Embed video, audio and animated GIFs

You can show video and audio inside a page, task, news story or blog post. The easiest way is to paste the address of a video that is hosted on a service such as YouTube or Vimeo. You do not need embed code for those.

Embed a YouTube or Vimeo video

  1. Copy the address of the video from your browser, such as https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=abc123.
  2. In the editor, in the Visual tab, put the cursor on an empty line.
  3. Paste the address. After a moment it turns into a video player.

Govintra makes the player fit the width of the page on any screen size.

The same method works for other services that WordPress recognises, including SoundCloud, Spotify, Mixcloud, TED and Flickr. It does not work for Instagram or Facebook. For those, add a screenshot as an image and link it to the post.

If the video address stays as text

  • The address must be on a line of its own, with nothing else on that line.
  • The address must not be a link. If it is blue and underlined, select it and select Remove link.
  • The address must not be bold, a heading or part of a list.
  • The video must be public or unlisted. A private video cannot be embedded.

Put a video or audio player at the top of a news story

For a news story or blog post, set the Format to Video or Audio. A Media embed URL box appears. Paste the address of the video or audio there. The player appears at the top of the story in place of the featured image. See Feature a video in a news story.

Embed a video from SharePoint, Microsoft Stream or Teams

Pasting the address does not work for videos kept in SharePoint, OneDrive, Microsoft Stream or Teams. You need the embed code.

  1. Open the video in SharePoint or Stream.
  2. Select Share, then Embed code, and copy the code. It starts with <iframe.
  3. In the intranet editor, select the Text tab.
  4. Paste the code where you want the video.
  5. Select Update or Publish.
  • Whether you can save embed code depends on your role. If the code disappears when you save, your role does not allow it. Ask an intranet administrator to add the video for you.
  • Staff can only play the video if they have permission to view the file in SharePoint. Share the video with everyone in your organisation before you embed it.
  • A video stops playing if the file is moved, renamed or deleted in SharePoint. Videos embedded from the older Microsoft Stream (Classic) service stopped working when Microsoft retired it, and need to be embedded again from their new location.

Upload an MP4 video file to the intranet

You can upload a short video to the Media Library and play it on the page. Hosting long videos on YouTube, Vimeo or SharePoint is better, because those services adjust the quality to each person’s connection.

  1. Put the cursor on an empty line and select Add Media.
  2. Upload the video file. Use MP4 format, which plays in every browser. MOV and WMV files may not play.
  3. Under Attachment display settings, set Embed or Link to Embed Media Player.
  4. Select Insert into page or Insert into post.

If the upload fails, the file is bigger than the intranet’s maximum upload file size, which WordPress shows on the upload screen. Compress the video, shorten it or host it elsewhere on a dedicated streaming platform.

Add an audio clip or podcast

For audio hosted on SoundCloud, Mixcloud, Spotify or YouTube, paste the address on a line of its own, as you would for a video.

For your own recording, upload an MP3 file with Add Media, set Embed or Link to Embed Media Player and insert it. An audio player appears on the page.

Add an animated GIF

Add an animated GIF in the same way as any other image, with one difference: under Attachment display settings, set Size to Full Size. The smaller sizes that WordPress makes are still pictures of the first frame, so a GIF inserted at Thumbnail, Medium or Large does not move.

  • Make the GIF the right dimensions before you upload it, because you have to insert it at full size.
  • Keep the file small. Animated GIFs are often several megabytes.
  • Avoid flashing or fast-moving animations, and keep them under five seconds. Animation that cannot be paused is an accessibility problem.
  • Add alt text that describes what the animation shows.

Make video and audio accessible

  • Add captions or subtitles to videos. YouTube, Vimeo and Stream can create them automatically. Check them for mistakes.
  • Provide a transcript for audio clips and podcasts, on the page or as a link.
  • Do not set media to play automatically.
  • Put the key information in the page text as well, for staff who cannot play media where they work.