Shutterstock CSV: format and template for video

The columns Shutterstock expects

Each row of the file describes one clip. The header row has to use Shutterstock's column names exactly, and the name in the Filename column is what links a row to a clip you have already uploaded.

If none of your clips is an illustration or needs the mature tag, leave those two columns out. Keep the four required columns in A to D. One detail in the help article: a sentence says "columns E-F are optional" while the list marks E, F and G as optional. All three are optional.

The CSV covers metadata only. There is no documented column for model or property releases, for the location field or for notes to the reviewer. Those stay in the submission editor.

How to fill each column for a clip

Filename

Copy the file name as uploaded, with its extension: harbor_sunrise_01.mov, not harbor_sunrise_01. Shutterstock allows only the letters a to z and A to Z, the digits 0 to 9 and the underscore in file names. Accented letters, non-Latin characters, brackets, parentheses and quotation marks are not permitted and may cause an error during upload. Rename clips before you upload them, because the CSV has to match the name the clip was uploaded under.

Description

The description doubles as the clip's title. Write one complete sentence of at least five words, in English, that says what is in the frame: who, what, where, and the angle or movement when it matters. Leave out keyword lists separated by commas, links, camera details, emojis and brand names (brands are allowed only in editorial content).

Length is where Shutterstock contradicts itself. Its metadata standard sets the maximum at 2,048 characters, while its article on the submission editor mentions a 150-character limit in the description field. One clear sentence under 150 characters meets both.

Documentary editorial clips need a dateline before the sentence: CITY, STATE/COUNTRY - MONTH DAY, YEAR: Factual sentence. A missing or wrong date or place is a rejection reason. For footage shot before 2000, the year or the decade is enough.

Keywords

Between 7 and 50, separated by commas, in English. Latin names of plants and animals, place names and foreign terms common in English are allowed. The same word or word stem repeated across keywords, and keywords that do not describe the clip, count as spam. Standard CSV puts a field that contains commas inside double quotes; spreadsheet apps do it when they export to CSV, and if you write the file by hand, add the quotes yourself. The limits of the other agencies are in keyword limits by agency.

Categories

One category is required and a second is optional, separated by a comma. Use names from Shutterstock's list, such as Animals/Wildlife or Food and Drink. Shutterstock's sample writes them in lowercase and puts "editorial" in the Categories cell of its editorial row, but Editorial is not in the category list. Mark editorial clips in the Editorial column and keep Categories to names from the list.

Illustration, Mature Content and Editorial

Each takes Yes or No. Editorial set to Yes means the clip, once approved, is labeled "Editorial Use Only" and cannot be used to advertise or promote a product or service. Editorial clips do not need model or property releases.

A Shutterstock CSV template for video

Shutterstock shows its sample only as an image and offers no file to download. Here is the same structure as text, with three video rows. Paste it into a plain-text file saved with a .csv extension, or into a spreadsheet, and replace the rows with your own clips.

Filename,Description,Keywords,Categories,Editorial
harbor_sunrise_01.mov,Fishing boats leave a small harbor at sunrise seen from above,"fishing boat, harbor, sunrise, aerial view, coast, sea, morning, port, water, travel","Transportation, Nature",No
city_traffic_night_02.mp4,Cars and buses cross a wet city intersection at night,"traffic, city, night, intersection, cars, bus, rain, wet street, urban, lights, commute",Transportation,No
market_lisbon_03.mov,"LISBON, PORTUGAL - MAY 4, 2026: Shoppers walk between fruit stalls at an open-air market","market, lisbon, portugal, fruit, stalls, shoppers, people, street, europe, food","Food and Drink, People",Yes

• The third row is an editorial clip: its description starts with the dateline and Editorial is Yes.
• Fields that contain commas (keyword lists, two categories, the dateline) sit inside double quotes.
• Every file name uses only letters, digits and underscores before the extension.
• Shutterstock publishes no rule on encoding or line endings for this file.

Before you fill the file, the free title and keyword checker tests each description and keyword list against Shutterstock's limits. The Adobe Stock file uses different columns: see the Adobe Stock CSV guide.

Categories you can use for video

Shutterstock lists 26 categories and marks 7 of them as not available for video. These are the 19 you can put in the Categories column of a clip, spelled as on Shutterstock's list.

Not available for video: Abstract, Beauty/Fashion, Celebrities, Interiors, Miscellaneous, Parks/Outdoor and Vintage. A clip of a park or an interior goes under the closest available category, such as Nature or Buildings/Landmarks.

Upload order: clips first, CSV last

Shutterstock matches CSV rows to files that are already in your account. Send the file too early and the rows have nothing to attach to.

1. Upload every clip in the batch, in the browser or over FTPS. The web upload page takes up to 100 files at a time. Files sent by FTPS can take up to 72 hours to appear in your account.
2. Wait until all the clips show up under the "Not submitted" tab.
3. Delete any CSV row for a clip that is not in this batch, including rows left from an older file.
4. On the Submit page, click the CSV button at the top of the page and choose your file.
5. Check the clips in the editor and attach releases where needed. Releases can only be attached at this stage, one JPEG per person, up to 20 MB each.
6. Click Submit once, then wait for processing to finish.

You have 21 days from upload to submit a clip. After that, Shutterstock deletes it from its servers.

Common errors and how to fix them

Most of these come from Shutterstock's help articles on CSV uploads, upload errors and submission errors. The row-matching one follows from how the file works: rows attach to clips by file name.

To check a description and a keyword list against these limits before you build the file, paste them into the title and keyword checker. Rejections that have nothing to do with the CSV are covered in why stock footage gets rejected.

Limits that apply to a CSV batch

The clips themselves still have to meet Shutterstock's file rules: .mov or .mp4, up to 10 GB (an older article on noise still says 4 GB; the technical page is the one to follow), 5 to 60 seconds, at an accepted resolution and frame rate. The full list is on the Shutterstock video requirements page.