HTML Elements

<video>

HTML element · 2 supported, 2 partial, 11 unsupported across 15 clients

Client Support

Client	Category	Engine	Support
Gmail	webmail	Gmail Web	Unsupported
Gmail Android	mobile	Gmail Mobile	Unsupported
Gmail iOS	mobile	Gmail Mobile	Unsupported
Outlook 365	webmail	Outlook Web	Unsupported
Outlook (New)	desktop	Outlook Web	Unsupported
Outlook Classic	desktop	Microsoft Word	Unsupported
Outlook iOS	mobile	Outlook Mobile	Unsupported
Outlook Android	mobile	Outlook Mobile	Unsupported
Apple Mail	desktop	WebKit	Supported
Apple Mail iOS	mobile	WebKit	Partial
Yahoo Mail	webmail	Yahoo	Unsupported
Samsung Mail	mobile	Samsung	Partial
Thunderbird	desktop	Gecko	Supported
HEY Mail	webmail	WebKit	Unsupported
Superhuman	desktop	Blink	Unsupported

Client-by-client behaviour for <video>

Fully supports <video> (2): Apple Mail, Thunderbird.

Partial support (2): Apple Mail iOS, Samsung Mail. Expect rendering quirks unique to each engine — partial support typically means a subset of values, an ignored shorthand, or sanitizer-specific rewrites.

No support (11): Gmail, Gmail Android, Gmail iOS, Outlook 365, Outlook (New), Outlook Classic, Outlook iOS, Outlook Android, Yahoo Mail, HEY Mail, Superhuman. Plan fallbacks for these clients before relying on <video> in production sends.

Fixes & Workarounds

Gmail

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Gmail Android

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Gmail iOS

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Outlook 365

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Outlook (New)

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Outlook Classic

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Outlook iOS

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Outlook Android

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Yahoo Mail

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

HEY Mail

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Superhuman

Unsupported

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Apple Mail iOS

Partial

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Samsung Mail

Partial

Use an animated GIF or a static image with a play button linking to the video.

Before

<video width="600" autoplay muted>
  <source src="demo.mp4" type="video/mp4">
</video>

After

<a href="https://example.com/watch" target="_blank">
  <img src="https://example.com/video-thumb.gif"
    width="600" alt="Watch the video"
    style="display: block; border: 0; max-width: 100%;" />
</a>

Replace video with animated GIF or linked thumbnail

Production guidance for <video>

<video> is a HTML element. Across the email client matrix, 2 of 15 tracked clients support it fully, 2 only partially, and 11 not at all. The clients most likely to require a workaround for this feature are Gmail, Gmail Android, Gmail iOS. Each of them needs a tailored fallback — see the per-client examples above for the specific code fix Emailens recommends.

When in doubt, ship a baseline that renders without <video> and treat it as progressive enhancement on clients where support is verified. Emailens automatically detects cross-client divergence on this feature when you preview an email, so you can see exactly which template paths break before a campaign goes out.

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Support data last updated Apr 27, 2026 · synced from caniemail.com via @emailens/engine.