To post a carousel on TikTok, open the app, tap the Add post + button at the bottom, tap Photo, then tap Upload and pick up to 35 photos. Tap Next to add a sound, text or stickers, tap Next again to write the description and edit the cover, then tap Post. TikTok calls a carousel a photo post, and viewers swipe through the images at their own pace.
Key Takeaways
- Where: in the TikTok app. TikTok’s help page gives photo steps for the app only.
- How many: up to 35 photos per post, in the app and through TikTok’s API.
- Size: TikTok’s developer documentation caps photos at “1080p” and 20 MB each. It publishes no recommended size, so we export vertical photos at 1080 x 1920.
- Format for scheduled posts: JPEG or WebP. Those are the only image formats TikTok’s API documentation lists, so convert PNG screenshots first.
- Scheduled posts work two ways: sent to your TikTok inbox to finish in the app, or posted directly, with optional automatic music.
TikTok carousel limits at a glance
TikTok’s help center covers the in-app steps and the 35-photo limit. The file rules come from TikTok’s developer documentation for its Content Posting API, which scheduling tools use to post to TikTok. We read both in November 2026.
| Limit | Source | |
|---|---|---|
| Photos per post | Up to 35 | TikTok help center; Content Posting API |
| Photo size | ”Maximum 1080p” | Content Posting API media transfer guide |
| File size | 20 MB per image | Content Posting API media transfer guide |
| Formats sent by an app | JPEG, WebP | Content Posting API media transfer guide |
| Description | 2,200 characters at the Photo Mode launch; 4,000 through the API | TikTok newsroom; photo post API reference |
| Title (API field) | 90 characters | Photo post API reference |
| Cover | Edit cover in the app; through the API, one of the post’s photos | TikTok help center; photo post API reference |
| Duet and Stitch | Not available on photo posts | Content Sharing Guidelines |
How do you post a carousel on TikTok?
Open the TikTok app and tap the Add post + button at the bottom of the screen. Tap Photo, then Upload, and select up to 35 photos from your device. Tap Next, swipe between the photos to edit them, then tap Next again to add a description, hashtags and a cover. Tap Post to publish, or Drafts to save it for later.
Step by step, following TikTok’s help page:
- Start a post. Tap Add post + at the bottom of the app.
- Choose your photos. Tap Photo, then Upload, and select the photos in the order you want them shown. TikTok allows up to 35.
- Edit the slides. Tap Next. Swipe to move between photos and add a filter, a sound, text or stickers, or crop a photo.
- Finish the post. Tap Next again to edit the cover and add a description, hashtags, tags, a location or a link. Your Story posts to your Story instead.
- Publish. Tap Post, or Drafts to keep it on your profile where only you see it.
Labels can change between app versions; if a label differs, look for the same step in the same place. One detail from the help page catches people out: a new post keeps the privacy setting of your previous one, so check it before you tap Post.
How do you make a carousel on TikTok people swipe through?
Treat the first photo as the hook and every photo after it as one point. People decide on the first image whether to swipe, so put the promise there in large text: “5 mistakes in my first year of baking bread”. Then give each mistake its own slide, and end on a slide that tells people what to do next, such as saving the post or following for part two.
Keep one idea per slide, and keep text in the middle of the frame, since TikTok shows your description and its buttons on top of the post. Use the same shape for every photo: a set that switches between tall and square looks unfinished as you swipe. TikTok’s Photo Mode announcement describes adding music “to soundtrack the images”, and a quiet track suits a tutorial better than a loud trend sound.
Lists, before and after, and myth and fact all work as photo posts. Our TikTok content ideas list gives 30 with hooks, and the slide-by-slide outlines in our Instagram carousel ideas carry over to TikTok with a taller frame.
What size should TikTok carousel photos be?
TikTok’s developer documentation sets a maximum, not a recommended size: photos up to “1080p” and up to 20 MB each. It does not say whether 1080 refers to width or height. We read it as 1080 pixels on the short side, which makes a vertical 9:16 photo 1080 x 1920. That is the size we export at.
Guides that call 1080 x 1920 “TikTok’s official photo size” go one step further than TikTok does. 1080 x 1920 is a safe size, inside the published maximum, but the official figure is the 1080p ceiling. Rules for each photo:
- Export at 1080 x 1920 for full-screen slides, or at 1080 pixels wide for other shapes.
- Save as JPEG or WebP for scheduled posts. TikTok’s API documentation lists only those two image formats. Phone screenshots are often PNG files, so convert them before you hand them to a scheduler.
- Stay under 20 MB. A 1080 x 1920 JPEG is far below that.
- Treat the cover as a slide. In a photo post the cover is one of your photos, so the cover size is the slide size.
Video has its own rules. For the frame and export size of a TikTok video, see PostNext’s guide to TikTok’s aspect ratio, and for how long a video can run, our guide to TikTok video length.
Is a TikTok carousel the same as a slideshow?
