For a homepage explainer, aim for 60 to 90 seconds. Paid social ads work best at 15 to 30 seconds. Product demos run 60 to 90 seconds per workflow, and onboarding or detailed walkthroughs can go to 2 minutes or more, because the viewer has already chosen to watch.
Length by placement
| Placement | Length | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Homepage hero | 60–90 sec | Enough for problem, idea and product |
| Paid social ad | 15–30 sec | The first second decides; sound is often off |
| Product demo | 60–90 sec | One workflow, start to finish |
| Sales follow-up | 60–120 sec | The viewer is already interested |
| Onboarding, how-to | 1–3 min | The viewer chose to learn |
| Launch or pitch | 60–90 sec | Long enough to land the vision |
The pattern is simple: the less the viewer has chosen to watch, the shorter the video. Someone scrolling a feed gives you a second; someone who clicked "watch the demo" gives you a couple of minutes.
Length in words
A clear voiceover runs at roughly 150 words per minute. So a 60-second explainer has room for about 140 to 160 words, and a 30-second ad for about 70. Write the script first, read it out loud at a calm pace, and time it. If it runs long, cut words, don't speed up the voice.
Leave room for silence too. The moments where the product moves on screen without narration are often the ones that land.
Signs your video is too long
- It tries to deliver more than one main message.
- It walks through more than three features or workflows.
- The first 10 seconds are a logo, a slogan or a slow build-up.
- The script repeats the same benefit in different words.
- You can't say what viewers should understand in one sentence.
How length affects price
Length matters, but less than people expect, because strategy, script, design and sound don't shrink with the video. Here's what an explainer in clean 2D motion costs with us at each length:
| Length | 15 sec | 30 sec | 60 sec | 90 sec | 2 min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Explainer video | $1,400 | $1,900 | $2,500 | $3,250 | $4,150 |
See every option in our price calculator, or read the full explainer video pricing guide.
One video, many lengths
You rarely need to choose just one length. Make the 60 or 90-second master for your homepage, then cut 15 and 30-second versions from it for ads. The cutdowns reuse the same animation, so they cost a fraction of a new video: a social cutdown is $250 with us. Not sure which length fits? Send a brief and we'll recommend one.