# Social video export failed or stuck Fix a social video that won't export, fails or seems stuck, from a used-up monthly allowance to a changed testimonial, failed formats and expired downloads. If a social video won't export, stops with an error or never seems to finish, start with the message the editor shows. The workspace owner and the project's Admins can export. ## Check this first When **Export Video** in the editor's top bar is unavailable, the reason is written beside it, or appears when you point at the button: | Message | What to do | | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | You've used all your monthly text exports. Upgrade to export more. | This month's allowance for text and photo templates and **Review Stack** is used up. It starts again on the first of the month, or upgrade for more. An export that's still rendering counts too. | | You've used all your monthly video exports. Upgrade to export more. | The same, for video templates and **Customer Montage**. | | Social videos from video testimonials start on Pro. Upgrade to export this one. | Free includes 0 video exports a month, so on it this shows for every video template: you can try them in the editor, but only text and photo templates export. | | This video is still processing — try again once it finishes. | Wait until the recording is ready. See [Video testimonial still processing](/help/troubleshooting/video-still-processing). | | This video couldn't be processed. | The recording failed or was refused, so it will never be ready. Choose another video testimonial. | | This video can't be exported (unsupported source). | The video is a link to another site, such as an imported YouTube, Vimeo or social media video. Choose a video testimonial that was recorded or uploaded in ReTestimonial. | | Updating the preview… or Preparing the preview… | Wait a moment: the preview is catching up with your last change. | A video you've only just recorded or uploaded can also show "can't be exported" for a short while, before its processing starts. Wait a few minutes and open the editor again. If a message covers the preview instead, such as **This review is too long for one video — choose an excerpt.**, fix what it says in the editor. See [Make a social video](/help/create/make-a-social-video). The allowances are shared by every project in the workspace. [Social videos](/help/create/social-videos#plans-and-monthly-exports) lists how many each plan includes. ## If the export stops with a message If the **Export video** dialog shows **Export failed** before anything renders, nothing was counted. The common messages: - "This testimonial changed since the preview — review it and export again": someone edited the testimonial or changed its photos or translation, its captions got new timings, or it's no longer approved. The editor refreshes the preview: check it, then export again. - "The preview expired and has been refreshed — check it and export again": the editor was open for a long time. Check the preview and export again. - "Video preparation timed out. Please try again.": for a video template, the editor prepares the recording before it starts rendering. Click **Back** and export again; the preparation carries on meanwhile. - A message about your monthly limit, or that your plan doesn't include the template or a format: another export, perhaps a teammate's, may have used this month's last one. Upgrade, or wait until next month. - A message that the project or workspace is read-only: billing has made it read-only. See [Project is read-only](/help/troubleshooting/project-is-read-only). While the renderer is busy, the dialog shows **The renderer is busy — retrying…** and tries again by itself. ## If some formats failed The dialog says **Some formats failed**, or **Export failed** when none finished, and each failed format shows its reason. Click **Retry the failed format** (or **Retry 2 failed formats**). If you've closed the dialog, click **Retry** next to the export in your recent exports. - **Some formats finished:** retrying the others is free, even with this month's exports used up. - **None finished:** **Nothing was counted.** A retry then uses an export, like a new one. You can retry for 24 hours after the export started: see [How long you can retry](/help/create/export-social-videos#how-long-you-can-retry). After that, or if a retry says **This export is too old to retry — export it again**, export it again from the editor. ## If it seems stuck - **Preparing the video…** For a video template, the recording is prepared first, one speaker at a time for **Customer Montage**. Nothing is counted yet. - **Starting** next to a format means it's waiting for the renderer. It starts on its own. - **Progress, but slow.** You don't need to wait: click **Close (keeps rendering)**. The export carries on, and you get a notification when it's ready or if it fails. - **Still rendering.** After a long wait, the dialog stops following the export and says **This export is taking longer than usual.** The export hasn't failed: it's still rendering, and it's already counted. Don't export it again; follow it in **Recent exports** (the clock icon in the editor's top bar) instead. - **It never finishes.** A format that runs far too long is stopped and marked failed, with **This social video export timed out. Retry it, or export it again.** [Retry it](#if-some-formats-failed). ## If the download doesn't work - **The file shows Expired.** Exported files can be downloaded for 24 hours. Export the video again; that counts as a new export. See [When a file has expired](/help/create/export-social-videos#when-a-file-has-expired). - **A download link you copied stopped working.** Download links work for a limited time. Open **Recent exports** (the clock icon in the editor's top bar) or **Recent Videos** on the **Videos** page for a fresh one, as long as the file hasn't expired. - **You can't find the export.** Both lists show only the exports you made yourself. A teammate's exports are in their lists. Each list holds your 20 most recent videos of the last 7 days: see [How far back the lists go](/help/create/export-social-videos#how-far-back-the-lists-go). ## If your plan changed A retry renders the video exactly as it was set up, so it's refused when your plan no longer includes something it uses, with a message such as **Branding is no longer on your plan — export this video again.** Export it again from the editor: it applies what your plan includes now. A format marked **Upgrade** in the **Export video** dialog isn't on your plan. Free exports 1:1; Pro, Premium and Business export 1:1, 4:5, 9:16 and 16:9. ## Still failing? [Contact us](/contact) and include: - the template and formats you exported, and the testimonial it's for; - the message you saw, word for word; - roughly when you exported. ## Next steps - [Export and download social videos](/help/create/export-social-videos) - [Make a social video](/help/create/make-a-social-video) - [Social videos](/help/create/social-videos)