If you're no longer satisfied with the crazy photo you have on your Facebook profile, then you might want to get creative and change it up with a video.
Facebook now lets you set a short video as your profile picture. All you need is an Android or iOS device, the Facebook app installed on it, and your imagination. You can upload a video that's up to seven seconds long. In this article, we'll show you how .
The example below was done on an Android phone. The same instructions should apply to the Facebook app for iOS. Note that at this time you can only set a video in place of your profile photo via smartphone and not from the web. It also does not apply to Facebook pages but only to individual accounts.
1. Start with the Facebook app on your mobile device and go to your profile. At the top you will see your picture with a tiny camera at the bottom that continuously alternates with a tiny video camera icon. Tap on your profile picture, and you will be given two options to upload a video: “Take a new profile video” and “Upload a video or photo”.
If you want to create a new profile video with your device’s camera, tap on “Take a new profile video”. If you already have a video up to 7 seconds long that you want to put on your profile then you can tap on “Upload a video or photo”.
2. If you tap on “Take a new profile video” your device’s front camera will open and a big red button will appear at the bottom. You can also switch to the rear camera with the toggle button (with the two arrows) in the top right corner. To start recording the video, tap the big red button. The recording will start immediately and will be limited to seven seconds.
3. Once the video is recorded, you will be taken to the next screen where you can preview it and turn the sound on or off. Click “Next” and select a thumbnail on the next screen. The video on your profile will only play when someone is your friend on Facebook. Therefore, you will need to select a thumbnail from the video, which will be used as your profile picture and will be displayed to those who do not have access to it.
4. After selecting a thumbnail, click “USE” and the video will be uploaded and applied to your Facebook profile as a video. The video will play endlessly in a loop, and will have a GIF-like aesthetic.
6. If you already have a video that you want to use as your profile video, tap “Upload video or photo” and simply select the appropriate video and follow the same instructions as above to preview and select a thumbnail.
That's it. Now all you need is imagination and creative expression. You can say hello, welcome a visitor to your profile, wink or even perform an acrobatic stunt, the possibilities are endless.
