Why is my reel blurry?
Usually one of five things: the app uploaded a lighter copy (Instagram has a setting for that), the platform is still processing the sharp version (YouTube says new uploads come in low quality first), the file was under the platform's floor of 720 pixels or 30 frames a second, a horizontal video was enlarged to fill a vertical frame, or the phone watching it is saving data. Below is what Instagram, TikTok and YouTube say on their own help pages, read on 7 November 2026, the settings to check, and what Burncaps writes when it captions your video.
- Read 7 Nov 2026
- 1080 x 1920 out
- Video never uploaded
Live preview, rendered on this page by the same engine that burns your video.
The usual causes, and what to check for each
The app sent a lighter copy
Instagram lets you choose to always upload reels at the highest quality, and says higher quality can take longer to upload (Instagram Help).
Check: Profile, menu, Media quality (under Your app and media), then turn on Upload at highest quality.
It is still processing
YouTube processes a new upload in low quality first; higher qualities can be missing for several hours, and the same goes for higher frame rates such as 60 (YouTube Help).
Check: Wait, or upload as unlisted and publish once HD shows, as YouTube suggests (YouTube Help).
The file is under the floor
Instagram asks for reels of at least 30 frames a second and 720 pixels; TikTok's support centre asks for 720 x 1280 or higher. Instagram also lists reels that are blurry or low resolution among those you may see less often (Instagram Help).
Check: The file's width, height and frame rate: the size checker reads the width, height and ratio on your device.
A horizontal video filled a vertical frame
No platform page; it is arithmetic: a 1920 x 1080 picture cut to 9:16 keeps a 608 x 1080 window, which is then enlarged to fill 1080 x 1920.
Check: Film vertically, or keep the whole picture over a soft, darker copy of itself (Fit everything, under More, then Shape).
Shake or soft focus
TikTok's Creator Academy advises a fixed position or a stabiliser to reduce shake and blur.
Check: A phone stand, and focus locked on your face before you record.
The viewer is saving data
Instagram's data settings decide when high-resolution media loads on the phone watching (on Android: never, Wi-Fi only, or mobile and Wi-Fi) (Instagram Help).
Check: Watch your own reel on Wi-Fi before you judge the upload.
Instagram's creators site describes what happens to every upload: it is uploaded, processed and delivered, and some quality can be lost at each step (Instagram for Creators, April 2026). Every page in this section was read on 7 November 2026; most show no date of their own. If a platform's page has changed since, its page is the authority.
The upload figures each platform prints
Only what each platform's own pages say. Where two of a platform's pages disagree, both are here.
| Platform | Size and shape | Frame rate | Codec, bitrate, file | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram Reels, help centre | Between 1.91:1 and 9:16; at least 720 pixels | At least 30 a second | None printed | help.instagram.com |
| Instagram Reels, developer page (apps that post through Instagram's API) | At most 1920 pixels across; 9:16 recommended | 23 to 60 a second | MOV or MP4, HEVC or H.264; variable bitrate, at most 25 Mbps; sound 128 kbps; up to 300 MB and 15 minutes | Meta for Developers, updated 28 Sep 2026 |
| Instagram Stories, developer page | At most 1920 pixels across | 23 to 60 a second | The same codecs and 25 Mbps; up to 100 MB and 60 seconds | The same page |
| TikTok, support centre | 720 x 1280 or higher | Not printed | MP4 or WebM, less than 10 GB, up to 30 minutes | TikTok Support |
| TikTok, developers' guide (apps that post through TikTok's API) | 360 to 4096 pixels a side | 23 to 60 a second | MP4 recommended (WebM, MOV); H.264 recommended (H.265, VP8, VP9); up to 4 GB | TikTok for Developers |
| TikTok, Creator Academy | 720p or higher; 1080p or higher for the Creator Rewards Program | Not printed | Up to 60 minutes and 10 GB | Creator Academy |
| YouTube Shorts | Up to 1080p, square or vertical | The frame rate it was recorded at | H.264, High Profile, variable bitrate; for 1080p, 8 Mbps at 24 to 30 frames a second and 12 Mbps at 48 to 60 | YouTube Help 10059070 and 1722171 |
| Facebook Reels, developer page | 1080 x 1920 recommended, at least 540 x 960 | 24 to 60 a second | H.264 or H.265; no bitrate printed | Meta for Developers, updated 30 Jul 2026 |
Where the pages disagree, and what they leave out
Instagram's help centre asks for at least 30 frames a second, and its developer page accepts 23 to 60. TikTok's pages give three upload limits: 30 minutes and 10 GB (support centre), 60 minutes and 10 GB (Creator Academy) and 4 GB through its API. YouTube's encoding page opens by saying its features are for partners who use YouTube Studio Content Manager, so read its bitrates as a guide. No Instagram help page and no TikTok page we read prints a bitrate, and no TikTok help page we read names an upload quality setting. Instagram's creators site recommends exporting at 2K, HDR and 60 frames a second for the best quality, in an article that also promotes its own Edits app.