No. A photo post, which TikTok calls Photo Mode, is a carousel: the images “automatically display one after another”, and viewers can also “swipe through at their own pace”, in TikTok’s words. An older TikTok tutorial describes a different thing: a photo slideshow made from the Record Video page, where the images play “in slideshow format” as a video, in the order you selected them.
In a photo post a viewer stops on a slide to read it or swipes back to check a step; in a slideshow video they wait. For tips, steps and checklists, the photo post is the better choice. For a montage set to music, either works.
Can you schedule a TikTok carousel?
Yes, through a scheduling tool that uses TikTok’s Content Posting API, which supports photo posts of up to 35 images. TikTok offers apps two ways to deliver them. Upload mode sends the photos to your TikTok inbox, and you finish and publish the post in the app. Direct Post publishes at the scheduled time, with the privacy and comment settings chosen beforehand.
| Inbox (upload) | Direct Post | |
|---|---|---|
| What happens at the scheduled time | You get an inbox notification and finish the post in TikTok | The post publishes |
| Title and description | Carried into TikTok’s editor | Published as written |
| Music | You add a sound in TikTok’s editor | Optional recommended music added by TikTok, changeable later |
| Privacy | You set it in TikTok | Chosen before scheduling, from the options TikTok allows the account |
| Limits | Up to 5 pending inbox posts in 24 hours; TikTok app 31.8 or later | A daily cap per account, typically around 15 posts, shared across all apps |
Pick the inbox to add a trending sound or check the post before it goes live, and Direct Post when the post is final. In either mode, TikTok’s Content Sharing Guidelines say Duet and Stitch “are not applicable to photo posts”, so the only interaction setting is whether comments are allowed.
How does PostNext handle TikTok photo posts?
PostNext schedules TikTok photo posts with several images, a caption and hashtags, published through TikTok’s official Content Posting API. By default a post goes to your TikTok inbox, where you finish and publish it in the app. Switching on Post directly publishes it at the scheduled time without opening TikTok. The first photo you add becomes the cover.
PostNext has no audio library. When you post directly, TikTok adds music automatically if you choose that; otherwise you add a sound in TikTok. The PostNext TikTok scheduler page lists the settings. Upload your slides as JPEG or WebP, the formats TikTok’s documentation lists, and keep a photo post’s caption within 90 characters: PostNext passes the caption to TikTok as the post’s title, which TikTok caps at 90 characters for photo posts.
To choose a time slot for the post, see our guide to the best time to post on TikTok.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many photos can you put in a TikTok carousel?
Up to 35. TikTok’s help page allows up to 35 photos in a photo post made in the app, and TikTok’s Content Posting API accepts up to 35 photos for a photo post sent by a scheduling tool.
What size should a TikTok carousel be?
TikTok’s developer documentation caps photos at 1080p and 20 MB each, and publishes no recommended size. A vertical 9:16 photo at 1080p is 1080 x 1920 pixels, which fills the screen and stays inside the limit. Keep every photo in the post the same shape.
Can you post a TikTok carousel from a computer?
TikTok’s help page documents photo posts only in the app, and its browser steps cover video uploads. From a computer, a scheduling tool that sends photo posts through TikTok’s Content Posting API with Direct Post publishes them without your phone. In inbox mode you still finish the post in the app.
Can you add music to a TikTok photo post?
Yes. In the app you add a sound while editing the photos. When a photo post is published through TikTok’s API with Direct Post, the scheduling app may ask TikTok to add recommended music automatically, and you change it later in TikTok if you prefer another track.
What file format do TikTok photo posts accept?
For photos sent through TikTok’s Content Posting API, which scheduling tools use, TikTok’s documentation lists JPEG and WebP, up to 20 MB each. Convert PNG images, such as phone screenshots, to JPEG before you schedule them.
Can you change the cover of a TikTok carousel?
Yes. In the app, tap Next after editing the photos and choose Edit cover. In a photo post the cover is one of the post’s photos, and a scheduling tool picks which one through TikTok’s API.
Related reading
- How Long Can TikTok Videos Be? 3 to 10 Minutes
- 30 TikTok Content Ideas for Any Niche, With Hooks
- 25 Instagram Carousel Ideas With Slide-by-Slide Outlines
- How to Schedule TikTok Posts From Your Desktop Free in 2026
- Best Time to Post on TikTok: A Practical Guide for Business Owners and Builders
Sources
- TikTok Help Center, Making a post, photo post steps and the 35-photo limit (November 2026)
- TikTok for Developers, Content Posting API media transfer guide, image restrictions (November 2026)
- TikTok for Developers, Content Posting API: Photo, photo count, cover, title and description lengths, music, inbox and Direct Post (November 2026)
- TikTok for Developers, Content Sharing Guidelines, Duet and Stitch on photo posts and the Direct Post daily cap (November 2026)
- TikTok Newsroom, Inspiring creativity with our new editing tools, the Photo Mode announcement (read November 2026)
- TikTok Newsroom, TikTok Tutorial Series: Photos on TikTok, photo slideshows (read November 2026)
- PostNext, postnext.io/tiktok-scheduler (November 2026)
