What do the four datasets say, side by side?
They agree on views and disagree on engagement. Every study that counted views or reach found video ahead or level; the split is over how many viewers did something with the post. TikTok launched Photo Mode on October 6, 2022 as “a new carousel format available on mobile for photo content”, up to 35 photos in a post, and made no performance claim at launch.[1][2]
| Who | Sample | Period | Metric | Photo posts vs video on TikTok |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TikTok, in-app message[12] | Not stated | Reported April 2024 | Average likes, comments, shares | 1.9x likes, 2.9x comments, 2.6x shares |
| Fanpage Karma[5] | Almost 700,000 TikTok and Instagram posts | January 1 to May 31, 2025 | Reach, engagement rate, like rate, shares; not defined on the page | +3% reach, engagement rate +81%, likes +82%, shares about a third lower |
| Buffer[6] | 45 million or more posts, eight platforms | 2025, published March 2026 | Median engagement rate as a percentage of reach | Video 3.39%, carousels and photos 1.92% |
| Metricool 2026[7][8] | 2,314,756 posts, 92,000 or more accounts | January to February 2025 vs 2026 | Views, interactions, engagement rate | Video 5.6x views, 7.8x interactions; image rate 5.24% to 2.62%, video 3.67% |
Socialinsider’s benchmarks, 2 million videos from 214,507 profiles over 2024 and 2025, do not split engagement by format, but note that video is “over 96% of all posts” and “smaller accounts are slightly more likely to experiment with carousels”.[10]
Why do the numbers disagree?
Because they measure different things, on different accounts, in different years. Four differences explain most of the gap.
Ratio or raw count. Metricool’s 2024 study, 984,402 posts of 2023 data, shows both at once: videos earned 59.47% more interactions per post, yet images had a 27.73% higher engagement rate, defined as “the total number of interactions (likes, comments, and shares) divided by the number of views, multiplied by 100”.[9] Fewer viewers can convert better and still lose on totals.
Mean or median. Buffer uses the median because it “helps give a more realistic picture of how content performs for most creators and brands, without extreme outliers distorting the numbers”.[6] Metricool reports averages, which viral posts pull up.[8]
Reach or views underneath. Buffer divides by reach, the unique accounts that saw the post.[6] Metricool and Socialinsider divide by views, and Socialinsider counts saves as interactions.[9][10] A slideshow opened twice by one person counts twice in views and once in reach.
Account size and timing. Socialinsider puts accounts of 1,000 to 5,000 followers at a 5.25% engagement rate on 317 average views, against 4.50% on 22,700 views at 100,000 to one million, and small accounts post more carousels.[10][11] The format also moved fast: Metricool counted 140% more image and carousel posts in a year while their engagement rate halved.[7][8]
What do slideshows win, and what does video win?
Video wins broadcast reach and shares; slideshows win interactions per viewer when they win at all. Shares are the clearest split: Fanpage Karma found carousel shares “around a third lower” than video while the same carousels drew almost 82% more likes, and Metricool’s 2024 data had video ahead on shares by 52.94%.[5][9] That matters because TikTok says recommendations weigh “the videos you like or share, accounts you follow, comments you post”, with greater weight for “a strong indicator of interest, such as whether a user finishes watching a longer video from beginning to end”.[3] A post people send on keeps spreading.
The engagement case for slideshows is real but narrower than the 2024 promotion suggested. TikTok’s 2.9x comments claim reached brands as an in-app message, Modern Retail reported in April 2024; the one brand quoted, Youthforia, saw carousels reach 11% more people than its videos, which is one account, not a benchmark.[12] Independent data supports more likes per viewer in 2025 and a higher rate per view in 2023, against a lower rate than video in Buffer’s 2025 data and Metricool’s 2026 data.[5][6][8][9]
When should you use a slideshow instead of a video?
When the content is a list, a comparison, a set of products or a before-and-after, because those are read one idea at a time and a slide is one idea. TikTok’s own guidance for shoppable carousels says so in product terms: “a set of 5 to 7 clear, consistent photos gives shoppers a better read than a single shot”, at 9:16, with “1 to 3 selling points or details” per photo.[4]
A list gives every slide a reason to be swiped. A comparison puts two things side by side where a video would cut between them. A product set shows each item full size, and on TikTok Shop each can carry its own link.[4] A before-and-after lets the viewer flick between the two states.
Video still suits anything that needs motion, sound or a person talking. Metricool’s 2026 read is that “if you’re choosing between posting a video or a carousel, the data points to video, with very few exceptions”, and the exceptions are the four jobs above.[8] Most small accounts do best with a mix.
Showfolk plans and renders the slideshow half of a TikTok mix, built from formats that are repeatedly working for tracked accounts. How the slideshow maker works.
Which format rules hold across the studies?
Only a few, because the studies measured outcomes, not slide design. The rules below are labelled: TikTok’s own pages, or practitioner guidance.
| Rule | Who says so | Why |
|---|---|---|
| First slide carries the hook, in large type | Practitioner | The cover is all a scroller sees. |
| 5 to 10 slides; 5 to 7 for product sets | TikTok for the 5 to 7[4]; practitioner for the upper bound | Enough to pay off the hook, not so many that people leave. |
| One idea and 1 to 3 short lines per slide | TikTok[4] | TikTok warns against overloading photos with text or stickers. |
| 9:16, full screen | TikTok[4] | Fills the phone. |
| Up to 35 photos, a sound, text, stickers and crop in the app | TikTok[2] | The Help Center’s limits. |
| Last slide asks for the save, comment or follow | Practitioner | Where photo posts have beaten video, it is on likes and comments. |
Pixel sizes and safe zones are in our TikTok slideshow specs post.