What Burncaps writes when it captions your video
From the code that makes every export, so you can set it beside the figures above.
| What | Burncaps |
|---|---|
| File | An MP4 with H.264 video; HEVC (H.265) where a browser's H.264 encoder fails, as Safari's does on an iPhone at 1080 x 1920; a WebM only where neither works |
| Size | Clips, and a whole video set to Vertical 9:16, Portrait 4:5 or Square 1:1, come out at 1080 x 1920, 1080 x 1350 or 1080 x 1080 on a computer; Original keeps your recording's own size. A phone may write a smaller size when it is short of memory |
| Frame rate | The frame rate of your recording, read from the file: nothing is converted |
| Bitrate | The encoder is asked for width x height x frames a second x 0.09 bits, between 2 and 16 Mbps: about 5.6 Mbps at 1080 x 1920 and 30 frames a second, about 11.2 Mbps at 60. That is under the 25 Mbps ceiling on Instagram's developer page, and under YouTube's 8 Mbps figure for 1080p at 30 |
| Keyframes | One every 2 seconds |
| Sound | The whole video keeps your recording's own AAC sound untouched; a clip's sound is levelled to -14 LUFS and written as AAC at 128 kbps |
| Captions | Drawn as text at the output size, frame by frame, so they are as sharp as the file allows |
| Enlargement | When a shape enlarges the part of the picture it keeps more than one and a half times, the editor's summary line says "zoomed in to fill the shape, so a little softer than the original". Fit everything keeps the whole picture instead |
What it does not do
Burncaps does not sharpen a soft recording, raise its resolution or steady a shaky one, and it has no bitrate or file-size setting. Every platform re-encodes what you post, and we have not measured how each platform's copy of a Burncaps export compares with the file. Captions on the whole video take recordings up to ten minutes and 1.2 GB; clips come from recordings up to three hours. The video is read on your device and never uploaded.
Before you post: a short check
- Turn on Upload at highest quality in Instagram's Media quality settings, once.
- Film at 1080p or more, at 30 frames a second or 60, and keep that frame rate when you export.
- Film vertically for Reels, TikTok and Shorts, so nothing has to be enlarged.
- Steady the phone and lock the focus on your face.
- Post on Wi-Fi, and on YouTube give processing time before you judge the quality.
What it costs to caption it here
Free: 2 videos every 30 days, each with captions and up to 3 clips, no watermark, no sign-up. Then try Pro free for 7 days, no card. Pro is $29 a month for unlimited clips and captions; Starter is $9.98 a month or $49 once.
Questions, answered plainly
Why is my Instagram reel or story blurry after I post it?
The usual reasons are that the app uploaded a lighter copy (Instagram has a setting, Upload at highest quality, under Media quality), that the file was small or soft to begin with (Instagram asks for reels of at least 720 pixels and 30 frames a second), that a horizontal video was enlarged to fill a vertical frame, or that the phone watching it is saving data. Instagram's creators site says a little quality can be lost at every step of upload, processing and delivery.
How do I upload high quality video to Instagram?
Turn on Upload at highest quality: in the Instagram app, go to your profile, open the menu, tap Media quality under Your app and media, and turn on Upload at highest quality. Instagram says higher quality uploads may take longer. Then post a file that is at least 720 pixels and 30 frames a second, between 1.91:1 and 9:16, from Instagram's reel help page; 1080 x 1920 at the frame rate you filmed sits inside every figure Instagram prints.
