The video that passed review on your product page will be rejected as a Sponsored Brands ad, and the ad that ran fine will look wrong as a Brand Store background. Same file, six sets of rules.
This is a reference, and it is built like one. Each placement gets a table, the rejection reasons get their own section, and the last two sections turn the whole thing into a production plan: one master edit and a cut list. If you are here because a video was just rejected, section 8 is the place to start.
Evolve Media Agency produces Amazon product video, so we have an interest in you making more of it. The specs below are compiled from Amazon's published requirements and cross-checked against several 2026 spec directories on September 15, 2026. Amazon changes these without ceremony; where sources disagreed, the table says so and the uploader in Seller Central or the ads console is the tiebreaker, because it shows the current limit at upload time.
Two companion guides on this site cover the strategy side: why a product page needs a video and the Sponsored Brands Video guide. This post is only the rules.
Six Placements, Six Rulebooks
| Placement | Where It Shows | Format | Length | Max Size | Min Resolution |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Product detail page | Image carousel, "Videos" section | MP4, MOV | No fixed cap | 5 GB | 1280x720 |
| Premium A+ video module | Inside A+ Content | MP4 | Varies by module | Varies by module | Shown in uploader |
| Brand Store | Background video, video tile | MP4, MOV | Background: a few seconds, looping | 500 MB (tile) | See section 4 |
| Sponsored Brands Video | Search results, detail pages | MP4, MOV | 6-45 s | 500 MB | 1280x720 |
| Sponsored Display Video | On and off Amazon | MP4 | 6-45 s | 500 MB | 1920x1080 |
| Amazon DSP online video | Sites, apps, Fire TV | MP4 | Up to 3 min | 500 MB | 1280x720 |
The pattern to notice: the organic placements (detail page, A+, Store) are loose on length and tight on quality, while the paid placements are tight on length and tight on everything. A master edit built to the paid spec passes the organic spec; the reverse is never true.
Product Detail Page Video
Uploaded through Seller Central under Upload and Manage Videos, attached to one or more ASINs, and reviewed before it appears. This is the most forgiving spec on Amazon and the one most brands still get wrong, because the rules that bite are content rules rather than file rules.
| Spec | Requirement | Our Recommendation |
|---|---|---|
| Format | MP4 or MOV | MP4, H.264, so the same file works everywhere |
| Resolution | 1280x720 minimum | 1920x1080; 4K is accepted and rarely worth the upload time |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 preferred | 16:9; vertical video letterboxes in the carousel |
| Length | No fixed cap | 30-60 seconds; the first 15 do the work |
| File size | Up to 5 GB | 100-300 MB; large files fail on upload more than on review |
| Thumbnail | Auto-generated or custom upload | Custom, product on white or in use, no text |
| Title | Short, descriptive | Product name plus what the video shows; no claims |
| Review time | Typically 24-72 hours | Upload a week before a launch or a deal |
The detail page video autoplays muted in the carousel on mobile, so anything the shopper needs to know in the first ten seconds has to be visible without sound. Section 9 covers captions. Note that "no fixed cap" on length does not mean long videos help; watch time on listing video drops steeply after the first 20 seconds, and a 90-second edit mostly serves the brand's ego. The step-by-step video creation guide covers structure.
Premium A+ Content Video Modules
Premium A+ adds video modules (Premium Video, and video inside carousel and hotspot-style modules) that Standard A+ does not have. They require Brand Registry and Premium A+ eligibility, and their limits are set per module.
| Spec | Requirement | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Format | MP4 | MOV is not reliably accepted here; export MP4 |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 | Modules are landscape; vertical video is letterboxed or refused |
| Resolution | Module-specific minimum, 1280x720 or higher in current modules | One 2026 directory lists 800x600 for older modules; the uploader shows the live minimum |
| Length | No fixed cap in most modules | 15-60 seconds works; these autoplay in-module on mobile |
| File size | Varies by module | Keep under 500 MB and the module will take it |
| Poster frame | Required for most video modules | Same rules as A+ images: no claims, no pricing, readable at mobile width |
The reason this table says "varies" three times: Amazon publishes A+ module specs inside the A+ Content Manager rather than on one public page, and the modules have been renamed and re-specced more than once. Do not trust any blog's A+ video table, including this one, over the number the uploader shows you. What is stable is the aspect ratio and the format. The Premium vs Standard framework covers whether video modules are worth qualifying for.
