Reference · Updated July 2026

Gmail video size limit

Gmail's attachment limit is 25 MB, but the number that matters is about 18 MB: email encodes attachments in a way that adds roughly a third to their size, so a 20 MB video arrives at the limit as 27 MB and bounces. Anything larger is turned into a Google Drive link instead of an attachment.

Gmail attachment limits at a glance

Verified against official documentation · July 2026
What	Limit
Official attachment limit	25 MB per message, all attachments combined
Fits in practice	Encoding overhead means only a ~18 MB file reliably fits — compress to 25 MB or set 18 MB in the full compressor. Larger sends switch to a Google Drive link automatically.
Receiving	Incoming messages are accepted up to 50 MB, so a 25 MB attachment from another provider still arrives.

The gap between 25 and 18 is not a Gmail quirk — every email provider has it. Attachments travel as text, which is a third bigger than the file itself, and the limit is checked on the encoded message. If you only remember one number from this page, make it 18.

Get your video under Gmail's real limit

Drop the video below. It is compressed to just under 18 MB on your own device — nothing is uploaded — which leaves room for the encoding overhead and lands the attachment safely under 25 MB. If the clip is too long to fit at a watchable quality, you'll be offered the opening stretch that does fit.

This compressor runs entirely in your browser and needs JavaScript to access your video file locally. Enable JavaScript to use it — your video still won't be uploaded anywhere.

How much video fits in an email?

With 18 MB to work with, length is what decides the picture size. These rows are what this compressor actually produces from a typical phone recording — full HD, 30 frames a second, with sound.

What 18 MB gives you at different video lengths
Video length	What you get
30 seconds	Full HD — hard to tell from the original
2 minutes	About half of full HD each way — clear on a phone or laptop
5 minutes	Small picture; fine at message size, soft full-screen
15 minutes	Thumbnail-sized; watchable, but blocky when enlarged

Past about 25 minutes, 18 MB stops being enough for a picture worth watching. For a long video at good quality, a Google Drive link — which Gmail offers automatically for large files — is the right tool; for anything you want as a real attachment, compress it here.

Attachment or Drive link?

When you attach a file over the limit, Gmail uploads it to Google Drive and inserts a link. That works, but the recipient has to click through, the file counts against your Drive storage, and sharing permissions can trip up people outside your organisation. A real attachment lands in their inbox, plays from the message on most phones and needs no permissions — which is why it's worth getting the video under 18 MB when you can.

Everything on this page runs locally in your browser — your video never leaves your device and nothing is stored anywhere. Not sure a clip will fit at a decent quality? The bitrate calculator tells you the picture size 18 MB supports for your video's exact length before you start.

Frequently asked questions

Why won't Gmail attach my 20 MB video when the limit is 25 MB?

Because the limit applies to the encoded message, not the file. Email attachments are converted to text, which adds roughly 33%, so a 20 MB file becomes about 27 MB on the wire — over the limit. Files up to about 18 MB fit reliably.

What happens if my video is over the limit?

Gmail uploads it to Google Drive and puts a link in the message instead of attaching it. The recipient downloads it from Drive. This happens automatically when you attach a file over 25 MB.

How long a video can I email with Gmail?

At 18 MB, about two minutes stays clear and sharp, five minutes is fine on a phone, and around 25 minutes is the practical ceiling at a small picture size. Longer than that, use a Drive link or trim the video.

Does the limit apply to the video before or after compression?

To the file you attach — so the compressed one. The tool above compresses to just under 18 MB, checks the result, and compresses a little more if the first pass came out a touch large, so the attachment is never over.

Is my video uploaded when I compress it here?

No. Compression runs in your browser on your own device — there is no server, no account and no watermark. The only upload that ever happens is the one you make when you attach the finished file to your email.