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Social Video Length & Retention Planner
Pick a platform, enter your planned hook, intro, main content and outro length in seconds, and see whether you're within that platform's limit and recommended sweet spot, plus your hook's share of total runtime.
Why length and hook timing both matter
Every short-form platform front-loads its algorithm around early retention — if viewers drop off in the first few seconds, the platform shows the video to fewer people regardless of how good the ending is. This planner sums your planned segments against a platform's hard length limit and its commonly recommended "sweet spot," and separately checks your hook length against the widely cited 3-second guidance for short-form video.
What this can't do
It measures planned seconds, not actual audience retention — a technically short, on-time hook can still be a boring one. Treat the pass/warn indicators as a structural sanity check before you shoot or edit, not a guarantee of how the finished video will perform.
Frequently asked questions
Why does the hook need to happen in the first 3 seconds?
Short-form platforms track how many viewers keep watching past the first couple of seconds and use that signal heavily in distribution — a slow build before the interesting part costs you viewers (and reach) before they ever see it.
Is longer always worse for Reels, Shorts and TikTok?
Not necessarily — completion rate matters as much as raw length, and a well-paced longer short-form video that people watch to the end can outperform a rushed shorter one. The "sweet spot" range here reflects commonly cited platform norms, not a hard ceiling on quality.
Why is YouTube long-form's limit so much higher than its sweet spot?
YouTube technically allows videos up to 12 hours, but audience retention data across the platform consistently favors videos in the 8–15 minute range for most topics — the sweet spot reflects typical viewer behavior, not a platform-enforced rule.
Do these platform numbers change over time?
Yes — platforms regularly adjust length limits and algorithm behavior, so treat the limits and sweet spots here as commonly cited reference points as of when this tool was built, and verify current limits if you're right at the edge.