Brand Store Video
Stores have two video surfaces with very different jobs. The background video is a short silent loop behind a hero tile. The video tile is a clickable player for a full edit. Sources disagree on the exact background-video dimensions, so those are given as reported.
| Surface | Format | Length | Size | Dimensions | Audio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background video | MP4 (MOV reported accepted) | Roughly 2-20 seconds, loops | Small; keep under 100 MB | Reported as 640x640 up to 1280x640 depending on tile shape; the Store builder shows the exact crop | None; plays silent |
| Video tile | MP4, MOV and others | No fixed cap | Up to 500 MB | 1920x1080 recommended | Plays with sound on click |
The background video is the placement brands most often waste. It is a loop with no sound and no player controls, so it should be a single continuous motion shot (product rotating, texture, pour, application) with no cuts, no text, and no moment that looks wrong when it restarts. A 15-second listing video with three cuts and a title card looks broken as a Store background. The Brand Store guide covers where each tile type belongs in the layout.
Sponsored Brands Video
The strictest spec on Amazon, because it is an ad reviewed by Amazon Ads rather than a listing asset reviewed by Seller Central. Amazon's published length is 6 to 45 seconds; the 15-to-30-second figure you will see in most guides, including our own earlier one, is the recommendation for completion rate rather than the rule.
| Spec | Horizontal | Vertical (Where Offered) |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 6-45 seconds; 15-30 recommended | Same |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 | 9:16 |
| Dimensions | 1280x720, 1920x1080 or 3840x2160 | 720x1280, 1080x1920 or 2160x3840 |
| Format | MP4 or MOV | Same |
| File size | 500 MB or less | Same |
| Video codec | H.264 or H.265, Main or Baseline profile, progressive scan, one video stream | Same |
| Frame rate | 23.976, 24, 25, 29.97 or 30 fps | Same |
| Bit rate | 1 Mbps minimum; 4 Mbps or higher recommended | Same |
| Audio | Required; PCM, AAC or MP3; stereo; 44.1 kHz or higher; language must match the ad locale | Same |
Three placement-specific rules that are not in the table because they are about content rather than encoding. The product should be on screen within the first three seconds, because the ad autoplays in search results and the shopper is already scrolling. Text should stay out of the lower-right corner, where the mute toggle sits. And the last frame should be the product, since the ad stops on it. Whether vertical is available depends on the placement and the console at the time you build the campaign; if the option is not there, it is not there.
Since Amazon retired its previous assistant brand in May 2026, Sponsored Brands Video inventory can surface inside Alexa for Shopping recommendations, which raises the value of a compliant 15-second cut and also the competition for it. The full SBV guide covers campaign structure and bidding.
Sponsored Display And DSP Video
Two paid placements with looser length rules than Sponsored Brands and a failure mode that is worse than rejection.
| Spec | Sponsored Display Video | Amazon DSP Online Video |
|---|---|---|
| Length | 6-45 seconds | Up to 3 minutes; 15-30 recommended |
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 | 16:9, 1:1 or 9:16 |
| Dimensions | 1920x1080 recommended | 1280x720 minimum |
| Format | MP4 (H.264, MPEG-2, MPEG-4) | MP4, M4V, MOV or MPEG |
| File size | 500 MB | 500 MB |
| Sound-off | Must be understandable muted | Must be understandable muted; subtitles in the local language |
Sponsored Display and DSP can approve a creative and then exclude it from placements whose dimensions it does not match. Impressions drop with no error. It looks like a bid or budget problem and it is a creative problem. If a display video campaign is under-delivering with healthy bids, check the aspect ratios you uploaded against the placements you are targeting before touching anything else.
Streaming TV through DSP has its own rules (broadcast audio standards, fixed 15- or 30-second lengths on some inventory) and is outside the scope of a seller cheat sheet. The DSP for $1M+ brands guide covers when that channel is worth the minimum.
