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You make long videos. Shorts are how new people find them. So which app should your shorts go to? The short answer: all three, because they take the same file. The longer answer is below, in plain words, for people whose real work is the long video.
At a glance
All three are huge. Each company counts its users its own way, so compare these loosely:
| YouTube Shorts | TikTok | Instagram Reels | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Longest video | Up to 3 minutes | Up to 10 minutes in the app | Up to 3 minutes |
| Shape | 9:16, 1080 × 1920 | 9:16, 1080 × 1920 | 9:16, 1080 × 1920 |
| Same place as your long videos | Yes, same channel | No | No |
| Link to your long video | Yes: one “Related video” per short | Only from your profile | Only from your profile |
| How it pays | Share of Shorts ad money, for YouTube partners | Rewards for original videos over 1 minute, in some countries | No steady pay for views; bonuses now and then |
YouTube Shorts: next door to your long videos
If your long videos are on YouTube, Shorts have one big advantage: they live on the same channel. Someone who likes a short can tap your name and find everything else you’ve made.
Better still, each short can point to one of your videos. In YouTube Studio, open the short and pick a Related video: viewers then see a link under your channel name, one tap from the full episode.
Full episode: Why we quit too early
Shorts can also earn. Inside the YouTube Partner Program, YouTube pools the ad money from the Shorts feed and pays creators 45% of their share. From February 1, 2027, a channel needs at least 10 million qualified Shorts views in the last 90 days to earn from Shorts ads. And Shorts views also count toward joining the program: 10 million in 90 days, with 1,000 subscribers, is one of the two ways in.
Free · Tool Monetization checker See how close your channel is to YouTube monetization, with today’s rules and the 2027 change.TikTok: reach people who’ve never heard of you
TikTok’s main feed, For You, is made of recommendations, so people who don’t know you can see your short on day one. Videos can run up to 10 minutes when recorded in the app, longer than the other two allow.
TikTok pays some creators through its rewards program, for original videos longer than one minute, and only in some countries. There’s no clickable link from a TikTok to your YouTube video: people find your long videos through your profile.
Instagram Reels: where people already follow you
Instagram is where many people already follow the creators they like, and Reels are its short videos. Since January 2025, Reels can run up to 3 minutes. Instagram has no steady pay for Reels views; it has run bonus programs now and then, often by invitation.
One rule matters a lot here: Instagram said in 2021 that it makes Reels with another app’s logo or watermark less discoverable. Always post a clean file.
Re-posted from another app
- Another app’s logo or watermark
- Often blurry or squeezed
- Shown less in the Reels tab
Posted clean
- No watermark
- Full 1080 × 1920
- Gets its full chance
The easy answer: one file, three apps
You don’t need three versions. Make one good vertical short and post it everywhere, with a few small tweaks.
- Make one short 9:16, 1080 × 1920
- Keep text safe Clear of every app’s buttons
- YouTube Shorts Add the Related video
- TikTok Same file, its own caption
- Instagram Reels No other app’s watermark
Small tweaks for each app
The file stays the same. What changes is how you post it.
YouTube Shorts
- A title with the words people search for
- Link the full video with Related video
- Post on the same channel as your long videos
TikTok
- A caption that names your topic
- Pin your best shorts to the top of your profile
- Add your YouTube channel to your profile
Instagram Reels
- A cover frame that reads well in your grid
- Share the reel to your story too
- Put your channel link in your bio
If you only have time for one
If your long videos are on YouTube, start with Shorts: they sit next to your long videos, link to them, and count toward monetization. When posting there is a habit, add TikTok and Reels. It’s the same file, so it’s a few minutes more.
- 1. YouTube Shorts Next to your long videos
- 2. TikTok Reach beyond your followers
- 3. Instagram Reels Where people already follow you
Sources
- YouTube Help: Understand three-minute YouTube Shorts
- YouTube Help: Add a related video to your YouTube Shorts
- YouTube Help: YouTube Shorts monetization policies
- YouTube Help: YouTube Partner Program overview and eligibility
- TechCrunch: 2 billion logged-in monthly users watch YouTube Shorts (2023)
- TikTok Newsroom: Thanks a billion! (2021)
- TechCrunch: TikTok expands max video length to 10 minutes (2022)
- Social Media Today: TikTok’s creator program pays for original videos over one minute (2023)
- Shacknews: Instagram reaches 3 billion monthly active users (2025)
- Storyboard18: Instagram extends Reels to three minutes (2025)
- Tubefilter: Instagram tests a bonus for creators (2024)
- Tubefilter: Instagram makes Reels with other apps’ watermarks less discoverable (2021)