200+ Must-Know Social Media Video Statistics for Smart Marketers

Video has become a part of everyday life on social media. Whether someone’s watching a short clip during a coffee break or diving into a longer video on YouTube, it’s clear that video content is where attention is going.

For marketers, this shift brings many opportunities but also many questions. What works best? Where are people really watching? Finally, how do you ensure your content doesn’t get lost in the scroll?

That’s what our collection of 200+ social media video statistics is here for. It puts together the numbers that help you make better decisions, whether trying to improve engagement, test new formats, or fine-tune your strategy across platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

No filler, no basic stuff, just useful data you can rely on to guide your next move with confidence.

Platform-Specific Video Stats

TikTok videos under 20 seconds receive 31% higher engagement than longer ones.

YouTube videos that include timestamps have a 24% higher average watch duration.

Instagram Reels with trending audio are saved 47% more often than those with non-trending sounds.

Native video posts on LinkedIn are watched 52% longer than video links shared from YouTube.

Facebook videos that autoplay with sound off retain viewers 33% longer when captions are added.

On Pinterest, video pins are 2.6x more likely to be repinned than image pins.

YouTube videos with community tab promotion see a 17% increase in click-through rate within the first 48 hours.

TikTok videos average 1.8x more shares per view than Instagram Reels.

Reels with location tags on Instagram have a 38% higher reach than those without.

On LinkedIn, videos that include subtitles generate an engagement rate of 2.1%, compared to 1.3% for videos without them.

Shorts make up 34% of all daily video uploads on YouTube in the last 6 months.

Facebook live videos have a comment rate of 4.3%, while pre-recorded videos average 1.9%.

Instagram videos with square formatting outperform landscape videos by 22% in engagement on mobile.

Engagement & Watch Time Statistics

Videos that grab attention in the first 3 seconds see a 65% higher average watch time.

Social media videos that include captions experience 38% more engagement than those without.

The average viewer watches 62% of a video before scrolling away.

Adding a call-to-action button can increase engagement by 28% on average.

On Instagram, videos that include quick cuts retain viewers for 41% longer than those with slow pacing.

Short-form videos under 45 seconds generate 53% more likes than videos over two minutes.

Reels with interactive stickers (polls, quizzes) see 34% more user engagement than those without.

TikTok videos with a like-to-view ratio of over 10% are 4.5x more likely to appear on the For You page.

Facebook videos between 60–90 seconds have an average completion rate of 52%, compared to 29% for videos over 3 minutes.

YouTube videos with over 70% average watch time often rank 2.3x higher in search than those below 50%.

Engagement rate on videos that include viewer questions is 6.2%, compared to 3.9% for those that don’t.

Videos that include a face on-screen retain viewers for 49% longer than those that don’t.

On average, viewers watch TikTok videos for 26 seconds, while Instagram Reels average 19 seconds of active watch time.

Video Content Types & Formats

Short-form videos under 60 seconds have a 2.1x higher completion rate than long-form videos over 3 minutes.

Live videos generate an average of 10x more comments than pre-recorded content on Facebook.

Reels outperform Stories by 39% in terms of reach on Instagram.

User-generated videos deliver 4.3% higher engagement rates compared to brand-created content.

In-feed video ads have a view-through rate of 47%, compared to 22% for pre-roll ads.

Videos with captions retain viewers for 31% longer than those without.

Silent videos have a 28% lower engagement rate compared to sound-on videos.

Stories with swipe-up links see a 15% higher exit rate than those without links.

Mid-roll ads result in 3.2x higher abandonment rates than in-feed ads on mobile.

Long-form YouTube content (8+ minutes) receives 54% more watch time per video than content under 3 minutes.

Sound-on videos receive a 64% higher reaction rate than muted videos when viewed on desktop.

User-generated Reels on Instagram are shared 2.6x more often than branded Reels.

Videos with both captions and background music retain viewers for 43% longer than those with neither.

Audience Behavior & Preferences

Viewers aged 18–24 engage with short-form videos at a rate of 73%, which is 52% higher than those aged 35–44, who engage at 48%.

Mobile users watch video content 2.6x longer than desktop users on average.

Women are 37% more likely to share video content related to lifestyle, wellness, and inspiration.

Men engage with product-focused videos at a rate 43% higher than women.

Videos posted between 6 PM and 9 PM see a 29% increase in engagement compared to morning uploads.

Users in Southeast Asia watch an average of 84 minutes of social video per day, while North American users average 61 minutes.

On weekends, average watch time increases by 34% compared to weekdays.

Desktop viewers are 42% more likely to skip videos longer than 2 minutes, while mobile viewers skip at 27%.

Videos in local languages drive 53% more engagement in non-English speaking regions.

