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Open exam presets → YouTube Thumbnail Size
16:9 at 1280×720: the classic thumbnail size that uploads from desktop and phone.
You'll get:1280×720 px
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Shrink the file, keep the vibe.
Resize in KB
Under 20 KB, 50 KB, 100 KB. Exact.
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HEIC, WebP, PNG ↔ JPG.
Crop
Square, 4:5, 16:9, passport.
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Whole folders. No limits.
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Open seller presets → YouTube thumbnail rules
A custom thumbnail is the picture people see before they click, so its shape and sharpness matter. YouTube’s own rules, from the help page linked below:
| Rule | Value |
|---|---|
| Shape | 16:9 recommended |
| Recommended resolution | Up to 3840 × 2160 px |
| Minimum width | 640 px |
| Formats | JPG, PNG |
| File size | 50 MB on desktop, 2 MB from the mobile app |
| Our preset | 1280 × 720 px |
Why 1280 × 720? It’s comfortably above the minimum, looks sharp on phones, laptops and TVs at thumbnail size, and a 1280 × 720 JPG is usually 150–400 KB, so it uploads from the mobile app without hitting the 2 MB limit. If you design at 4K, this page also works: type 3840 × 2160 in Pixels.
How to do it here
- YT Thumb 1280×720 is selected in the Socials deck.
- Drop your screenshot or photo. If it isn’t 16:9, drag the bright box to choose what’s kept.
- Hit Repixel it ✨. The badge confirms 1280 × 720 px and the real file type; download and upload in YouTube Studio.
Thumbnail tips
- Big faces and few words. Thumbnails show very small on phones; three or four words in large letters read best.
- Avoid the bottom-right corner. YouTube puts the video length there.
- High contrast. Bright subjects on darker backgrounds stand out in a busy feed.
- Keep the 16:9 shape. A 4:3 image gets black bars or an automatic crop.
- Over 2 MB on your phone? Switch to KB size and type 1900; we’ll get it under the limit and check the bytes.
Your channel banner
The banner at the top of your channel has very different rules (2560 × 1440 with a small safe area in the middle). Use the YouTube banner size page for that.
Format, colour and text
Save thumbnails as JPG if they’re mostly photo, which keeps the file small. Save as PNG if they’re mostly bold text and flat colour, which keeps edges crisp; at 1280 × 720 a PNG is still far below the limits. The resizer never changes your colours or adds compression artefacts beyond normal JPG quality, so what you designed is what viewers see. For designs made in Canva or Photoshop at 1920 × 1080 or 4K, scaling down to 1280 × 720 here keeps text sharp while making the file much easier to upload from a phone.
FAQ fr
What size should a YouTube thumbnail be?
16:9. YouTube now recommends up to 3840×2160 and needs at least 640 px wide. 1280×720 is the classic size: sharp on every screen and small enough for the 2 MB phone limit.
What is the thumbnail file size limit?
YouTube's help page lists 50 MB when uploading on a computer and 2 MB when uploading from the mobile app.
Which format should I use?
JPG or PNG. JPG is smaller for photos; PNG keeps text and graphics crisp but makes bigger files.
Why does my thumbnail look blurry?
Usually because the source image was small. Start from a full-size screenshot or photo, at least 1280 px wide.
What about Shorts thumbnails?
Shorts use a 9:16 shape. Use the Instagram Story size page (1080×1920) for those.