How to make a carousel post on TikTok
Short answer
A TikTok carousel is a photo post. In the app, tap +, tap Photo, tap Upload and choose up to 35 photos; then edit, add a sound, write a description and tap Post. TikTok’s Help Center gives no pixel size for photo posts. Through its API, TikTok takes JPEG or WebP images up to 1080p and 20 MB each, with a title of up to 90 characters and a description of up to 4,000.
The steps in the TikTok app
From TikTok’s Help Center page on making a post, read on 10 October 2026. TikTok calls a swipeable set of pictures a photo post, and the same page covers video and text posts.
- Tap the Add post + button at the bottom.
- Tap Photo, then tap Upload to select photos from your device. You can add up to 35 photos.
- Tap Next. Swipe to move between the photos and edit them: add a filter, a sound, text or stickers, or crop the photos.
- Tap Next again for the details: edit the cover, add a description and hashtags, tag people, add a location or a link, and manage privacy. Your Story posts it to your Stories instead.
- Tap Post to publish, or Drafts to save it. Drafts are visible only to you, on your profile.
The page also describes a live photo (the Record button takes a photo, which you edit and post) and a text post. It describes the steps for photo posts in the app only.
What TikTok publishes about the format
TikTok’s Help Center gives a count for photo posts and no pixel size or aspect ratio. Its developer documentation gives limits for apps posting through the API, which is what scheduling tools use:
| What | Limit | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Photos in a post | Up to 35 | Help Center and photo post API |
| Image formats | WebP or JPEG | Media transfer guide |
| Resolution | 1080p at most | Media transfer guide |
| File size | 20 MB per image | Media transfer guide |
| Title | 90 characters (UTF-16) | Photo post API |
| Description | 4,000 characters (UTF-16) | Photo post API |
| Cover | One photo of the set, chosen by its position | Photo post API |
The API reference was updated on 24 August 2026 and the media guide on 4 August 2026. Through the API a post can add music automatically, which you can change afterwards in TikTok, and it can be posted directly or sent to the creator’s inbox to finish in the app.
For paid carousels, TikTok’s ad specifications list 2 to 35 images as JPG or PNG with a suggested size of 100 KB or less, and resolutions of 1200 × 628 horizontal, 640 × 640 square and 720 × 1280 vertical (TikTok for Business Help, September 2026). Those are for ads, not for organic photo posts, and we found no organic figure of that kind. The media guide says “1080p” without spelling out what that means for a vertical photo. A vertical photo, the same shape throughout, is the safe choice.
Photo post or video
A photo post holds photos only. The API’s photo endpoint takes a list of image links, and its media type can only be photo. Mellow Hub refuses a TikTok post that mixes a video with images. If the idea needs motion, make it a video: see how to post a video on TikTok.
Posting a TikTok carousel with Mellow Hub
Mellow Hub sends a photo post of up to 35 images to a personal or creator TikTok account through TikTok’s API, with a caption of up to 2,200 characters and a title of up to 90 characters, which TikTok uses as the headline. It can post to the account directly or send the post to your TikTok inbox as a draft. TikTok’s API lists JPEG and WebP, so export the slides in one of those. The free carousel maker makes the slides; Hub checks the image count and the text before anything is sent.
Hub is paid: plans start at $19 a month (Solo), after a 7-day trial with a card on file that costs nothing if you cancel before it ends, and a monthly plan's first month is 20% off. Publishing is unlimited on every plan, under a fair-use ceiling that stops automated floods (900 publications a month on Solo). One publication is one post on one account, so a post sent to five networks counts as five. There are no automatic overage charges.
Questions people also ask
How many photos can a TikTok carousel have?
Up to 35, according to TikTok’s Help Center and its Content Posting API documentation.
What size should TikTok carousel photos be?
TikTok’s Help Center gives no size for organic photo posts. Its API accepts WebP or JPEG up to 1080p and 20 MB each, and its ad specifications list 720 × 1280 as the vertical size for carousel ads. Use one shape for every photo.
Can I add music to a TikTok carousel?
Yes. TikTok’s Help Center lists a sound among the edits for a photo post. Through the API, an app can ask TikTok to add recommended music automatically, and you can change it in TikTok afterwards.
Can I mix photos and videos in one TikTok post?
Not in a photo post. TikTok’s photo post API takes photos only, and Mellow Hub refuses a TikTok post that mixes a video with images.
Can I post a TikTok carousel from a computer?
TikTok’s help page describes photo posts in the app. It describes the web upload for video only, so for photos use the app, or a tool that posts through TikTok’s API.
Sources
- TikTok Help Center: posting videos and photos (up to 35 photos)
- TikTok for Developers: Content Posting API, photo posts
- TikTok for Developers: media transfer guide (video length through the API)
- TikTok for Business Help: Specifications for carousel ads (September 2026)
Other companies’ features change. Every statement about them rests on these pages, as they read on the date above.