Viewers aged 25–34 watch user-generated videos 68% more often than branded content.

Late-night videos posted between 11 PM and 1 AM retain viewers 23% longer among Gen Z audiences.

In urban regions, short-form content outperforms long-form by 48%, while in rural areas, the gap is only 19%.

Mobile video views in Latin America have grown 2.2x faster than desktop views in the past year.

Video Marketing ROI & Conversion Stats

Videos on landing pages increase average conversion rates by 57%.

Product videos on e-commerce sites boost purchase intent by 63% on average.

Social video ads have a click-through rate of 1.84%, compared to 0.59% for display ads.

Video marketing campaigns deliver 41% higher ROI compared to static image-based campaigns.

Customers who watch a product video are 2.3x more likely to complete a purchase than those who don’t.

Instagram video ads generate 24% higher return on ad spend than image ads.

Videos in emails increase click-through rates by 47% on average.

Short product demos under 90 seconds convert at a rate of 7.1%, while longer demos convert at 4.6%.

Facebook video ads with captions have a 12.5% conversion rate, compared to 6.9% without captions.

On TikTok, influencer video campaigns yield a 5.3% engagement-to-conversion ratio, while brand-only videos yield 2.1%.

Businesses that use video in retargeting see a 67% higher conversion rate than those using static creatives.

YouTube pre-roll ads longer than 15 seconds result in 34% lower completion-to-click conversion than skippable ads under 10 seconds.

Explainer videos on product pages increase the average order value by 18%.

Trends & Growth Over Time

Social media video content saw a 42% increase in total watch time compared to the previous year.

The use of short-form video in marketing campaigns rose by 61% over the last 12 months.

Video content now represents 58% of all posts by brands on Instagram in 2025, up from 39% in 2023.

Ad spend on video increased by 37%, while image-based ad spend dropped by 14% year-over-year.

Facebook Reels uploads grew 2.4x in volume over the past 9 months.

Short-form video now accounts for 71% of total video views across social platforms, up from 49% the previous year.

Brands that shifted more than 50% of their content to video saw a 33% boost in engagement compared to the year prior.

YouTube Shorts contributed to 28% of new channel growth, while long-form content contributed 19%.

In the last year, the number of marketers using video in email campaigns increased from 36% to 59%.

TikTok ad impressions grew by 3.1x, while Instagram video ad impressions doubled within the same period.

The average time users spent watching videos on social media increased from 62 minutes to 81 minutes per day.

Stories content saw 1.7x more usage by brands this year compared to last.

Video was included in 72% of paid social campaigns this year, compared to 55% the year before.

Algorithm & Reach Insights

Videos that receive over 50% of their total engagement within the first hour are 3.6x more likely to be boosted by platform algorithms.

TikTok videos with hashtags relevant to the niche perform 27% better in terms of organic reach than generic-tagged content.

Facebook prioritizes videos with completion rates above 65%, pushing them to 2.2x more feeds.

Instagram Reels that use trending audio reach 43% more non-followers than those without.

YouTube videos with a like-to-dislike ratio above 10:1 are 2.7x more likely to appear in the “Up Next” section.

Native video uploads on LinkedIn reach 61% more users compared to YouTube link shares.

Posts with video see an average organic reach rate of 8.9%, while image-based posts reach 4.6%.

On TikTok, videos with a strong hook in the first 3 seconds are 2.4x more likely to land on the For You page.

Instagram Reels using at least one keyword in the caption receive 36% more search impressions.

YouTube videos with chapters gain 17% more reach through related video placement.

Facebook Watch videos longer than 3 minutes are shown to 41% more users than those under 60 seconds.

LinkedIn videos shared within niche industry groups reach 3.1x more viewers than those posted on main feeds.

Videos that generate early saves and shares are promoted by Instagram 2.2x more than videos with only likes.

Video Ads Performance

The average CPM for in-feed video ads on Instagram is $5.94, while Facebook averages $7.21.

Video ads have a 1.9% conversion rate, compared to 0.8% for static image ads on social platforms.

Skippable YouTube ads under 15 seconds retain 71% of viewers until the CTA, while non-skippable ads retain 56%.

The average CPV (cost per view) for YouTube ads is $0.03, while TikTok averages $0.06.

Retargeting with video ads results in a 47% higher click-through rate than static retargeting ads.

Facebook video ad campaigns using lookalike audiences achieve an average ROAS of 4.2x.

TikTok video ads with high audience interaction (comments, shares) have a 2.6x lower CPC than those without interaction.

Instagram Stories video ads have a 1.7% average CTR, compared to 0.9% for Feed video ads.

Mid-roll Facebook video ads are skipped 62% of the time when shown after the first minute.

