What is the best video platform for marketers?

Video is an essential part of any company's digital marketing strategy. And the numbers behind it have never been stronger.

93% of businesses report that video marketing has delivered good ROI in 2025, the highest percentage ever recorded. 87% of consumers say they have been convinced to buy a product or service after watching a video about it. Short-form video ad spending hit $111 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $145.8 billion by 2028.

Check out these five reasons you should consider using video in your marketing strategy, and our full guide on 10 types of videos you can use in your marketing.

Whether you have been using video in your marketing efforts for years or are just getting started, the following is a breakdown of eight video platforms, with the pros, cons, and current video specifications of each, so you can make the best decision for your brand and goals.

YouTube

When you think of video platforms, you are likely thinking of YouTube first. And that makes sense.

YouTube has approximately 2.7 to 2.85 billion monthly active users as of 2026, making it the world's second-largest social platform and second-largest search engine after Google. Over 500 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every single minute. More than 1 billion hours of content are watched on the platform daily, and YouTube now holds the number-one spot for streaming watch time in the U.S., capturing 12.5% of all U.S. TV viewing in May 2025.

YouTube Shorts has become a major growth engine. YouTube Shorts now generates over 200 billion daily views, up from 70 billion in March 2024, and has more than 2 billion monthly active users of its own. Shorts can now be up to 3 minutes long following an October 2024 platform update. The Shorts engagement rate of 5.91% leads all major short-form video platforms, outperforming TikTok, Instagram Reels, and Facebook Reels. For marketers, YouTube remains one of the highest-ROI platforms: 90% of marketers include YouTube in their video strategy, and the platform delivers an estimated 109% higher ROI than linear TV.

Since YouTube is owned by Google, a consistent and engaging presence on the platform can also support your search engine rankings. Videos from YouTube appear in Google search results, adding another discovery pathway for your content. For guidance on growing your presence there, see our guide on 20 tips to grow your YouTube subscribers.

• Pros: Largest video platform audience globally; second-largest search engine; strong long-form and short-form (Shorts) capabilities; excellent SEO benefits; robust monetization options; Shorts ad revenue sharing available to eligible creators; connected TV and desktop viewing add reach beyond mobile.
• Cons: Highly competitive; strong content required to stand out; channel growth can be slow without consistent posting; production quality expectations are higher than on TikTok or Instagram.

Preferred specifications

• Long-form: MP4 or MOV, 16:9 aspect ratio (1920x1080 minimum), up to 12 hours, 256 GB maximum file size
• YouTube Shorts: 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920 pixels, up to 3 minutes, MP4 recommended
• Thumbnails: 1280x720 pixels, JPG or PNG, under 2 MB

Facebook

Facebook remains the world's largest social network by monthly active users, with approximately 3.07 billion users as of 2025. Video is one of the platform's biggest engagement drivers: video now accounts for more than 52% of all content consumed on Facebook, and users watch more than 140 billion video views on the platform every month.

Facebook Reels, the platform's short-form vertical video format, now account for more than 25% of all video impressions on Facebook and generate higher engagement than static posts or link posts. Reels achieve an engagement rate of 0.23%, compared to 0.08% for photos and 0.07% for text posts. Facebook Live continues to outperform pre-recorded content for comments and interactions. One important production note: approximately 85% of Facebook videos are watched without sound, making captions and on-screen text essential.

For more on Facebook's overall opportunities and challenges for brands, see our guide on the challenges and opportunities of Facebook for businesses.

• Pros: Massive global reach; Reels driving strong organic discovery; Facebook Live for real-time engagement; Meta Ads ecosystem shared with Instagram for cross-platform campaigns; strong tools for local businesses and community building.
• Cons: Organic reach for Page posts is very low (1 to 5% of followers); algorithm strongly deprioritizes external links; paid promotion increasingly required to reach new audiences.

Preferred specifications

• Feed video: MP4 or MOV, 9:16 or 16:9, 1080x1920 or 1920x1080, up to 240 minutes
• Reels: 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920 pixels, up to 90 seconds, MP4 recommended
• Facebook Live: 720p minimum, 16:9, up to 8 hours
• Audio: Muted by default in feed; always add captions

LinkedIn

If you are a B2B marketer, LinkedIn is one of your most important platforms, and video is now among its fastest-growing content formats. 97% of B2B marketers use LinkedIn as their primary platform for content distribution, and LinkedIn's engagement rate increased 44% year-over-year in 2025.

LinkedIn launched native video in 2017, and the format has grown substantially since. Video posts earn roughly 5 times more engagement than text posts on the platform, and LinkedIn now supports a dedicated video feed similar in format to TikTok's For You Page, optimized for short vertical video discovery. 97% of LinkedIn videos are posted in vertical format. Personal profiles generate 8 times more engagement than company pages, so founders and executives posting video content directly from their own profiles will see stronger performance than posting from a brand page alone.

