How to Send a Large Video by Email
Updated November 5, 2026
Personal Gmail accounts allow attachments up to 25 MB. Files grow by about a third when they're encoded for email, so aim for under 18 to 20 MB. If a video is much bigger than that, compress it or send a link.
Your options
Choose based on how far over the limit you are.
- 1A little over: compress the video to about 18 MB.
- 2Much too long: trim it to the part that matters first.
- 3A long video at full quality: upload it to cloud storage and email the link.
Why trimming helps most
File size depends on bitrate and length. Compressing a 10-minute video to 18 MB leaves very little data per second, so it looks rough. A 1-minute clip at the same size looks far better.
Work email
Company mail servers can set lower limits, such as 10 MB, and the person receiving the email has a limit too. If a message bounces, go smaller or send a link.