YouTube bumper ads (6 seconds) cost an average of $4.10 CPM, compared to $9.80 for non-skippable 30-second ads.

Video ads with subtitles convert at 2.1%, while ads without subtitles convert at 1.3%.

Brands using video ads in retargeting sequences see a 31% reduction in cart abandonment.

LinkedIn video ads have an average CPC of $5.82, while static LinkedIn ads average $8.13.

Creator & Influencer Video Metrics

Influencer videos on Instagram generate 3.4x more saves than brand-posted videos.

TikTok creators with under 100K followers see 62% higher engagement rates than those with over 1M.

YouTube creators who post Shorts and long-form videos together experience a 47% increase in overall watch time.

Sponsored videos by micro-influencers (under 50K followers) convert at 3.1%, compared to 1.4% for mega-influencers.

Influencer content that includes behind-the-scenes footage receives 28% more comments on average.

Videos where creators directly mention a product see a 2.6x higher click-through rate than those with only visual placement.

Instagram Reels posted by verified influencers reach 42% more non-followers than unverified accounts.

Influencer-led product demos on TikTok have a 5.7% average engagement rate, while branded content averages 2.3%.

Videos under 45 seconds posted by creators have a 39% higher share rate than videos over two minutes.

Creator collaborations featuring two or more influencers generate 3.2x the watch time compared to solo videos.

TikTok duets see 2.1x more interactions than original standalone videos.

YouTube creators who include subscriber CTAs within the first 15 seconds experience a 19% higher sub conversion rate.

Influencer reviews that use subtitles hold viewer attention 33% longer than those without.

Vertical-Specific Video Stats

Beauty tutorials on Instagram Reels generate an average engagement rate of 5.2%, compared to 3.6% for static posts.

Tech product videos on YouTube receive 64% more average watch time than videos in other categories.

Fitness influencers using time-lapse workout videos see 2.3x more saves than those using real-time formats.

Food recipe videos under 60 seconds on TikTok have a 72% completion rate.

Fashion try-on hauls on YouTube Shorts average 3.9% engagement, compared to 2.1% for standard lookbook uploads.

Restaurant video ads on Facebook have a 1.6% click-through rate, while retail video ads average 0.9%.

Health and wellness videos with narration perform 41% better in retention than those without voiceover.

Automotive walkthrough videos on Instagram receive 44% more direct messages than any other product category.

Skincare product demos led by influencers result in a 3.7% conversion rate, while brand-only videos average 1.5%.

Travel destination videos with drone footage retain viewers 26% longer than handheld vlogs.

Real estate listings using vertical video formats on Facebook see a 54% higher engagement rate than listings using horizontal formats.

Educational videos in the finance niche average 6.1% watch time when presented in animated explainer style.

Beauty reviews with side-by-side product comparisons are shared 3.4x more than single-product demos.

User-Generated Content (UGC) Video Stats

UGC videos drive 4.1x higher click-through rates than brand-produced videos.

Videos featuring real customer testimonials generate 6.3% engagement, compared to 2.8% for scripted brand testimonials.

Instagram Reels that use UGC clips see a 49% increase in saves compared to original brand-created Reels.

UGC TikTok videos tagged with branded hashtags are shared 3.6x more than branded content.

Brands that incorporate UGC into their video ads see a 28% higher return on ad spend.

UGC videos with unfiltered, behind-the-scenes content have a 2.2x longer average watch time than polished branded content.

Facebook video ads that include UGC have a 2.7% conversion rate, compared to 1.1% for brand-only creatives.

On YouTube, review-style UGC content drives 31% more comments than official product videos.

Campaigns featuring UGC result in 45% more brand mentions than campaigns using only branded content.

TikTok videos that stitch UGC with original content reach 62% more viewers than standalone brand posts.

Videos using UGC from nano-influencers (under 10K followers) perform 1.9x better than those using macro-influencers.

Consumers are 3.4x more likely to trust video content from other users than from the brand itself.

UGC compilation videos generate 2.6x more shares than single-submission videos.

Video Length vs. Performance

Videos between 21–30 seconds have the highest average completion rate at 64%.

Instagram Reels under 15 seconds receive 29% more shares than longer Reels.

TikTok videos between 10–20 seconds generate a 51% higher average engagement rate than those over 45 seconds.

YouTube videos longer than 10 minutes account for 72% of total platform watch time.

Facebook videos under 1 minute have a 42% higher view-through rate than those over 2 minutes.

LinkedIn videos between 30–60 seconds achieve a 2.6% engagement rate, compared to 1.4% for longer content.

Viewers are 3.1x more likely to finish a video under 30 seconds than one over 90 seconds.