• Pros: Best platform for B2B audiences and professional decision-makers; strong organic reach compared to Facebook; excellent for thought leadership and long-form video; now supports short-form video discovery feed.
• Cons: Not suited for B2C or entertainment-focused brands; video production expectations tend toward polished professional content; smaller total audience than Facebook, Instagram, or TikTok.

Preferred specifications

• Native video: MP4, 9:16 or 1:1 or 16:9, up to 10 minutes (up to 15 minutes from desktop), 256 MB maximum
• Video ads: MP4, 3 seconds to 30 minutes
• Recommended: Vertical 9:16 for feed discovery; square 1:1 for feed posts; always include captions

Instagram

Instagram crossed 3 billion monthly active users in September 2025, becoming only the fourth platform ever to reach that milestone. It remains the dominant platform for influencer marketing globally, and video is its primary reach driver.

Instagram Reels now drive over 20% of all time spent on Instagram and are distributed to non-followers by the algorithm, giving even new accounts the chance to reach large audiences. The average Reel achieves a 30.81% reach rate, the highest reach of any Instagram post format. Carousels are the highest-engagement format at 0.55% per post, with Reels close behind at 0.52%. Instagram Shopping lets brands tag products directly in Reels and feed posts, creating a seamless path from video discovery to purchase.

One significant platform change to note: in late 2024, Instagram removed the ability to follow hashtags, shifting how content is discovered. Keywords in captions and alt text now carry more weight for discovery than hashtags alone. For more on Instagram's marketing opportunities and challenges, see our guide on the challenges and opportunities of Instagram for businesses.

• Pros: 3 billion monthly active users; highest-reach short-form video format (Reels); dominant influencer marketing platform; Instagram Shopping for direct commerce; Meta Ads shared with Facebook.
• Cons: IGTV was discontinued in 2022; long-form video is limited to 60 minutes for eligible accounts; rising ad costs; hashtag discovery changes require updated content strategy.

Preferred specifications

• Reels: MP4 or MOV, 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920 pixels, up to 90 seconds (up to 15 minutes for eligible accounts)
• Feed video: MP4 or MOV, 1:1 or 4:5, up to 60 minutes
• Stories: MP4 or MOV, 9:16, 1080x1920, up to 60 seconds per clip
• Audio: Muted by default in feed; captions strongly recommended

TikTok

TikTok has become one of the world's most powerful marketing platforms, and the data is hard to argue with. TikTok has approximately 1.9 billion monthly active users globally as of early 2026, making it the fifth-largest social platform in the world. Users spend an average of 52 to 58 minutes per day on the app in the U.S., more than any other social platform, and the platform's average engagement rate of 3.70% is nearly 8 times Instagram's and 25 times Facebook's.

TikTok's For You Page algorithm is uniquely powerful for brand discovery: new accounts with zero followers can still go viral if the content resonates, because the algorithm distributes content to non-followers based on interest signals rather than follow relationships. TikTok Shop reached $64.3 billion in global GMV in 2025, a 94% year-over-year increase, making it the dominant social commerce surface globally.

One important update for U.S. marketers: after a period of regulatory uncertainty and a brief outage in early January 2025, TikTok's U.S. operations were formally restructured. On January 22, 2026, TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC officially closed, transferring 80.1% ownership to American investors led by Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX, with ByteDance retaining a 19.9% minority stake. The platform continues operating normally in the U.S. For more on how TikTok compares to other platforms for reaching younger audiences, see our guide on Instagram vs. Snapchat vs. TikTok for reaching teenagers.

• Pros: Unmatched organic reach for new accounts; highest engagement rate of any major social platform; powerful For You Page discovery algorithm; rapidly growing social commerce via TikTok Shop; strong Gen Z and Millennial audience.
• Cons: U.S. regulatory history creates some platform uncertainty; less effective for B2B audiences; organic reach is strong but ad costs are rising (average CPM ~$9.16); content must feel authentic and native to the platform.

Preferred specifications

• Feed video: MP4 or MOV, 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920 pixels, 15 seconds to 10 minutes (some accounts up to 60 minutes)
• Recommended length: 21 to 60 seconds for highest engagement; 1 minute or longer for Creator Rewards Program eligibility
• Audio: On by default; original audio and trending sounds both perform well

Pinterest

Pinterest is a visual discovery platform with a uniquely high-intent audience. Pinterest reached a record 619 million monthly active users globally in Q4 2025, with roughly 70% of its audience identifying as female. 85% of weekly Pinners have made a purchase based on a Pin from a brand, and the number-one reason people use Pinterest is to discover new brands and products.

