keep your file size down is to trim the video down. You cannot simply upload video content to the platform for 24 hours. Now you may be wondering “How long can my Instagram videos be?” Let’s dive in below.
How long can Instagram videos be?
- Instagram feed – 60 seconds
- Stories – 15 seconds
- Live stream videos – 60 minutes
- IGTV – 15 seconds – 10 minutes. Verified accounts can post up to 60 minutes of video on IGTV.
- Instagram feed ads – 2 minutes
- Instagram Carousel Video Ads – 60 Seconds
Instagram videos are a great way to reach a Gen Z or Millennial audience. However, it is important to think about the type of video content that will work best on the platform. Additionally, knowing the right size and video specifications before filming your videos can help you achieve success faster.