Letterboxed video (black or blurred bars)
Snapchat may leave the video out of recommendations, so fewer people see it.
Not recommendedHow serious: Worth fixingSnapchatLow quality and video format
About to post? A full check of your video looks for this in what's shown, with a plain fix.
Check a video freeWhat triggers it
A wider clip placed inside a vertical frame with black, colored or blurred bars above and below (or at the sides).
What Snapchat says
“letterboxed videos”
How to fix it
Re-frame the footage to fill the 9:16 frame (crop, zoom or re-shoot) instead of adding bars.
Good to know
Look for static bands that fill more than about 15% of the frame height or width on both sides.
Can FYProof spot it?
A full check of your video looks for it in what's shown. What a check finds is an estimate, not a guarantee.
- Video: looked at for this rule
- Speech: not for this rule
- On-screen text: not for this rule
- Caption: not for this rule
- Hashtags: not for this rule
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Related Snapchat rules
Platforms change their rules often. This page sums up what Snapchat publishes; it isn't legal advice.