When you’re planning social media posts, knowing the current guidelines and limits by platform helps you immensely in crafting content that resonates and reaches more people.
All social platforms are different – LinkedIn now supports videos up to 25 minutes on desktop, while TikTok and Instagram perform better with portrait-style videos. The limits keep evolving, and staying current is crucial. There are also different requirements (or recommendations) for content-based posts – how long can they be? What kind of content is more likely to be seen by your audience?
You could work for days on a beautiful calendar with social media posts about your firm, your team, client quotes, success stories, and “day in the life videos”, and then come to post them and discover oh…this one is too long. That one is too short. This one you included a link which no one can click on.
So here are a few quick guides for you (click to jump to the guide):
- X (formerly Twitter)
- Instagram (Grid)
- Instagram (Reels)
- Instagram (Stories)
- Instagram (Threads)
- TikTok
Use these to understand quickly what image sizes, video lengths, type of posts, and types of links you can be sharing on each platform.
Bear in mind as you read:
- Social media platform limits change all the time. We’ll do our best to keep this updated, but always double check before you spend hours on content creation. Just search “length of instagram reel” or “do i put a link in the post or the comments on linkedin”.
- There’s a difference between “words” and “characters”. Word count is as it sounds: the actual words. Character count includes spaces and returns, so every keystroke matters.
- Every platform is different, so use “stackable content” to share the same content in different ways. Stackable content means you take one piece of content you’ve already created (a blog post, a video, a social post), adjust it for another platform and share it again in a different way. For example, we could write this blog post about all the social media platforms, and then create imagery to show you each platform individually, and post the image and some of the core content on the relevant platform (LinkedIn guide information shared on LinkedIn, Insta guide information shared on Insta, etc).
Here’s a quick visual summary of the specifications for posting video across different social media platforms!
LinkedIn: recommendations for content & video posts
The LinkedIn platform is one of the favourites for accountants. It’s best used for: (read the how-to guide here)
- Making connections with people in your industry and audience
- Building a presence to become recognisable and known for your expertise
- Continuing relationships you’ve started, or built in the past
- Sharing thought leadership content via Articles and Newsletters
LinkedIn: Length of post
- The maximum length of a LinkedIn post is 3000 characters
- After 210 characters (recently updated from 140), your post will cut off and show the ‘see more’ button
- This isn’t about being click-baity: it’s about getting to the point, FAST
LinkedIn: Type of content that works best
- Thought-provoking content that sparks conversation
- Polls: people love to give their opinion! Plus you can see what individual people voted
- Videos: helps people feel like they are connecting with you personally
- Carousel posts: these now perform extremely well on the platform
- LinkedIn Newsletters: build a subscriber base directly in the platform
LinkedIn: Article content length
- You can post a LinkedIn article, which is like a blog post sitting within the LinkedIn platform
- LinkedIn will prioritise this content as it keeps users on the platform
- Articles can be up to 100,000 characters long
- LinkedIn Newsletters are now available to most users (combining article features with subscriber options)
- One downside is that LinkedIn articles live solely on their platform—not your website. Always save a copy elsewhere so you own your work regardless of platform changes.
- You can safely repurpose your website blog content into LinkedIn articles without Google penalties for “duplicate content.” Consider publishing on your site first, then adapting for LinkedIn after a few days for maximum SEO benefit.
LinkedIn: Image type & size
- Using an image can help to draw attention, especially if it’s of yourself personally (sometimes people add a selfie image just to get more views!)
- Size limits: 1200 x 1200 pixels (square), 1080 x 1350 (portrait)
- Carousels: multiple images in a single post, now with much better functionality
LinkedIn: Hashtags
- Using hashtags can help get you more views, clicks and connections
- 3-5 hashtags is now considered optimal (not too many)
- Sprinkle the #hashtags throughout your #content, #likethis. (Rather than putting them all at the end, as you’d do on an Insta post.)
- When someone clicks on a hashtag, it brings up all the posts about that specific topic and they can search for other content using those hashtags
- (You can do this too, if you’re looking to find what hashtags are best to use)
LinkedIn: People & user mentions
- The more people you tag, the more your post will be seen as it’ll be shown to their network as well as yours
- Be cautious with this and keep it authentic: only tag people who are genuinely connected to the post, not randomly just to get more views
- You can tag individual people you’re connected to by typing @ followed by their name (ie @karen reyburn), or a company (@we are pf)
- You can also tag people you are NOT connected to (such as @brene brown): again, use this judiciously. If you’re writing a post about a book it makes sense to tag the author.