Amazon Posts Is Gone: The Alternatives
Amazon discontinued Posts on July 31, 2025. A lot of 2026 content still lists it as a free video placement; it is not one, and any guide that tells you to upload a video to Posts was written before that date or copied from one that was. The free, brand-controlled places short video can live now are these.
Multiple videos per ASIN through Upload and Manage Videos. The closest replacement for what Posts did, because it is free, brand-owned and on the page where the purchase happens.
Full edits with sound on click, plus the silent background loop. Stores are the destination for Sponsored Brands traffic, so this is where the ad's promise gets the long version.
Amazon Influencer Program creators can attach shoppable videos to your ASINs. You do not upload these; you earn them. The Amazon Live and Influencer guide covers how.
Livestream with products attached, hosted by the brand or a creator. A different production discipline from pre-recorded video, and still active.
The Amazon Live and Influencer Program playbook covers slots three and four. For a brand that used Posts as a weekly short-video habit, the honest replacement is the detail page carousel plus off-Amazon short-form (TikTok, Reels) driving in through Attribution links.
The Rejection Reasons Amazon Cites
From our own submissions and the rejection notices clients forward us, these are the reasons that come back, roughly in order of frequency. Most are avoidable in the edit.
| Rejection Reason | What Triggered It | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Letterboxing or pillarboxing | Vertical or square footage exported inside a 16:9 frame with black bars | Reframe or crop to fill; never pad |
| Blank or static frames | Fade from black at the start, fade to black or a held logo card at the end | Cut on motion at both ends; end on the product |
| Unreadable text | Captions or callouts too small at mobile size, or low contrast | Minimum roughly 30 pt equivalent on a 1080p frame, high contrast, away from the lower-right corner |
| Unverifiable claims | "Best," "#1," "clinically proven," health outcomes, "guaranteed" | Show the feature; describe the mechanism; drop the superlative |
| Amazon branding | Amazon logo, "Amazon's Choice," "Prime," screenshots of the listing | Remove every Amazon reference |
| Pricing or promotion language | "Sale," "20% off," "free shipping," countdowns | No price talk; the listing shows the price |
| Language mismatch | English voiceover on a non-English marketplace, or mixed-language captions | Match audio and on-screen text to the ad locale |
| Competitor or third-party brands | Side-by-side with a named competitor, or a visible third-party logo on a prop | Unbranded comparison props; blur or replace logos |
| Customer reviews quoted | Review text or star ratings on screen | Remove; reviews cannot appear in ad creative |
| Low quality | Upscaled phone footage, compression artifacts, shaky handheld | Re-export at 4 Mbps or higher from a clean source; stabilize or reshoot |
| Product not shown | Lifestyle montage where the advertised ASIN appears late or briefly | Product in frame inside three seconds and for most of the runtime |
The listing video review is more lenient than the ads review on quality and length, and just as strict on claims, pricing and Amazon branding. If a video was rejected on the detail page, it is almost always one of the content rows above, and the fix is a re-edit rather than a re-export.
Audio, Captions And Sound-Off Viewing
Every placement except the Brand Store video tile either autoplays muted or is watched muted by most viewers. Sponsored Brands requires an audio track and most viewers never hear it. Sponsored Display and DSP require the creative to work without sound. The detail page carousel autoplays silent on mobile. The practical rule is that the video has to work with the sound off and pass review with the sound on.
- Burn captions in. Open captions rendered into the video, sized for a phone screen, positioned in the safe area (upper two-thirds, away from the lower-right corner). Amazon does not offer closed-caption files on most placements.
- Include an audio track anyway. A video with no audio stream fails the Sponsored Brands spec. Light music under the captions satisfies the requirement and does no harm.
- Match the language. Voiceover and captions in the marketplace language; a US ad with Spanish captions gets flagged even if the product is bilingual.
- Keep loudness sane. Sponsored Brands guidance references broadcast loudness limits; a hot music track that clips will be rejected on quality grounds even if it technically passes the codec spec.
Music licensing is its own rejection risk. Stock music with a valid commercial license is fine; a popular track with no license is a takedown, and Amazon's review does not check for you. The jingles vs stock music framework covers when an owned audio signature is worth the cost.
One Master, Six Cuts
Shoot and edit once to the strictest spec, then derive every placement from it. This is how a single shoot day produces the whole set.
