A video interview checklist to run through before you press record

A good video interview checklist covers the invite details, your device and browser, your camera framing, your sound, and your light, plus a few small things like notifications and notes. Run through it fully the day before, then do a short version in the last ten minutes. That catches the problems that most often spoil a recorded answer, like a muted mic or a phone that dies on question three.

This checklist is written for one-way interviews. In that format you record answers to set questions on your own time, and a recruiter watches them later. If the format is new to you, start with what a one-way video interview is and how it works. For help with what to say, read our guide on how to prepare for a one-way video interview. This page covers everything around the answers.

The 10-minute video interview checklist

If you only have a few minutes, work down this table in order. The times are rough guides.

What should you check the day before?

Try not to leave setup to the last hour. A late-night attempt on a borrowed laptop, right before the deadline, leaves no time to fix anything. Do these three steps a day ahead.

Read the whole invite

Open the invite email and find four things: the deadline (including the time zone), how many questions there are, the time limit per answer, and how many retakes you get. Recruiters usually set three to five questions with a time limit on each one. On DeepHire, the recruiter also chooses the number of retakes, and the default is unlimited. Other tools may give you a single take, so read that line twice. It changes how much you should rehearse before you start.

Also check whether any questions are audio only and whether the invite asks for anything extra, such as a short introduction about yourself.

Test the link on the device you will use

Open the link on the exact device you plan to use, in the same browser. When the browser asks for camera and microphone access, allow both. If you blocked access by accident earlier, click the lock icon next to the web address and change the permission in site settings. Then reload the page.

Use a current version of a common browser. If the tool lets you look around before the first question starts, check that your camera preview and mic work, then stop there.

Choose a quiet room to record in

Choose a room with a door that closes. A room with rugs and curtains will have less echo than a bare kitchen. Sit with a plain wall behind you instead of a window or a busy shelf. Tell anyone you live with the hour you plan to record so nobody walks in.

How do you set up your camera and framing?

The recruiter should see your whole face at eye level, with your head and shoulders in the frame.

• Raise a laptop on a stack of books until the lens is level with your eyes. A camera looking up from a desk shows the ceiling and your chin.
• Sit about an arm's length from the screen.
• Leave a small gap between the top of your head and the top of the frame.
• Wipe the lens with a soft cloth. Smudges make the whole picture look hazy.
• On a phone, use a stand or prop it against something solid instead of holding it. If the preview looks sideways or cropped, rotate the phone and check again.

When you answer, look at the lens, not at your own face in the preview. A small sticky note with an arrow next to the camera helps. Glancing at notes now and then is fine, but talking to the lens most of the time is what makes an answer feel direct.

How do you check your sound?

If you have to choose where to spend effort, spend it on sound. A slightly grainy picture is easy to watch past, but an answer the recruiter cannot hear is hard to judge at all.

Record a 15 to 20 second test clip with your device's camera app or voice recorder. Say a couple of sentences in your normal interview voice. Then play it back on headphones, which reveal problems your speakers hide.

Wired earbuds with a built-in mic often sound clearer than a laptop mic. Bluetooth headphones can be hit or miss, because some switch to a lower quality mic mode during recording. Test whichever option you choose.

How do you fix your lighting fast?

Put your main light in front of you. Face a window during the day, or place a lamp behind your screen so it shines toward your face. Never sit with a bright window behind you, because the camera will turn you into a dark outline.

If an overhead light casts shadows under your eyes, switch it off and rely on the light in front. Keep the time of day in mind too. A setup that looked fine at noon can look very different at 9 pm, so test at the hour you plan to record. For more options with lamps you already own, see this cheap lighting setup for a recorded video interview.

Which device settings cause the most trouble?

These small things can break a recording halfway through.

• Turn on do not disturb on your computer and phone. A chat sound in the middle of an answer is distracting, and a pop-up can cover your preview.
• Plug in your device. Recording video drains a phone quickly.
• Close video call apps, because they can hold on to the camera and leave your interview with a black screen.
• Pause or postpone any pending system update so your device does not restart on its own.
• Sit close to your router, and ask others in the house to pause big downloads or streaming while you record.
• Close browser tabs you do not need so your device has less to juggle.

After your last answer, do not close the tab until the screen confirms your interview was submitted. Uploads can take a moment on a slow connection.

What should you have in front of you?

Keep your desk simple and useful.

• The job post, with three or four requirements underlined. These are what your answers should connect to.
• Short notes with a few keywords for each likely question. Keywords keep you on track, while a full script pulls you into reading, and reading shows on camera.
• Your resume, so dates and job titles are easy to check.
• A glass of water, out of frame.

Place your notes just below the camera so your eyes stay close to the lens when you glance at them.

A 60-second check right before you press record

Copy this list onto a sticky note and run through it every time.

1. Your phone is on silent and face down, and the door is closed.
2. The camera lens is clean and level with your eyes.
3. Your face is well lit in the preview, with no window behind you.
4. The mic is picking up your voice. Watch the level meter if the tool shows one.
5. Your notes are in place and your water is within reach.
6. You have taken one slow breath and let your shoulders drop.
7. You know the first sentence of your first answer.

The last item is the one people skip. Once the first sentence is out, the rest of the answer usually comes more easily.

What if something goes wrong while you are recording?

If you have retakes and an answer goes badly, take a breath and redo it. If you have only one take, keep going. A dog barking once or a brief stumble is unlikely to decide the outcome, and stopping to apologize usually costs you more time than the stumble did.

If the page freezes or your device crashes, reopen the link from the invite email. Some tools keep answers you have already finished, but do not assume that. If you are unsure what was saved, email the recruiter before the deadline. Keep the message short:

Hi [name], I was recording my video interview for [role] and my browser crashed during question [number]. I want to make sure you have complete answers. Could you check what came through, or reset the link if needed? Thank you, [your name].

Send it as soon as the problem happens, not after the deadline has passed, so the recruiter has time to reset the link.