Why does social media compress my video?
Platforms may produce delivery renditions for playback. Re-encoding can lose detail, but visible softness also depends on the source and playback settings. Do not assume every quality change has the same cause.
Check these first
- Compare the local original with the delivered rendition
- Wait for processing and check the playback quality setting
Likely causes
- Platform processing may change quality
The delivered rendition can differ from the upload. Compare the original, the completed processed version and the selected playback quality before attributing visible damage to a particular cause.
- The source was already heavily compressed
Re-compressing a file that has already been through lossy compression once (or several times, if it was re-shared) compounds the quality loss. The blur or blockiness may be baked in before this platform touches it.
Fix it
- Upload the highest-quality source you have
It won't stop re-encoding, but it gives the platform's encoder more to work with than an already-compressed copy.
Check your file
Extension and MIME type are labels, not proof of the container. Dimensions and duration come from this browser's media reader. This does not detect codecs, bitrate, corruption or platform upload compatibility. Files and measurements are not sent anywhere.
Prepare a copy in Koldflux, review its output and check the current destination requirements before publishing.
Automate this in Koldflux