720p video size per minute
At YouTube’s recommended upload bitrate, a minute of 720p video at 30 frames a second comes to about 40 MB. Here is every length, and how long fits in the storage you have.
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720p at 30 fps: a minute, an hour
| Bitrate | 1 minute | 1 hour | |
|---|---|---|---|
| At YouTube’s recommended upload rate | 5.4 Mbps | 40 MB | 2.4 GB |
| Saved by Shycut, High | 4.3 Mbps | 32 MB | 1.9 GB |
| Saved by Shycut, Balanced | 2.6 Mbps | 20 MB | 1.2 GB |
| Saved by Shycut, Small | 1.5 Mbps | 11 MB | 680 MB |
YouTube’s rates are what it recommends for a high-quality upload, sound included; a camera may record more or less.
Shycut’s rows are the estimate its save window shows before saving, with sound; the real file varies with the footage.
By length
| Length | YouTube’s rate | Shycut, Balanced |
|---|---|---|
| 1 min | 40 MB | 20 MB |
| 5 min | 202 MB | 98 MB |
| 10 min | 404 MB | 196 MB |
| 30 min | 1.2 GB | 589 MB |
| 1 h | 2.4 GB | 1.2 GB |
| 2 h | 4.8 GB | 2.4 GB |
How long fits
| Storage | YouTube’s rate | Shycut, Balanced |
|---|---|---|
| 16 GB | 6 h 36 min | 13 h 35 min |
| 32 GB | 13 h 12 min | 27 h 10 min |
| 64 GB | 26 h 24 min | 54 h 21 min (2.3 days) |
| 128 GB | 52 h 49 min (2.2 days) | 108 h 43 min (4.5 days) |
| 256 GB | 105 h 39 min (4.4 days) | 217 h 26 min (9.1 days) |
| 512 GB | 211 h 19 min (8.8 days) | 434 h 52 min (18.1 days) |
Storage counted the way card makers count it (1 GB = 1,000,000,000 bytes). A card or phone keeps some room for itself, so a little less fits.
YouTube’s figures
The sum behind every figure
A video’s size is its bitrate times its length, divided by 8 (eight bits to a byte). At YouTube’s rate that is 5 Mbps for the picture plus 384 kbps for the sound, 5.4 Mbps together; a minute is 323.04 Mb, and ÷ 8 gives 40 MB.
Need the file smaller? Shycut compresses a video to any size on your device.
Where 720p still makes sense
At YouTube’s rates 720p takes about a third less than 1080p (5.4 Mbps against 8.4 Mbps), so a screen recording or a talk can run long without filling a drive: 26 hours 24 minutes fits in 64 GB.
Smaller files also send and upload faster. If a limit is the problem rather than storage, compress to the size you need instead of guessing a resolution: Shycut keeps the picture as large as that size allows.
Where these facts come from
Questions
How many MB is a 1-minute 720p video?
About 40 MB at YouTube’s recommended upload rate (5.4 Mbps with stereo sound), and about 20 MB saved by Shycut at Balanced.
How many GB is an hour of 720p?
About 2.4 GB at YouTube’s recommended rate.
Why is my 720p file a different size?
Cameras and apps pick their own bitrates, and busy footage takes more bits than calm footage. The sum is always bitrate × length ÷ 8.
Your video stays with you.
Open Shycut, drop the video in and export. Free, with no account, and your video never leaves your device.
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