Video Interview Tips: How to Look and Sound Your Best on Camera

By Arneeb Mahbub · Updated October 27, 2026

I worked remotely at Indeed for four years. That's a lot of my career spent talking to people through a webcam, and it's where most of these video interview tips come from.

And here's what I learned: video takes something away from you. Your energy shrinks. Your eye contact disappears. Small things, like bad lighting or a laggy connection, start to shape how people see you.

Video interviews are now a normal part of almost every hiring process. Some are live calls on Zoom or Teams. Some are one-way recordings where you answer questions to a camera with nobody on the other end. Either way, a few simple video interview tips make a big difference.

Let's set you up so the camera works for you, not against you.

Video interview tips: your setup

You can fix most video problems before the interview even starts.

Camera at eye level

Stack some books under your laptop until the camera is at the height of your eyes. Looking down into a camera is unflattering and makes it feel like you're looking down at the interviewer.

Light in front of you

Sit facing a window or a lamp. Never sit with a bright window behind you, or you'll show up as a dark silhouette. If you don't have good natural light, a simple lamp behind your screen pointed at your face works.

A clean, quiet background

A plain wall, a bookshelf, or a tidy room is perfect. A blurred or simple virtual background is fine if your space is messy. Just test it first so your head doesn't keep disappearing.

Good audio

Headphones with a mic usually sound better than your laptop's built-in microphone and cut down on echo. Close the windows if it's noisy outside.

A strong connection

If you can, sit close to your router. Close other apps and browser tabs, and pause any big downloads. Ask anyone at home to stay off streaming for 30 minutes.

Test it 15 minutes early

Open the link, check your camera and mic, and make sure the software is up to date. Updates that start right before an interview are a classic way to show up late.

Video interview setup checklist

Video interview tips: how to come across well

Look at the camera when it counts

Here's the tricky part. If you look at their face on the screen, it looks like you're looking down. If you look at the camera, you can't see them.

The fix: look at the screen while they're talking, and look at the camera when you're making an important point. Drag the video window right up under your camera so your eyes are close to the lens either way.

Turn your energy up a notch

The camera flattens people. What feels like normal energy in the room can look tired on a screen. Smile a bit more, sit up straight, and let your voice have a little more life than usual. You're not performing. You're just making up for what the camera takes away.

Vary your voice

Same rule as in person, but it matters even more on video. Change your volume and pace, slow down on your results, and pause after a big number. Here's more on how to talk in an interview so you don't sound flat.

Leave a beat before you answer

Video calls have small delays. When someone finishes a question, wait a second before you start talking. It stops you from talking over each other.

Use your hands, a little

Natural hand gestures in the frame help you look relaxed and engaged. Just keep them within the camera's view and don't wave them in front of your face.

Keep notes off the screen

A few sticky notes with keywords around your camera are fine. Reading from another window is not. Your eyes move side to side, and interviewers can usually tell.

Zoom interview tips

Most of the above applies to any platform. A few extras for Zoom specifically:

• Use your full name as your display name. Not "iPhone" or a nickname.
• Turn off "touch up my appearance" filters if they make you look unnatural.
• Know where mute is. Stay unmuted while you're talking, obviously, and know how to unmute fast if you mute while they talk.
• Hide self view if seeing yourself makes you self conscious. You can usually turn it off in the video settings.
• Join a minute or two early but not ten. Waiting rooms can make you anxious.

One-way video interview tips

One-way interviews (on platforms like HireVue) are different. There's no person on the other side. A question appears, you get some time to think, and then you record your answer.

They feel strange, but you can get good at them.

• Practice with a timer. Most platforms give you a set time to think and a set time to answer. Practice answering in about one to two minutes.
• Talk to the camera like it's a person. Picture a friendly interviewer right behind the lens. It makes your tone warmer.
• Lead with the headline. You don't get follow up questions, so make the point clear in the first sentence.
• Use the STAR structure for behavioral questions. Here are 30 STAR interview questions with sample answers to practice with.
• Use the practice question if the platform offers one. Always.

If the tech fails

It happens to everyone. What matters is how calmly you handle it.

1. Try to rejoin right away.
2. If that doesn't work, switch devices. Join from your phone.
3. If you still can't connect, reach out immediately. Email or call the recruiter: "I'm having a connection issue and I'm trying to rejoin now." Have their contact info ready before the interview.

Handling a glitch calmly can actually leave a good impression. It's a small preview of how you handle problems at work.

The night before your video interview

• Test your link, camera, mic, and lighting.
• Lay out what you're wearing. Here's what to wear to an interview, including what works on camera.
• Prepare your notes and questions. Here's my checklist of what to bring to an interview, with a section just for virtual ones.
• If it's tomorrow, follow my hour by hour plan for when you have an interview tomorrow.

And if the first round is a phone call instead, here are my phone interview tips.

Want to practice on camera?

The best way to get comfortable on video is to see yourself on video. Record your answers, watch them back, and fix one thing at a time. That's a big part of what we do in Crush Your Interview, the 22 video bootcamp inside the Interview Titan bundle. If you'd like live feedback on how you come across, here's how interview coaching works.

Good lighting, a steady connection, and a little extra energy. Get those right, and the camera stops being a barrier. It's just you, having a good conversation.