VideoPress Maximum Upload Size: 6 GB, With Two Catches

VideoPress documents a maximum upload size of 6 GB. The sentence on WordPress.com's VideoPress page is exactly that: "The maximum upload size is 6 GB."

That is the headline number, and it is the one worth planning around. But it is not the only ceiling WordPress.com applies to the same file, and the other ones are easier to hit. A second official page gives a different figure for uploads to your site, and your plan's remaining storage sits underneath both of them.

The numbers, at a glance

Every row above is quoted or transcribed from WordPress.com support pages. The last row is the important one, and the next section is about why.

The 6 GB and the 2 GB live on two different pages

WordPress.com's Accepted file types page opens its file size section with a different number entirely: "You can reliably upload files up to 2 GB to your WordPress.com site." It then explains what goes wrong above that line: "A larger file can fail partway through the upload. The larger the file, the longer it takes, and many networks end an upload that runs for too long."

Notice the word reliably. That is not phrased as a cap. It is a statement about what tends to finish, with a network-timeout explanation attached rather than a rejection rule.

The same page then offers 6 GB as the escape hatch from that exact problem. Among its suggestions for a file that will not upload, it lists: "Add videos with the VideoPress block, which supports files up to 6 GB."

So the two figures describe two different paths — a general Media Library upload versus the VideoPress block. What no official page states is how they interact. If your file sits between 2 GB and 6 GB, WordPress.com's documentation does not tell you whether you are comfortably inside a supported limit or inside the zone its own page describes as prone to failing partway through. Nothing in the official pages resolves it, so treat a file in that range as documented but not promised.

Your remaining storage is the ceiling that usually bites

This is the constraint that actually stops people, and it is stated flatly on the same page:

"Your site's available storage also limits file size. You cannot upload a file that is larger than the storage space remaining on your site. Each plan includes a different amount of storage."

Now put that next to the plan storage table above. On a free site, total storage is 1 GB — so the 2 GB figure can never apply there at all. It is not that large uploads are risky on a free plan; a 2 GB file cannot fit in 1 GB of space by arithmetic. Free sites created before 31 March 2022 include 3 GB instead, which is the only free-tier exception WordPress.com documents.

Two more legacy exceptions matter if you are on an old account: Business or Commerce plans purchased before 20 July 2023 include 200 GB, and those purchased before 1 August 2019 without hosting access activated include unlimited storage.

VideoPress adds one more wrinkle. WordPress.com describes it as including "250 GB of dedicated video storage and features such as privacy controls, chapters, and video stats." Whether that dedicated pool substitutes for plan storage when the "storage space remaining" rule is applied is not something the official pages say. If that distinction decides whether your upload fits, check the official documentation for your plan rather than assuming.

What to do when the file is too big

WordPress.com's own first suggestion for a file that will not upload is to shrink it: "Compress the file to reduce its size, then upload it again." The other two on that list are the VideoPress block, and, on the Business and Commerce plans, transferring the file with SFTP.

Compressing first is the one that works regardless of plan, and it is the only one that also buys back storage space — which, per the rule above, is itself a limit on what you can upload next.

Try it right here

Runs in your browser. Your file is not uploaded anywhere.

Loading tool…

This runs entirely in your browser tab: the file is read from disk, re-encoded locally, and handed straight back. Nothing is uploaded to a server, so there is no second upload limit standing between you and fixing the first one. If you want the settings explained rather than a preset applied, the video compressor page covers what each control changes.

Compressing before upload also lines up with what VideoPress does afterwards anyway. Per its documentation: "When you upload a video, VideoPress automatically converts it to MP4 format using H.264 video and AAC audio compression." The same page adds that "Videos that are smaller or compressed will load faster for your viewers."

Gotchas the 6 GB number hides

VideoPress is not available on every plan. Its support page states: "This feature is available on sites with the WordPress.com Business and Commerce plans. For free sites and sites on the Personal and Premium plans, upgrade your plan to access this feature." The Accepted file types page recommends the 6 GB VideoPress block without repeating that condition — so on a Premium site, the advice and the availability do not match.

Three hours is a quality threshold, not a length cap. VideoPress states that "Videos longer than three hours are converted to standard resolution and will not be available in higher-resolution formats." WordPress.com does not document a maximum duration, and it never defines what resolution "standard resolution" means.

Failed uploads do not cost you storage. WordPress.com says it plainly: "Failed attempts don't count against your storage space limit." The same note warns that "a slow or unreliable internet connection can limit the size of your video upload," and suggests trying at a different time of day or from a faster connection.

The format list is not a whitelist. VideoPress says it "supports a wide range of video formats, including" MP4, MOV, WMV, AVI, MPG, OGV, 3GP and 3G2. That word "including" means absence from the list is not a documented rejection. If your file is in a format WordPress.com does not accept, its troubleshooting page tells you to "convert them to a valid file type before uploading" — MOV to MP4 handles the most common case.

FAQ

What is the maximum upload size for VideoPress? 6 GB. WordPress.com's VideoPress page states "The maximum upload size is 6 GB," and its Accepted file types page describes the VideoPress block as supporting "files up to 6 GB."

Why does WordPress.com also say 2 GB? Because that figure is about general uploads to your site, not the VideoPress block, and it is phrased as "reliably upload" rather than as a cap. The official pages never explain how the two numbers relate to each other.

Can I upload a 6 GB video on a free WordPress.com site? No. Free sites include 1 GB of storage, and WordPress.com states you cannot upload a file larger than the storage space remaining. VideoPress is also documented as available only on the Business and Commerce plans.

Is there a length limit for VideoPress videos? None is documented. The only duration rule WordPress.com publishes is that videos longer than three hours are converted to standard resolution and are not available in higher-resolution formats.

Does a failed upload eat my storage quota? No — WordPress.com states that failed attempts do not count against your storage space limit. If uploads keep failing, its own guidance points at connection speed rather than the size cap.

What is the fastest way to get under the limit? Compress the file before uploading, which is also WordPress.com's first listed suggestion. Browse all Clapr tools for format conversion and audio extraction, or see more platform upload limits — for example Google Drive's 5 TB file size limit, which is a very different set of rules.

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All figures cited from WordPress.com's VideoPress, Accepted file types, Working with video and Get more storage space support pages, checked 16 September 2026. WordPress.com revises these pages regularly — verify against the official documentation before relying on a number.