Free reference
Every platform, side by side
The specifications that differ between platforms, in one table, each one carrying the date a human last checked it against the platform’s own documentation. Not an infographic — a real table, so you can copy a cell.
Newest verification 24 September 2026 · what has changed
| Specification | TikTok | YouTube | X | Snapchat | WhatsApp Business | Threads | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Text limit | 2,200 characters | 4,000 characters | 63,206 characters (40–80 characters get the best engagement) | — | 3,000 characters (first ~210 show before 'see more') | 280 characters free; up to 25,000 for Premium subscribers | — | — | — | 60 seconds per status video | 500 characters |
| Bio or headline | 150 characters | 80 characters | — | — | 220 characters | 160 characters | 500 characters | — | — | — | — |
| Longest video | 3 minutes (up to 20 minutes for some accounts via uploads) | 10 minutes (60 minutes for some accounts); sweet spot 21–34 seconds | 90 seconds | 3 minutes | 15 minutes (mobile upload 10 minutes) | 2 minutes 20 seconds free; up to ~4 hours for Premium | 4 seconds to 15 minutes; 6–15 seconds recommended | up to 60 seconds | — | — | 5 minutes |
| Video aspect ratio | 9:16 vertical, 1080×1920 | 9:16 vertical, 1080×1920 | 4:5 recommended in feed; 9:16 for Reels and Stories | 9:16 vertical, 1080×1920 | — | — | — | 9:16 vertical, up to 5 minutes; short performs best | — | — | — |
| Image or still ratio | 1:1, 4:5 or 3:4 (4:5 recommended for reach) | — | — | 1280×720, under 2MB, JPG/PNG | — | 16:9 or 1:1; up to 4 images per post | 2:3 vertical, 1000×1500 recommended | — | — | — | — |
| Carousel or multi-post | 20 slides | 35 images | — | — | — | — | — | — | text, link, image, video, poll — norms vary by subreddit | — | — |
| What the ranking rewards | watch time and completion, likes, shares (sends per reach), saves, relationship history | completion rate and rewatches, shares, comments, likes, interest signals from watch behaviour | meaningful interactions (comments, shares), watch time, relationship closeness, content type preferences | click-through rate, watch time and average view duration, session time, viewer satisfaction surveys | early comments and dwell time, relevance to professional interests, creator-audience relationship; links often reduce reach | replies and engagement velocity, Premium boost, media attachments, recency; external links often deprioritised | keyword relevance in titles/descriptions/boards, Pin quality and freshness, saves and closeups, domain quality | watch time and completion, favourites, shares, freshness | upvote velocity and ratio, comments, subreddit size and engagement; 'hot' favours fast early traction | — | engagement on recent posts, topic relevance; text-first conversational culture |
| UK monetisation | brand partnerships, affiliate, badges in Live, subscriptions (bonuses vary by invitation) | Creator Rewards Program (10,000 followers + 100,000 views/30 days), LIVE gifts, TikTok Shop affiliate | in-stream ads, stars, subscriptions, branded content (eligibility thresholds apply) | 1,000 subscribers + 4,000 public watch hours (or 10M Shorts views in 90 days); fan-funding access from 500 subscribers | — | longer posts, edit, revenue sharing on ads in replies, creator subscriptions | — | — | — | — | — |
A dash means we do not track that specification for that platform, rather than that it has none. Every value links back to its source on the platform page. Download it as a spreadsheet →
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