Skillshare Help Center

What settings should I use for recording and exporting my videos?

To ensure a smooth uploading process and the best possible playback quality on your videos, refer to these recommended settings:

Recording Settings

  • Videos should be recorded at 1080p. If you are planning to zoom in while editing, e.g., for an overhead shot with fine details, then we suggest recording at 4K.
  • 16:9 aspect ratio (horizontal) for slides and video.
  • Frame rate should be either 24 or 30 frames per second (fps).
  • Videos must include an audio track.
For screencasts, i.e., software demos or slide presentations on a computer, you’ll want to make sure everything you record (your screen and your slides) match the same ratio. Head to System Preferences > Display on a Mac or Control Panel > Appearance and Personalization on a PC running Windows to change your screen resolution to 1920 x 1080 and make sure the settings on your slide presentation are set to the same ratio too.

Export Settings

  • Video bit rate of at least 300 kbits/second (3000-5000 kbits/second is ideal).
  • Videos cannot be greater than 2GB in size.
  • While the platform accepts .mp4, .mov, and .avi files, we recommend .mp4 for the fastest upload speed without compromising quality.
  • Video compression format: H.264
  • Audio codec: AAC-LC

If the bitrate on your videos is too low (less than 300 kbits/second) you may run into issues uploading them to your class. To check your video’s bitrate, you can use a free tool like MediaInfo (Mac, Windows) and if you’re using Quicktime, open your file and hit command-I to see a consolidated bitrate. Both programs will give you detailed information about your video's encoded properties.

We recommend re-exporting your videos with a target bit rate of 3000–5000 kbits/second. If you’re unable to re-export your original videos with a higher bit rate, you can also try to re-encode your videos using a free, open-source software called HandBrake. Here’s how:

  1. Once you have the software installed and open on your computer, select your video via the Source button (or click and drag into HandBrake).
  2. Then, select and name the Destination for where you’d like the new video to be saved to. You can leave most of the settings on their default.

If you’re having trouble uploading your class videos, feel free to reach out to us at teach@skillshare.com, and we’ll help troubleshoot!