LinkedIn: Video length and style
- Up to 25 minutes for desktop uploads, 15 minutes for mobile uploads
- Short videos (30-90 seconds) still perform best
- Upload your video “natively” rather than sharing a YouTube link
- Videos now automatically play with sound off, so captions are essential
X (formerly Twitter): recommendations for content & video posts
X is evolving rapidly, but remains a favourite for accountants talking to each other (see the #taxtwitter hashtag!). It’s best used for: (read the how-to guide here)
- Posting short form content which sparks conversations
- Starting & building relationships via comments and shares
- Connecting to people at events
- Joining Communities related to your expertise
X: Length of posts
- Standard accounts: 280 characters (including spaces, emojis, symbols)
- Premium subscribers: Up to 4,000 characters
- Posts with higher engagement now show view counts
X: Type of content that works best
- Short form, conversational content
- “Threads”: a series of connected posts that tell a longer story
- Community posts: share content specifically to groups of like-minded users
X: Video length
- Standard accounts: Up to 2 minutes 20 seconds
- Premium subscribers: Up to 2 hours
- Portrait or landscape both work well
- Native uploads get better algorithm treatment than YouTube links
X: Subtitles/captions
- X now offers automatic caption generation
- You can still upload your own subtitle files (SRT format)
- Captions are essential as most videos play silently by default
X: Images
- Images help get visibility on X
- You can share up to 4 images or videos in one post
- Image size recommended: 1600 x 900 pixels
- Images with text overlay now perform better than plain images
X: Hashtags
- These trend on X and people often use them to search for posts about that topic. You can see what hashtags are trending within the X app
- Hashtags remain important for discoverability
- Use 1-2 hashtags at most in an X post
- You can now follow hashtags related to your industry
X: People & user mentions
- Tag relevant accounts by typing @ followed by their username (e.g., @karenlreyburn)
- When you upload photos, you can tag up to 10 accounts in the image itself
- Tagging sends notifications to users, increasing the chance they’ll engage with or share your post
- Remember that @mentions count toward your character limit (the username length plus the @ symbol)
- Strategic tagging can significantly expand your post’s reach when tagged accounts respond
- New feature: You can now mention Communities using the @ symbol to share content directly with those groups
Instagram (Grid): recommendations for content & video posts
Instagram remains highly visual with images and videos taking priority. It’s best used for: (read the how-to guide here)
- Visually expressing yourself (your purpose, your brand)
- Helping the right type of client find you
- Day to day updates on life & business (particularly stories – read on below)
Instagram Grid Posts: Length of posts
- 2200 character limit for a post caption (the content which goes along with your image or video)
- Your post will be truncated at 125 characters, and viewers can click “see more” if they want to read the rest
- You can continue in comments, but these may get buriedInstagram Grid Posts: Links
- Links ARE now clickable in post captions for all accounts (yay!)
- You can still use “link in bio” tools to host multiple links
- Stories allow swipe-up links for all accounts (not just 10k+ followers)
Instagram Grid Posts: Type of content that works best
- Visual & eye-catching posts remain crucial
- Carousel posts (multiple slides) now get the highest engagement
- Video content is prioritised in the algorithm
Instagram Grid Posts: Image size
- Instagram now supports multiple aspect ratios:
- Square: 1080 x 1080 pixels
- Portrait: 1080 x 1350 pixels
- Landscape: 1080 x 608 pixels
Instagram Grid post: Hashtags
- Best practice is now 3-5 highly relevant hashtags (not 20-30)
- Instagram is moving away from hashtag-based discovery
- Use niche, specific hashtags rather than broad ones
Instagram Grid Post: People & user mentions
- Tag other accounts and they’ll be able to share the post to their account. Either as a ‘collaborator’ (meaning it shows up on their own grid), or to their story which means your post is shared to their followers for 24 hours
- Like other social platforms, you can tag people or companies you’re connected to by typing @ and the name (ie @karen reyburn will bring up @karenlreyburn username)
- When you upload a photo, you can tag people in that photo (max of 20 usernames)
- Tagging people in your posts sends them a notification and means they can easily reshare your post in their Instagram Story for that day
Instagram (Reels): recommendations for video reels
An Instagram video is called a “reel”. Reels get a higher priority within the app and these are best used for: (read the how-to guide here)
- Building relationships & being present
- Sharing valuable, quick insights
- Following trends while adapting them to your brand
Instagram reel length
- Up to 3 minutes (increased from 90 seconds)
- 15-30 second reels still perform best
Instagram reel style & size
- Portrait, 1080 x 1920 pixels
- Uses full-screen vertical format
Instagram reel captions
- Auto-captioning is available and highly recommended
- You can edit auto-generated captions for accuracy
- Add text overlays for key points (such as key numbers/statistics, deadlines, step-by-step points etc.)
