Video upload fails or gets stuck

Uploading a video should be fast and uneventful. When an upload fails partway through, gets silently rejected, or stalls at a percentage and never finishes, it almost always comes down to one of a handful of causes. Work through the steps below from top to bottom — most problems are resolved within the first two.

Check that your file type is supported

PublishFi accepts video files (MP4, MOV, WebM), audio files (MP3, WAV, OGG, M4A, and others), images (JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP), and PDF documents. Files outside these categories are rejected before the upload begins, which can look like nothing happening at all.

If you are trying to upload a format that is not on the list — for example, a raw camera format or a proprietary codec file — export or convert it to MP4 first using any standard video tool.

Check your file size and connection stability

PublishFi supports files up to 5 GB. For files over 100 MB, the upload is automatically split into 100 MB chunks and sent in sequence. This process is designed to be resilient, but an unstable internet connection can interrupt a chunk mid-transfer and cause the entire upload to fail.

If you are on a large file and the upload stalls:

1. Check that your internet connection is stable — reload another page to confirm.
2. Make sure no other large downloads or uploads are running at the same time.
3. Avoid using a VPN that throttles upload speeds.
4. If you are on Wi-Fi, try switching to a wired connection.

Try a different browser

PublishFi's editor is optimized for Chromium-based browsers. If uploads fail consistently, switch to an up-to-date version of Google Chrome. Other browsers may handle file transfers differently and can produce errors the editor is not designed to catch.

Re-try the upload

If the upload shows a failure message, dismiss it and try again. Transient server-side issues occasionally affect individual requests and resolve on a second attempt. If the file is large, consider compressing or trimming it before re-uploading to reduce transfer time.

Use URL import as an alternative

If uploading from your device keeps failing, you may be able to import the media directly from a URL instead. In the project view, click Import from URL and paste a link to your file. The transfer happens on PublishFi's servers rather than your local connection, which sidesteps most local network issues.

Note: URL imports and device uploads cannot be mixed in the same project clip at the same time. If you have already added files from your device, you will need to start fresh or upload remaining files from the device as well.

If none of the above resolves the problem, contact PublishFi support and include the file format, approximate file size, and any error message displayed during the upload attempt.