Since launching video capabilities in 2016, Pinterest has seen consistent growth in video engagement. Video Pins autoplay in the feed, capturing attention without requiring a click. Idea Pins (Pinterest's multi-page video and image story format) generate strong engagement for DIY, recipe, fashion, beauty, and home improvement content. Retail brands see a 32% higher return on ad spend on Pinterest compared to other digital platforms, and Pinterest ads cost 2.3 times less per conversion than ads on other social platforms.

• Pros: Very high purchase intent; 2.3x lower cost per conversion than other platforms; strong for retail, food, fashion, beauty, and home categories; autoplay video captures attention in feed; long content lifespan (Pins surface in search results for months or years after posting).
• Cons: Audience skews heavily female (roughly 70%); less suited for B2B or technical content; smaller daily engagement window than TikTok or Instagram.

Preferred specifications

• Video Pins: MP4 or MOV, 2:3 or 9:16 vertical preferred, 1000x1500 or 1080x1920 pixels, 4 seconds to 15 minutes
• Idea Pins: 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920, up to 60 seconds per clip, up to 20 clips per Idea Pin
• Audio: Muted by default; always add on-screen text

Snapchat

Snapchat has grown to nearly 946 million monthly active users globally, and it reaches 90% of 13-to-24-year-olds in key markets, more than Facebook, Instagram, and Messenger combined for that demographic. Snapchat's augmented reality capabilities remain best-in-class, and its Spotlight feature (the platform's short-form video feed, similar to TikTok's For You Page) has grown substantially in viewership.

For brands, Snapchat's biggest differentiator is its AR lens capabilities, which allow brands to create immersive, interactive experiences directly within the camera. Snapchat users are 60% more likely to make an impulse purchase than users on other platforms. However, organic discoverability is limited outside of Spotlight: standard Snaps and Stories are only visible to people who already follow the account.

• Pros: Best-in-class AR capabilities; strong reach with 13-to-24 demographic; Spotlight offers organic video discovery for non-followers; users are 60% more likely to make an impulse purchase.
• Cons: Organic reach outside Spotlight is limited to existing followers; Sponsored Lenses and premium ad formats carry high minimum spends; less suited for B2B or older demographics; messaging-first nature makes brand content harder to discover.

Preferred specifications

• Snap ads: MP4 or MOV, 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920, 3 to 180 seconds
• Spotlight: MP4 or MOV, 9:16 vertical, 1080x1920, up to 60 seconds
• Story ads: Same dimensions, 3 to 60 seconds per tile
• Audio: On by default

X (formerly Twitter)

X (rebranded from Twitter in 2023) is primarily a text-first, real-time platform, but video content performs significantly better than text on the platform. X has an estimated 557 million monthly active users globally as of 2025. Video content on X receives up to 10 times more engagement than text-only posts, and native video outperforms linked video (from YouTube or other platforms) because the algorithm favors content that keeps users on the platform.

X is best suited for brands in tech, media, finance, news-driven industries, and entertainment: categories where real-time conversation is part of the marketing strategy. The platform skews significantly male (approximately 63%) and toward the 25-to-34 age bracket. For a full assessment of X's opportunities and challenges for brands, see our guide on the challenges and opportunities of X (formerly Twitter) for businesses.

• Pros: Real-time engagement; native video earns up to 10x more engagement than text; strong for news-driven, tech, and media brands; X Premium subscribers receive significantly expanded impression reach.
• Cons: Brand safety concerns have driven advertiser pullback; ad revenue declined significantly since 2021; platform changes under Musk ownership create uncertainty; not suited for most B2C consumer or lifestyle brands.

Preferred specifications

• Video posts: MP4 or MOV, 16:9 or 1:1, up to 1080x1080 or 1920x1080, up to 2 minutes 20 seconds (longer for X Premium subscribers)
• Video ads: MP4, 9:16, 1:1, or 16:9, 15 seconds recommended, up to 2 minutes 20 seconds
• Audio: Muted by default; captions recommended

Which platform is right for your brand?

There is no single best video platform, but there is a best platform for your specific audience, goals, and content style. Here is a quick-reference guide:

Start with one platform where your target audience is most concentrated. Build a consistent content rhythm there before adding a second platform. The most cost-effective short-form video strategy in 2025 and 2026 is to create one vertical video and repurpose it across TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, and Facebook Reels simultaneously, each natively uploaded rather than cross-posted with a competitor watermark.

For more on building your video content strategy, see our guides on 10 types of videos you can use in your marketing strategy, 7 tips for going live on any social media platform, 12 tips for professional live streaming, and video editing apps you should know about.

DailyStory helps businesses connect their video and social media marketing to broader marketing automation, email, and lead capture so every view has the best possible chance of becoming a customer. Schedule a free demo to see how.