The two shots most crews forget are the ones that make the Store background and the vertical cut possible: a long uncut motion shot with nothing happening at the edges, and every hero shot framed with the product in the center third so a 9:16 crop keeps it. Brief those before the shoot and the cut list is an afternoon. Forget them and the vertical and the loop become a second shoot. The product video cost guide prices the shoot; the video service page is what it costs with us.
The Ecom Profit Box
Our library of ecommerce growth guides, including the creative and listing frameworks behind this cheat sheet.
Get It FreePlan One Shoot For Every Placement
Bring your ASINs and your current video. We will tell you which placements it passes, which it fails, and what one shoot day would produce.
Book A CallContent Rules That Apply Everywhere
These hold on every placement, organic and paid, and they are the rules behind most of the rejection table.
- Show the advertised product, accurately. The ASIN in the video is the ASIN it is attached to, in the color and configuration sold. Showing a set when you sell a single is a rejection and, if it slips through, a return.
- No claims you cannot document on the listing. If it is not on the packaging or in a certificate you hold, it does not go in the video. Health, safety, efficacy and superlative claims are reviewed hardest.
- No Amazon. No logo, no badges, no "Prime," no screenshots of the listing or reviews.
- No pricing, discounts or urgency. The listing handles price; the video that mentions it gets rejected and then goes stale the first time the price moves.
- No competitor brands or third-party marks. That includes a visible logo on a prop in the background.
- No contact details or off-Amazon calls to action. No URLs, handles, phone numbers or "visit our site."
- Rights for everything in frame. Music, fonts, stock footage, and every person on camera, with the release language covering Amazon's placements. A creator's UGC clip you have social rights to may not carry Amazon ad rights; the UGC rights guide covers the language.
- Locale match. Language, units and any on-screen text match the marketplace.
Pre-Upload Checklist
A video that passes every line here will pass review on every placement in this post. The one thing the checklist cannot do is make it good; that is what the shoot is for. And since we sell the shoot, the honest counterweight: a tested phone-shot demonstration that shows the product doing its job in the first three seconds beats an untested studio piece that opens on a logo. Get the structure right first, and upgrade the production when the structure has earned it.
What To Remember
- Six Amazon placements take video and each has its own spec; a master edit built to the paid-ad spec passes the organic placements, never the reverse.
- Detail page video: MP4 or MOV, 1280x720 minimum, 16:9, up to 5 GB, no length cap, reviewed in one to three days; 30-60 seconds with the first 15 doing the work.
- Sponsored Brands Video: 6-45 seconds, 1280x720 / 1920x1080 / 3840x2160 at 16:9 with a 9:16 option, under 500 MB, audio required in the ad's language; 15-30 seconds is the recommendation and 6-45 is the rule.
- The rejections that account for most failures are letterboxing, blank frames at either end, unreadable text, unverifiable claims, Amazon branding and pricing language, all fixable in the edit.
- Amazon Posts was discontinued July 31, 2025; the free replacements are the detail page carousel, Brand Store tiles, creator videos and Amazon Live.
- Every placement is watched muted: burn captions in, keep them out of the lower-right corner, and still include an audio track to pass spec.
- Shoot one center-framed 16:9 master plus one long uncut motion shot, and every cut, including 9:16 and the Store loop, is a crop rather than a reshoot.
Where This Came From
- Amazon Seller Central, Upload and Manage Videos help pages, and the A+ Content Manager module uploader (login required; not linked). The uploader is the authoritative source for per-module A+ limits.
- Amazon Ads, Sponsored Brands video ad specifications and creative acceptance policies (login required for the full policy). Cross-checked against AllAdSpecs' Sponsored Brands Video entry, Epinium's 2026 ad size guide and Ricardo's Sponsored Brands spec guide, which documents the vertical 9:16 dimensions. All three are vendors.
- Goat Consulting, Amazon video requirements guide, updated April 2026, for the detail page, A+, Store and Sponsored Display figures and the Store background-video ranges. An agency.
- Amazon's July 2025 seller announcement discontinuing Amazon Posts effective July 31, 2025.
- Evolve Media Agency video submissions and client rejection notices, 2024-2026. First-party; the rejection table's ordering reflects our experience rather than an Amazon-published ranking.