What is the best frame rate for Instagram Reels?
Instagram's help page asks for at least 30 frames a second. Its developer page for apps that post reels accepts 23 to 60. Instagram's creators site recommends 60 for the best quality. YouTube's advice holds for every platform: keep the frame rate you recorded at, rather than converting it.
What is the best bitrate for Instagram Reels?
No Instagram help page prints one. The only figure on Instagram's own pages is on its developer page for apps that post reels through its API: variable bitrate, at most 25 Mbps, with 128 kbps sound and files up to 300 MB. Instagram re-encodes every upload, so a higher bitrate than that is not used.
Why are my TikTok videos blurry?
Check the file first: TikTok's support centre asks for 720 x 1280 or higher, and its Creator Academy asks for 1080p or higher for videos in the Creator Rewards Program. Its Creator Academy also advises a steady camera, on a stand or a stabiliser, to reduce shake and blur. TikTok's own help pages we read name no setting for upload quality, and no bitrate.
Why does my YouTube Short look low quality?
Often because it is still processing. YouTube Help says a new upload is processed in low quality first and that higher qualities can be missing for several hours, and that the same goes for higher frame rates such as 60. Shorts upload at up to 1080p. YouTube suggests uploading as unlisted first and publishing once the higher qualities are there.
Does Burncaps make a blurry video sharp?
No. Burncaps does not sharpen a recording or raise its resolution. It writes clips and reshaped videos at 1080 x 1920 on a computer, keeps the frame rate you recorded at, and burns captions in as sharp text drawn at that size. A soft or shaky recording stays soft or shaky.
What does Burncaps export?
An MP4 with H.264 video, or HEVC (H.265) where a browser's H.264 encoder fails, as Safari's does on an iPhone at 1080 x 1920. It keeps the frame rate of your recording and asks the encoder for about 5.6 Mbps at 1080 x 1920 and 30 frames a second, about 11.2 Mbps at 60. A clip's sound is AAC at 128 kbps; the whole video keeps your recording's own AAC sound.
Burncaps facts, checked 7 November 2026
What it is: a browser tool that burns animated word-by-word captions into a talking video, or finds the best moments of a talk, podcast or interview and gives them back as ranked, captioned 9:16 clips.
Price: free for 2 videos every 30 days, each one recording with its captioned video and up to 3 clips, no mark and no sign-up; then the free 7-day Pro trial, no card (your email only); then Pro, $29 a month, gives unlimited clips and captioned videos, or Starter, $9.98 a month or $49 once, gives unlimited captioned videos. Starter paid once is not a subscription.
Privacy: the video never leaves your browser. The sound goes only to our speech service, on a phone unless you switch it off, on a computer only if you choose it. Because the video never reaches us, we cannot keep it or train AI on it, and we train no AI on anything you make.
Files: MP4 or MOV in, MP4 out. Captions on the whole video: up to ten minutes. Clips: up to three hours, on a phone or a computer. SRT, VTT, ASS and text files are free without limit for recordings up to ten minutes; a longer recording, up to three hours, gives its script and those files (the first ten minutes free, all of it as one of your free videos, in the trial or with Pro or Starter) and its clips (every one found and shown before you sign up; up to 3 from each free video exported free, every one in the trial or with Pro).
Clips: about one clip for every two minutes of talk, up to 30, ranked, the ones we would post first circled, each showing the words it opens and ends on and the reason it was chosen; each cut to 9:16 with ums and dead air removed, an opening card and captions, framed on whoever is talking. Every clip of the whole recording is found and shown, free and with no sign-up; each free video exports up to 3 of them, and the 7-day trial and Pro export every clip, unlimited.
Languages and styles: captions in the language spoken, twelve Indian languages heard on your device, translation into 59 languages, 60 caption styles.
After it listens: correct any word (one click changes it everywhere), add or cut words, one to six words at a time, position, size, text and highlight colours, and names this browser remembers, all free and without listening again.
Made by: Jordan Labs Ltd, UK company no. 17358646.
Against other tools: sixteen caption tools compared, from the vendors' own pages.