How Does the Facebook Algorithm Work in 2025?

by Web Team—6 min read

Over the past few years, the Facebook algorithm — like many other social platforms’ algorithms — has continued to evolve. Today, the platform focuses on recommending content based on interests, activity history, and more.

This discovery-oriented algorithm can deliver powerful results for businesses, but it can also be hard to keep up with Facebook’s rapid changes. Here, we’ll walk through how the Facebook algorithm works and strategies to help get your video content to the top of the screen.

What Is the Facebook Algorithm?

Like all social media platforms today, Facebook runs on a series of algorithms, more commonly referred to en masse as “the algorithm.” Essentially, the algorithm evaluates and scores each piece of content, from Feed posts to Reels. Then, it identifies the most relevant content for each user based on factors like demographics, interests, view history, and more.

How Does the Facebook Algorithm Work?

While you’ve likely heard a lot about “beating the algorithm,” that’s not exactly what you want to do. Instead, it’s more effective to find a way to work with the algorithm.

The good news is: the Facebook algorithm doesn’t have to be complicated. The key is understanding how it works in the first place. Behind the scenes, Meta has a whole team dedicated to updating the Facebook algorithm. Through machine learning and artificial intelligence, the algorithm is constantly improving, so what worked for the algorithm a year ago probably won’t work in 2025.

Here are the basics of how the Facebook algorithm works for both the regular Feed and for Reels:

Discovery Feed (AI-Powered Feed)

The Discovery Feed is Facebook’s AI-powered content stream that serves up Reels, videos, and posts from accounts you don’t follow—based entirely on your interests, behavior, and trending topics. It’s where brands win reach, not loyalty, making it the front line for performance-focused creative that earns attention fast.

1. Inventory

First, the algorithm pulls from an ever-expanding inventory of content—posts from friends, groups, followed pages, ads, and now a growing volume of recommended content from accounts you’ve never engaged with. This broader pool is what powers Facebook’s shift toward interest-based discovery over direct connections.

2. Signals

Once the inventory is set, the algorithm processes thousands of behavioral signals to prioritize what’s worth showing. These include who posted it, what type of content it is, how similar posts performed, and how often you engage with that content type, especially video formats and Reels.

3. Predictions

Next, AI steps in. Meta’s discovery engine builds real-time predictions about what content you’re most likely to engage with, based on everything from scroll speed to watch time. With up to 50% of Feed content now coming from outside your network, the algorithm is built to connect brands with people who’ve never heard of them—yet.

4. Relevance

Finally, every post gets scored for relevance. The higher the score, the higher it surfaces in your Feed. The result: a Feed engineered for discovery, where performance content lives or dies by how quickly it drives engagement.

Facebook Reels Algorithm

As of mid‑2025, all video uploads on Facebook, regardless of length or format, are now automatically classified as Facebook Reels, making vertical, thumb‑stopping content the default format on the platform.

According to Facebook, the “highest-quality” content is promoted first. To make algorithm-pleasing video content, the platform recommends:

Entertaining your audience
Starting trends and inspiring others
Using creative tools like text, filters, or effects
Using vertical video and avoiding horizontal videos
Using music, either original audio or from the Facebook library
Being experimental, original, and new
Showcasing your content with good lighting and filming techniques

Friends‑Only Feed

In 2025, Meta introduced a new ‘Friends’ tab (currently in the US and Canada), which surfaces only your friends’ posts, Reels, stories, and birthdays. No algorithmic recommendations or ads, so users can choose between discovery and personal connection.

5 Tips To Rank Your Facebook Videos and Get More Views

With this information in mind, how can you tailor your video content to appear in the Feeds of your target audience? Here are a few tips you can use to produce different types of videos that appeal to the platform:

1. Understand Your Audience

Above all, Facebook’s goal is to personalize each user’s experience. So, as a brand, your main goal should be to make sure your video marketing is relevant to your target audience. To pull this off, you need to understand your audience, inside and out. Make sure you understand your audience through their interests, behaviors, and preferences. The more you can captivate your target audience, the better your posts will perform.

2. Encourage Interaction

Facebook’s algorithm prioritizes content it believes will extend interactions and encourage people to stay on the platform. Whether informative or entertaining, the videos you create should spark conversation.

Aim for engaging video content that encourages users to stop scrolling and like, comment, or share the post. In particular, shares can be an important signal of a video’s relevance and even virality.

Related: Best Time to Post on Facebook

3. Put Video Quality First

More brands are beginning to realize the potential of video on Facebook. As of 2025, more than 85% of active brands on Facebook now post video regularly, raising the bar for creative quality across every vertical.

The high quantity of content makes quality more important than ever before. Great lighting, crisp audio, visually appealing camera techniques, and well-scripted videos are the foundation of any good video. Without them, your videos might not have a chance to compete, let alone stand out.

Tip: Meta is now penalizing repeat reposts. Accounts that repeatedly steal or repost other creators’ videos or memes risk losing monetization and ranking, unless they add meaningful commentary or original context.

4. Be Authentic and Meaningful

Over the last couple of years, Facebook has put a lot of weight on “meaningful” content. But what exactly does that mean?

In 2025, the platform will continue looking for authentic accounts posting valuable content and creating genuine engagement. If all you’re posting is brand promotion, you won’t win any bonus points with the algorithm. Instead, focus on creating authentic, informative, and meaningful videos. Focus on stories people will want to spend time watching or even talk about with others.

5. Keep Videos Short and Engaging

In today’s fast-paced digital world, people don’t generally like to spend time watching long videos (though, as with everything, there are rare exceptions). Focus on creating shorter videos with a compelling, attention-grabbing hook.

Since Facebook does consider watch time for the algorithm, you’ll want to find the best length for your audience. You can use 30 to 90 seconds as a starting point, but adjust to meet your viewers’ needs.

Related: Facebook Video Ad Specs & Placements

Make Facebook Videos at Scale

As the Facebook algorithm continues to change, it’s challenging for brands to stay ahead of the curve. It’s hard enough to keep up with a consistent posting schedule for static posts, let alone the effort and expertise video demands.

It takes the right high-quality video production techniques to master the Facebook algorithm, but not every marketing team has time to make this happen on their own. That’s where we come in. At QuickFrame, our leading platform connects you with the best creators and production teams to deliver optimized video content for any objective, platform, and video style.

Ready to create compelling content? Contact us today to learn more about Facebook video production.

Facebook Algorithm: Final Thoughts

The Facebook algorithm is an intricate system, and it’s constantly evolving. Like other social media algorithms, you need to focus on creating meaningful videos for users. By following the most recent guidelines and best practices, you can use your Facebook marketing strategy to get your content in front of your target audience.