Resolution, bitrate and duration examples
Calculated planning examples using the stated video bitrate plus audio. They are not promises for every file.
| Example | Video + audio | 10 minutes | 30 minutes | 60 minutes |
|---|
| 360p | 1 Mbps + 128 kbps | 84.6 MB | 253.8 MB | 507.6 MB |
| 480p | 2.5 Mbps + 128 kbps | 197.1 MB | 591.3 MB | 1.18 GB |
| 720p | 5 Mbps + 192 kbps | 389.4 MB | 1.17 GB | 2.34 GB |
| 1080p | 8 Mbps + 192 kbps | 614.4 MB | 1.84 GB | 3.69 GB |
| 1440p | 16 Mbps + 192 kbps | 1.21 GB | 3.64 GB | 7.29 GB |
| 4K | 35 Mbps + 192 kbps | 2.64 GB | 7.92 GB | 15.84 GB |
Resolution does not set bitrate. Codec, frame rate, motion and encoder settings can make real files much smaller or larger.
How long is a 100 MB video?
There is no single duration for a 100 MB video. At a fixed file size, a higher combined bitrate uses the available data more quickly.
| Example combined bitrate | Approximate duration for 100 MB |
|---|
| 1.13 Mbps (1 Mbps video + 128 kbps audio) | 11 minutes 49 seconds |
| 2.69 Mbps (2.5 Mbps video + 192 kbps audio) | 4 minutes 57 seconds |
| 5.19 Mbps (5 Mbps video + 192 kbps audio) | 2 minutes 34 seconds |
| 8.19 Mbps (8 Mbps video + 192 kbps audio) | 1 minute 38 seconds |
These decimal 100 MB estimates assume constant average bitrate. VBR or CBR mode, codec efficiency, frame rate, motion, audio bitrate, container overhead and encoder settings can change the finished duration and size. See the video resolution guide for pixel dimensions and why resolution alone does not set file size.
Video size reference examples
These are calculated estimates for 8 Mbps video plus 192 kbps audio, using decimal megabytes. They are not measured downloads.
| Duration | Estimated size |
|---|
| 5 minutes | 307.2 MB |
| 10 minutes | 614.4 MB |
| 30 minutes | 1843.2 MB (1.84 GB) |
| 60 minutes | 3686.4 MB (3.69 GB) |
Estimate: (video Mbps × 1,000 + audio kbps) × seconds ÷ 8 ÷ 1,000. Actual size varies with bitrate, codec, audio and container overhead; resolution alone does not determine it.
What determines video file size?
Duration and total bitrate are the core inputs. The estimate uses total bitrate multiplied by duration, divided by eight to convert bits to bytes.
How bitrate changes file size
At the same duration, doubling the combined bitrate approximately doubles the resulting file size. Variable-bitrate encoding can make the final result differ from this estimate.
Resolution is not file size
Resolution describes pixel dimensions, while bitrate describes data used over time. Two 1080p files can have very different sizes because their codecs, frame rates, content and bitrates differ.
Example
A ten-minute video at 8 Mbps video plus 192 kbps audio is estimated at about 614 MB using decimal units. Container overhead and variable bitrate can change the final size.
Related pages