Instagram (Stories): recommendations for images & video
Instagram Stories are a place for you to share images or short videos, which are shown to your followers for 24 hours, and then disappear. These are best used for: (read the how-to guide here)
- Showing up daily/weekly to stay in front of your followers
- Sharing “a day in the life” sort of content so your audience feels like they’re getting to know you personally
- Sharing posts from your own grid, and posts from others you follow
Instagram Story Length & Style
- Up to 60 seconds per Story slide
- You can post up to 100 Stories per day
- Stories disappear after 24 hours unless saved to Highlights (but you still have access in your archives)
Instagram Story Video & Image style
- Portrait style video and photos work best (1080 x 1920 pixels)
- Interactive elements (polls, questions, sliders) boost engagement
Instagram Story Captions
- All accounts can now add link stickers (not just 10k+ followers)
- Auto-captioning is available for video Stories
- Collaborative Stories allow multiple accounts to contribute
Instagram (Threads): recommendations for content and posts
Similar to certain features of Twitter (X), Threads is a text-based social sharing app that can be linked to your brand’s Instagram account. It’s a good space for:
- Maintaining engagement with your audience
- Offering glimpses of behind-the-scenes moments
- Sharing quick tips and insights
- Hosting Q&A sessions
- Promoting events hosted by your firm
Instagram Threads: Length of posts
- The maximum length of a Threads post is 500 characters (including spaces, emojis, and symbols)
- You can include links, photos, and videos in your posts
- Posts can now be scheduled via Meta’s Creator Studio
Instagram Threads: Video length
- Maximum video length: 5 minutes (increased from 60 seconds)
- Portrait format works best
Instagram Threads: Images
- You can upload up to 10 images per thread
- Recommended image size is 1080×1920 pixels
- Images with text overlay perform well
TikTok: recommendations for content & video posts
TikTok is the video platform: It’s used for short, fast, relevant videos and many people use it as a replacement for a Google search. It’s got great video editing capabilities so it’s ideal if you’re getting started with video. It’s best used for:
- Teaching your audience something while having fun
- Showing off your brand’s personality
- Leveraging trends to reach new audiences
TikTok: Caption length
- Up to 2,200 characters in captions
- First 100-150 characters are most important for engagement
TikTok: Type of content which works best
- Creating trending videos (very visual, engaging)
- Educational content with a personal touch
- Day-in-the-life content that humanizes your firm
TikTok: Video length
- Now supports videos up to 10 minutes
- 15-60 seconds still performs best for most content
- Hook viewers in the first 3 seconds
TikTok: Style of video & size
- Portrait format (1080 x 1920 pixels)
- Uses full-screen vertical format
TikTok: Features
- Auto-captions are available and highly recommended
- There are text-to-speech features for accessibility
- Duets and Stitches allow for collaborative content
- Green screen effects can provide more professional-looking videos
- Use hashtags to share your content wider and help others find it faster by including relevant hashtags (similar to other platforms)
New platforms to consider in 2025
- BlueSky: This Twitter alternative is gaining traction in professional circles
- BeReal: Authentic, unpolished content that shows the real side of your firm
- LinkedIn Newsletters: Not a separate platform, but a powerful new feature for regular content
If that feels like way too much work….
Whew!! We’re guessing now you have gone through all this it seems like a massive investment of time and effort and detail and who’s got the time to do all that anyway? If you’re feeling like that, you might want a little coaching support or a strategy session to make sure you’re going in the right direction with what you’re posting on socials, then fill out this discovery form to book a chat with one of our creative team!
Remember: You don’t need to be everywhere. Choose 1-2 platforms where your ideal clients spend time, and do those exceptionally well!