Do you know the right format to display a video time length?
Updated by Tiago Araújo [SSW] 5 months ago. See history
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Providing the duration of a video helps set clear expectations for viewers, allowing them to gauge how long it will take to watch and improving overall engagement. Consistently using a standardized format for hours, minutes, and seconds ensures clarity, making it easy for audiences to quickly understand and trust the presented information.
The following table shows the right format for writing video time lengths (hours, minutes, seconds) on the web.
| Duration | Correct format | ❌ Bad examples | ✅ Good examples |
| Less than 1 minute | {{x}} sec | 30s / 30secs / 30 secs | 30 sec |
| 1 to 59 minutes | {{x}} min | 25m / 25mins / 25 mins | 25 min |
| 1 hour | {{x}} hr | 60 mins / 1 hour / 1h 00m | 1 hr |
| More than 1 hour | {{x}} hr {{x}} min | 3h 05m / 3h5min / 3h 5m 10s / 3 hrs 5 mins | 3 hr 5 min |
Notes:
- "1 h" is also accepted, but we prefer "1 hr"
- You should ignore seconds for anything longer than 1 minute
- Although "mins" is a commonly used abbreviation for minutes, you should be aware that it is not correct for scientific use. See when to use "mins" or "min" as an abbreviation for minutes for more information
For a real example of displaying a video time length, see this rule on being a good Product Owner.