How do you measure it on your own account?
Run matched pairs and read medians. A benchmark describes the platform; it cannot tell you whether your audience swipes.
- 1
Pair the posts
Make a video and a slideshow that say the same thing, and publish both in the same week at the same time of day. - 2
Wait seven days
Both formats keep collecting views for days. Read every pair at the same age. - 3
Pull the same five numbers
Views, likes, comments, shares and saves, from the post’s analytics in the app (Creator Center, Videos, Manage; sellers also have Photo details under Channel Analytics).[4] - 4
- 5
Get to ten pairs
Fewer and one lucky post decides it. Take the median per format, as Buffer does, so an outlier does not.[6] - 6
Split by job
Read lists and product sets separately from stories and demonstrations. If your pattern differs, your audience is the benchmark.
Questions people ask
- Do TikTok slideshows get more views than videos?
- No, on average. Metricool’s 2026 study of 2,314,756 posts found TikTok video getting 5.6 times the views of image and carousel posts. Fanpage Karma’s 2025 sample, the most favorable to photo posts, found their reach only 3% higher.
- Does the TikTok algorithm favor photo mode?
- No TikTok page says so. In early 2024 TikTok sent creators an in-app message saying photo posts got 2.9x more comments, 1.9x more likes and 2.6x more shares on average, but it has not published that data, and independent studies since have found video ahead on views and shares.
- What is a good engagement rate for a TikTok carousel?
- It depends on the denominator. Buffer’s 2026 median for TikTok carousels and photos is 1.92% of reach, against 3.39% for video. Metricool’s 2026 average for image and carousel posts is 2.62% of views, down from 5.24% a year earlier. Compare only with a benchmark that divides by the same thing.
- Do TikTok carousels get more comments than videos?
- TikTok claimed 2.9x more comments in a 2024 in-app message it has not published. Metricool’s 2024 study found video ahead on comments by 34.90% in raw counts. The independent evidence for carousels is on likes and interactions per view, not comments.
- How many slides should a TikTok slideshow have?
- Five to ten for most posts. TikTok’s seller guidance recommends 5 to 7 clear, consistent photos at 9:16 with one to three selling points per photo, with 2 as the minimum, and the Help Center allows up to 35 photos. The upper bound of ten is practitioner guidance, not a study finding.
- Should a small business post slideshows or videos on TikTok?
- Both, matched to the job. Slideshows for lists, comparisons, product sets and before-and-afters; video for demonstrations, reactions and stories. Every dataset shows video reaching more people and being shared more; Fanpage Karma’s 2025 data shows photo posts earning more likes per viewer.
Sources
Every figure above points at one of these. Facts were last checked on .
- [1]TikTok Newsroom, October 6, 2022: Inspiring creativity with our new editing tools. The Photo Mode launch: “a new carousel format available on mobile”, still images that “automatically display one after another” and that viewers “swipe through at their own pace”; no performance claim
- [2]TikTok Help Center: Making a post. How to post a photo: “You can add up to 35 photos”, and the in-app edits (filter, sound, text, stickers, crop)
- [3]TikTok Newsroom, June 18, 2020: How TikTok recommends videos #ForYou. The signals the recommendation system weighs, and the sentence on strong indicators such as finishing a longer video
- [4]TikTok Shop Seller University: How to create Shoppable Carousels. 2 images minimum, 5 to 7 recommended, 9:16, 1 to 3 selling points per photo, where carousels appear and where photo analytics live
- [5]Fanpage Karma Insights, June 2025: Performance check: carousels vs. videos. Almost 700,000 posts, January 1 to May 31, 2025; TikTok carousels +3% reach, engagement rate more than 81% higher, almost 82% more likes, shares around a third lower; the page does not define its rates
- [6]Buffer, March 19, 2026: Best content format on social platforms in 2026: 45M+ posts analyzed. Median engagement rate as a percentage of reach; TikTok video 3.39% vs carousels and photos 1.92%, 77% higher; why the median is used
- [7]Metricool press release, May 12, 2026: 2026 TikTok Study. 2,314,756 posts from more than 92,000 accounts, January to February 2025 vs January to February 2026; 140% more image and carousel posts year over year
- [8]Metricool, June 8, 2026: How to go viral on TikTok. The 2026 study’s format figures as Metricool states them: video 5.6x views and 7.8x interactions; image and carousel engagement rate from 5.24% to 2.62%, video 3.67%; “the data points to video, with very few exceptions”
- [9]Metricool: TikTok Study 2024 (PDF). 984,402 posts from 84,998 accounts; engagement rate defined as interactions divided by views, times 100; video +59.47% interactions, +34.90% comments, +52.94% shares; images +27.73% engagement rate
- [10]Socialinsider: TikTok benchmarks. Engagement rate by views, including saves; 2 million videos from 214,507 profiles, January 2024 to December 2025; video over 96% of posts, smaller accounts slightly more likely to post carousels; no split by format
- [11]Socialinsider: Views vs engagement: when to focus on each metric. TikTok engagement rate and average views by account size: 5.25% on 317 views for 1K to 5K followers, 4.50% on 22,700 views for 100K to 1M
- [12]Modern Retail, April 9, 2024: TikTok is pushing brands to post photos instead of videos. TikTok’s in-app message to creators: carousel posts get “2.9x more comments,” “1.9x more likes” and “2.6x more shares on average”; Youthforia’s own 11% reach figure