Short-form videos (<60s) average 5.8% engagement, while long-form videos (>3min) average 2.3%.

TikTok videos that run between 20–30 seconds retain viewers 37% longer than videos over a minute.

YouTube Shorts between 15–20 seconds get 2.2x more likes per view than Shorts longer than 40 seconds.

On Facebook, video ads that are under 45 seconds convert at 3.2%, compared to 1.9% for those over two minutes.

Instagram Stories that stay within 5–7 seconds per frame hold attention 41% longer than full 15-second slides.

Explainer videos that fall within the 60–90 second range produce 19% more click-throughs than those over two minutes.

Story Format vs. Feed Video

Instagram Stories with video receive 28% more replies than static story images.

Feed videos generate 3.6x more likes on average than Stories for product-focused content.

Story videos with poll stickers drive 45% more interaction than those without any engagement element.

TikTok-like Stories on Instagram are viewed 2.2x faster than standard feed videos.

Facebook feed videos have an average watch time of 26 seconds, while Facebook Stories average 14 seconds.

Brand messages in feed videos are remembered 37% more often than in Stories.

On Instagram, feed videos with captions achieve a 3.1% engagement rate, compared to 2.4% for Stories with captions.

Stories with native product tags lead to 1.8x more swipe-ups than those with external link stickers.

Feed video ads have a 2.6% click-through rate, while Story ads average 1.3%.

Stories uploaded in vertical format retain viewers 33% longer than horizontal feed videos.

Feed videos are 2.4x more likely to be saved than Stories, especially for tutorials and tips.

On average, users watch 5.3 story frames per brand account before exiting.

Stories with a strong CTA in the final frame have a 31% higher tap-forward completion rate than those without a CTA.

Mobile vs. Desktop Viewing Stats

Mobile accounts for 79% of all social video views globally.

Vertical videos receive 4.1x more engagement on mobile than on desktop.

Desktop viewers are 2.6x more likely to skip videos longer than 90 seconds.

Mobile users are 3.8x more likely to watch videos with the sound off compared to desktop viewers.

The average video session duration on mobile is 87 seconds, while desktop sessions average 51 seconds.

Videos autoplaying on mobile retain viewer attention 31% longer than autoplay on desktop.

Click-through rates for video ads are 1.7% on mobile, compared to 0.9% on desktop.

On YouTube, mobile users contribute 65% of total watch time, while desktop account for 28%.

Social media users on mobile are 2.2x more likely to interact with video polls and stickers than desktop users.

Mobile viewers are 1.9x more likely to watch short-form content under 30 seconds than desktop viewers.

Videos designed for mobile (vertical or square format) see 53% higher completion rates than landscape videos on desktop.

Video buffering rates are 41% lower on mobile apps than desktop browsers.

Mobile users are 2.5x more likely to share videos immediately after watching compared to desktop users.

Video Posting Frequency & Performance

Brands that post video content 3–4 times per week see a 42% higher engagement rate than those posting once weekly.

Posting short-form videos daily increases follower growth by 2.8x compared to posting twice per week.

YouTube channels that publish 2 videos per week experience 61% more monthly watch time than those uploading biweekly.

Instagram accounts posting Reels 4 times per week have a 3.4% engagement rate, while those posting once weekly average 1.9%.

Consistent weekly posting leads to a 39% increase in average reach over 90 days.

TikTok creators posting 5+ times per week retain 2.2x more viewers than those posting 1–2 times weekly.

Facebook pages that post at least one video per day have a 26% higher share rate than pages posting less frequently.

Posting a video every 48–72 hours results in a 3.1x boost in discoverability across most social platforms.

YouTube channels posting daily experience a 17% lower average engagement per video compared to those posting 2–3 times per week.

Accounts that post sporadically (less than once per week) see 51% lower average watch time than regular posters.

Instagram Reels posted on consistent days (e.g., every Tuesday and Friday) perform 28% better in reach than randomly posted content.

TikTok engagement begins to decline by 18% when more than 3 videos are posted in a single day.

Brands that reduce posting frequency from 4 videos to 1 per week experience a 45% drop in total video impressions.

The Bottom Line 

With so much video content out there, it’s easy to feel like you’re guessing your way through it. But when you look at the numbers, things start to make a lot more sense. 

These 200+ stats highlight where people are spending time, what catches their interest, and which platforms are worth investing in. And that kind of insight makes a real difference, especially when you’re trying to stand out in a fast-moving space.

Instead of following trends or relying on hunches, now you have the data to back your choices. Whether you're creating bite-sized content for TikTok, planning long-form videos for YouTube, or running ads across multiple channels, this list gives you a clearer picture of what works. 

Keep it as a reference, use it to support your ideas, and let it help you focus on what moves the needle.