Preview
YouTube thumbnail 1280 × 720
Drag the image to move it inside the frame, or focus it and use the arrow keys.
Paste a screenshot with ⌘V, or drop a file anywhere on the preview.
Options
Keep the text and logo inside the dashed box. Everything outside it can be covered by the app's own buttons and captions. The box is not saved with the image.
This view blocked the download. Right-click the image below, or press and hold it, and choose Save image.
Every size this makes
Each one is ready to pick above. Keep clear is the part of the frame that platform covers with its own buttons and captions, so anything you put there may not be seen.
| Platform | Pixels | Shape | Keep clear |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube thumbnail | 1280 × 720 | Wide 16:9 | Edges only |
| YouTube Shorts cover | 1080 × 1920 | Tall 9:16 | right 17%, bottom 20% |
| TikTok cover | 1080 × 1920 | Tall 9:16 | top 10%, right 20%, bottom 22% |
| Instagram Reel or Story | 1080 × 1920 | Tall 9:16 | top 12%, right 17%, bottom 20% |
| Instagram post | 1080 × 1350 | Tall 4:5 | Edges only |
| Instagram square | 1080 × 1080 | Square 1:1 | Edges only |
| X card | 1600 × 900 | Wide 16:9 | Edges only |
| Facebook link image | 1200 × 630 | Wide | Edges only |
| LinkedIn post image | 1200 × 627 | Wide | Edges only |
| Twitch thumbnail | 1280 × 720 | Wide 16:9 | bottom 10% |
| Podcast cover art | 3000 × 3000 | Square 1:1 | bottom 9% |
| Blog or link preview | 1200 × 630 | Wide | Edges only |
Where each platform covers your thumbnail
A safe area is the part of the frame you can count on people seeing. Everything outside it still gets saved in the file, but the app you post to draws its own interface on top: a caption, a row of buttons down one side, a profile photo, a duration badge.
Landscape thumbnails lose almost nothing, which is why a YouTube thumbnail can run text close to the edge. Vertical covers are the opposite. TikTok, Reels and Shorts all stack controls down the right and captions along the bottom, so a headline centred in the frame ends up behind a share button.
Each size in this tool carries its own safe rectangle, and the numbers in the table above are those rectangles written out. Tick Show safe areas while you work and the same box is drawn on the preview. It is a guide only, and never appears in the file you download.
Questions
What is a safe area on a thumbnail?
The part of the frame the platform will not cover with its own interface. Anything outside it may sit behind a caption, a button or a duration badge, so keep your headline and logo inside it.
Why do TikTok and Reels cover more of the frame than YouTube?
Vertical formats put their controls on top of the video rather than beside it. TikTok keeps roughly the right fifth of the frame for its action rail and the bottom fifth for the caption, while a landscape YouTube thumbnail only loses a duration badge in one corner.
Does the dashed safe-area box appear in the image I download?
No. It is drawn on the preview only. The exported PNG contains your artwork and nothing else.
What size should an Instagram post be?
1080 by 1350 pixels, a 4:5 portrait. Square at 1080 by 1080 still works and is included as its own preset, but the 4:5 takes up more of the screen on a phone.
Do my images get uploaded anywhere?
No. Everything is drawn in your browser on your own device. No image, and nothing you type, is ever sent to a server.