Social Media Image Sizes for 2026
Upload the wrong size and your profile photo turns into an awkward crop. Your cover photo becomes a blurry stretch. This is the reference page I keep updated for clients — current dimensions for every platform that matters, with a note on what actually affects the result.
Quick format rule before you start: Use JPG for photos (smaller file size, faster load). Use PNG for logos, graphics, or anything with text (lossless, no compression artifacts). Most platforms accept both — PNG just produces cleaner edges on non-photo images. Before you upload anything, make sure the file is the right size — see my image file size and format recommendations for websites if you’re not sure.
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 180 × 180 px | Displays at 170 × 170 desktop, 128 × 128 mobile. Upload square — it’s always cropped to a circle. |
| Cover photo | 820 × 312 px | Displays at 640 × 360 on mobile. Keep important content in the center — edges get cropped on smaller screens. |
| Shared image / link preview | 1200 × 630 px | The image that appears when you share a blog post. Set this in Yoast/RankMath under “Open Graph image.” |
| Stories | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Keep text away from top and bottom 14% — that area gets covered by UI. |
| Feed ads | 1080 × 1080 px | Square works across placements. 1200 × 628 works for link ads specifically. |
| Event cover | 1200 × 628 px | Same ratio as a link post. One size works for both. |
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 320 × 320 px | Displays as a circle. Upload at least 320 × 320 — anything smaller will look soft. |
| Square post | 1080 × 1080 px | The default. Works everywhere — feed, explore, shares. |
| Landscape post | 1080 × 566 px | 1.91:1 ratio. Takes up less vertical space in the feed — square or portrait typically performs better. |
| Portrait post | 1080 × 1350 px | 4:5 ratio. Takes up the most screen real estate in the feed. Generally the highest-engagement format. |
| Stories / Reels | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Keep text and faces out of the top 250px and bottom 400px — those areas are covered by UI elements. |
| Reels cover | 1080 × 1920 px | Same as Stories. Crops to 420 × 654 on the profile grid — design the center of the image to work at that crop. |
Instagram compresses anything wider than 1080px on upload. There is no benefit to uploading a 4K image — it will be compressed down anyway. Stick to exactly 1080px wide.
X (formerly Twitter)
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 400 × 400 px | Displays as a circle. Minimum 200 × 200 — upload at 400 for sharpness. |
| Header / banner | 1500 × 500 px | 3:1 ratio. Gets cropped differently on mobile vs desktop — keep critical content in the center 60% horizontally and center 50% vertically. |
| In-stream single image | 1200 × 675 px | 16:9 ratio. Standard photo post. Displays cropped in the feed — the full image opens on click. |
| In-stream two images | 700 × 800 px each | Displayed side by side. |
| In-stream four images | 1200 × 675 px each | Displayed in a 2×2 grid. |
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Personal profile picture | 400 × 400 px min | Upload at 800 × 800 for sharpness. Displays as a circle. |
| Personal background photo | 1584 × 396 px | The banner behind your profile picture. One of the most overlooked profile elements — a good background photo is the fastest way to make a LinkedIn profile look professional vs. default blue. |
| Company logo | 300 × 300 px | Square crop. Keep the logo centered with padding — it displays small in search results. |
| Company page cover | 1128 × 191 px | Very wide, very short. Text-heavy designs don’t work here — use a clean image or brand color with minimal copy. |
| Shared post image | 1200 × 627 px | 1.91:1 ratio. Same as Facebook link preview. One image works for both if you’re cross-posting. |
| Stories | 1080 × 1920 px | LinkedIn Stories are available in some regions. Same 9:16 vertical format as other platforms. |
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 165 × 165 px | Displays as a circle. |
| Standard pin | 1000 × 1500 px | 2:3 ratio. The workhorse format. Tall images take up more screen space and get more saves. |
| Square pin | 1000 × 1000 px | Works but takes up less feed space than a 2:3 pin. Use square only when the content is designed for it. |
| Infographic / long pin | 1000 × 2100 px max | Pinterest will display up to 2:3 in the feed but longer pins are shown in full after click. |
| Story pin | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Same as Stories on other platforms. |
On Pinterest, tall beats wide every time. A 2:3 ratio pin takes up twice the screen space of a square — that directly affects whether someone sees it while scrolling.
TikTok
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 200 × 200 px | Displays as a circle. The only static image most viewers ever see on TikTok. |
| Video | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Keep faces and text out of the bottom 25% — that area is covered by captions, likes, and the UI overlay. |
| Video ad thumbnail | 1080 × 1920 px | Same as video. Static thumbnail shown before the video plays in ad placements. |
YouTube
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Profile picture | 800 × 800 px | Displays as a circle. This is your Google account profile picture — changing it here changes it everywhere. |
| Channel banner | 2560 × 1440 px | The full size — but only the center 1546 × 423 px is the “safe zone” that shows on all devices. Design the important content inside that area. Everything outside it may be cropped on mobile or TV. |
| Video thumbnail | 1280 × 720 px | 16:9 ratio. Max 2MB. Thumbnails drive click-through rate more than any other factor on YouTube — treat them like a billboard, not an afterthought. Bold text, high contrast, and a clear subject in the center work best. |
| Shorts | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Same dimensions as Reels, TikTok, and Stories. |
Snapchat
| Image type | Dimensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Story image / video | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 vertical. Same format as every other Stories surface. |
| Ads / Snap Ads | 1080 × 1920 px | Full-screen vertical. Keep branding and CTA in the center third of the frame. |
| Geofilter | 1080 × 1920 px | The overlay frame users add to their Snaps. Design as a border/frame — the center of the image should be transparent. |
Honest note: if your customers are primarily 35 and older — which describes most small business owners’ target audience in Kittitas County — Snapchat is probably the lowest-priority platform on this list. Worth knowing the specs, but not worth losing sleep over.
One spec that applies everywhere
Every platform above uses a vertical 9:16 format for Stories, Reels, Shorts, and TikTok: 1080 × 1920 px. If you design one vertical template at that size, it works on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Pinterest Stories, and Snapchat. That is six platforms from one file.
For horizontal content — thumbnails, shared posts, link previews — 1200 × 630 px is close enough to work on Facebook, LinkedIn, and X without separate versions. Not perfect for every context but good enough for most small business social accounts that are not running paid ads.
One more thing worth doing before any of this: make sure your images are properly compressed before upload. Platform compression on top of an already-large file produces noticeably worse results than starting with a well-optimized file. See image file size and format recommendations for websites for the specifics.
If you are building or redesigning a website for your Kittitas County business and want to make sure your social profiles and website work together — Ron the Web Guy has been setting this up for local businesses since 1996. Call (425) 243-7239 or send a message.
Speaking about social media – Check out social media trends on DesignRush