Videos are one of the content forms that drive the most engagement on social media. On Twitter, video tweets drive 10x more engagement compared to those without video. However, videos on Twitter are not all that easy to make and share especially if you’re new.

Just like the character limits on tweets, the famous social media platform also imposes limits on the length, file size, and formats of the videos that can be shared on its platform. It’s important to know how long can a Twitter video be to get the most out of your video tweets. If you’re looking for that answer and everything related to twitter videos, keep reading below:

How Long Can a Twitter Video Be?

The straightforward answer to how long can a Twitter video be is 2 minutes and 20 seconds. In other words, Twitter doesn’t allow sharing videos more than 140 seconds long. On a standard account, any video that you share of more than 140 seconds will have to be cropped. 

While the allowed Twitter video length is 140 seconds, for maximum engagement it is recommended for a video on Twitter to be anywhere between 20 and 45 seconds. 

How to Share Longer Videos?

Since, now you know how long can a Twitter video be, you must be wondering whether you can share videos on Twitter that exceed that length. Well, you’ll be delighted to know that you can. All you need to do is sign up for a Twitter Ad account and use Twitter Media Studio. 

Follow the steps below to share longer Twitter videos than the allowed limit:

1. Log into your Twitter account and go to Twitter Ads

2. Click on “add new funding source” and enter your bank details 

3. As you do that, more options will appear on the top panel. Click on “creatives” and then “media”

4. Next, click on “upload media” to share your video

This will allow you to share videos longer than 2 minutes and 20 seconds but up to 10 minutes. 

Video Formats That Twitter Supports

After a detailed discussion on how long can a Twitter video be and how you can post videos exceeding that limit, let’s ask the next question. What video formats does Twitter support? Can you upload your video in any format? The short answer is no. 

Twitter allows only specific video file formats to be shared through the website and mobile application. On your mobile application, you can share the video in MP4 and MOV format. If you’re using the Twitter website on desktop then you can upload a video in MP4 and H264 format. 

However, if your video is in another format, then you need not worry. You can use an online video converter tool to upload in MP4 or MOV format. 

How to Upload The Best Quality Twitter Video?

Sharing a video on Twitter is not all. You know how long can a Twitter video be but to drive engagement and desired results it should meet quality standards. This means knowing the video dimensions and frame rate to upload your video in the best quality. 

Poor-quality videos can hurt your brand image. In order to drive engagement with high-resolution videos, follow these dimensions:

• Within 1920 x 1200 and 1200 x 1900
• Not less than 32 x 32

For ideal Twitter video dimensions, follow this chart:

For square video	720 x 720
For portrait	720 x 1280
For landscape aspect ratio	1280 x 720

Twitter has a limit of 60 frames per second (fps) for videos, which is also the ideal fps rate. Your twitter videos can be anywhere between 30 and 60 fps, however, anything below that can distort its picture quality. 

There is also a limit on the video file size on Twitter. Your Twitter video should be less than 512 MB. Any video larger than that will have to be compressed. To compress a Twitter video, you can use one of the free online tools available. 

How to Upload Videos on Twitter?

With all the specifications about Twitter videos under your belt and a clear idea about how long can a Twitter video be, it’s time to start uploading. Here’s how you can upload a video on Twitter using the mobile app or website:

For mobile users:

1. On your Twitter mobile app, click the Tweet button to share a new tweet

2. You can select a video from your phone gallery by tapping the gallery icon or you can record a new video using the camera feature

3. Once that’s done, add a caption and hashtags to your tweet and hit “tweet” to post it 

For desktop users:

1. Log into your Twitter account on the website
2. Click on “media” to select the video you’d like to post

3. Add your caption and hashtags, click “tweet”

How to Set a Thumbnail for your video?

When you upload your video on Twitter, It gives it a default thumbnail, which is usually the first frame of the video. If you’d like to customize the thumbnail for your video you can do the following:

1. On your Twitter Studio account, you can see all the media that you’ve published on Twitter
2. To view your videos, click on “all media” and select “videos” from the drop-down menu

3. Select the video in which you’d like to include a customized thumbnail
4. Click the “change thumbnail” button near the title of the video

5. Next, you can choose a frame or upload an image to set as a thumbnail

Videos can be a great way to engage your audience and expand your reach. However, following the suggestions above when you’re considering posting videos, should help you drive traffic and followers to your account. 

How long can a Twitter video be and how you can achieve the best quality videos are quite technical topics but with the right tools and information, you can achieve your desired results. If you’re worried about what your customers and competitors are saying about you, try notifier to tweak your Twitter video strategy in time.