Vertical, square or wide: which format to use
The same moment can be exported in three shapes. Which one to pick depends on where it will be watched.
Published
9:16 for Shorts, TikTok and Reels
Vertical video fills a phone screen held upright, which is how short-form feeds are watched. For YouTube Shorts, TikTok and Instagram Reels, 9:16 is the format to use. It is the shape every ClipSprint plan exports, including Free.
1:1 for feeds
A square clip takes up a lot of space in a scrolling feed on both phones and computers, which is why it suits posts on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn that are not Reels. Square clips are part of the paid plans, coming soon.
16:9 for the web and YouTube
Wide is the shape of the original video in most cases. It is the right choice for a regular YouTube upload, a website or a presentation, when you only want to cut a moment without changing the frame. Also coming soon with the paid plans.
Fitting a wide video into a vertical frame
A 16:9 picture does not fit a 9:16 screen, so something has to give. You can crop to the part that matters and drag the frame over it, or keep the whole picture in the middle with a blurred or black background above and below. Another post on this blog covers when to use each.
Step-by-step guideResize for TikTok, Reels and Shorts
Change a video clip to 9:16, 1:1 or 16:9 for TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts. Crop, zoom or keep the whole frame over a blurred background.