What is the YouTube thumbnail size?

3840 × 2160 pixels in 16:9, at least 640 pixels wide, as a JPG or PNG. The file can be up to 50 MB from a computer or 2 MB from the YouTube app.

Is 1280 × 720 still a good YouTube thumbnail size?

Yes. It is above the minimum, and it is the smallest size that keeps A/B tests at full quality. But YouTube now recommends 3840 × 2160, so use a larger image if you have one.

What are the YouTube thumbnail dimensions for Shorts?

2160 × 3840 pixels in 9:16, at least 640 pixels tall. Custom Shorts thumbnails can only be added in YouTube Studio on a computer, where the limit is 50 MB.

Why does my thumbnail have black bars?

Its shape is not 16:9. YouTube scales the image to fit and fills the rest with black. Fix the shape with the crop or pad option in this YouTube thumbnail size tool.

What is the maximum file size for a YouTube thumbnail?

50 MB when you upload in YouTube Studio on a computer, and 2 MB in the YouTube app (10 MB for podcasts). The tool can make a JPG that stays under 2 MB at the best quality it can.

Can I use a GIF, WebP or HEIC image?

YouTube lists JPG and PNG. The checker reads WebP, GIF and BMP, and HEIC in browsers that can open it, and saves the fixed file as JPG or PNG.

Is my image uploaded anywhere?

No. The file is read and rebuilt in your browser. The download has no EXIF data, so camera details and GPS location are not passed on.

Why doesn't the resizer make every thumbnail 3840 × 2160?

Enlarging a smaller image adds pixels but no detail, and makes the file bigger. The YouTube thumbnail resizer keeps your image at its own size, and only enlarges it to reach the 640 px minimum, telling you when it does.

Free tool, works in your browser

YouTube Thumbnail Size Checker

The YouTube thumbnail size is 3840 × 2160 pixels in 16:9, at least 640 pixels wide, saved as a JPG or PNG under 2 MB from the YouTube app or 50 MB from a computer. Drop your image to check every rule, then crop or pad it to exact 16:9 and download a file that fits.

Thumbnail for

Stays in your browser. Nothing is uploaded.

Size: 3840 × 2160
Aspect ratio: 16:9
Minimum: 640 px wide
Format: JPG or PNG
File size: 2 MB app, 50 MB computer

From YouTube Help, checked October 16, 2026.

Drop, paste or choose your thumbnail

JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF or BMP. It is checked right here and never leaves your device.

Grab a frame from your videoFree Video Frame Extractor: pick the exact frame and save it as an image.Make one with AIOpens Text to Image at 16:9. Credits are only used there.

3840 × 2160 pxThe recommended YouTube thumbnail size: 16:9, at least 640 px wide.
2 MB or 50 MB2 MB from the YouTube app, 50 MB from YouTube Studio on a computer.
Exact 16:9 or 9:16Cropped or padded, never stretched or secretly enlarged.
PrivateYour image stays in this browser. Location data is removed.

Check a YouTube thumbnail size in 3 steps

Drop the image, read the report, download the fixed file. No account, no upload.

Size3840 × 2160Aspect ratio16:9Minimum640 px wideFormatJPG or PNG
Drop, paste or choose your thumbnailChoose imageTry a sample
Checked in your browser, nothing uploaded
1
Drop your thumbnail
Drag it in, paste it or choose a file. The checker reads the real pixel size, the file size and the true format from the file itself, not from its name.
Needs a fix before you upload it.
Format: WebP
Aspect ratio 1:1, not 16:9
At least 640 px wide (960 px)
Below the recommended 3840 × 2160
Under 1280 × 720 for Test & compare
2
Read the report
Every rule gets a pass, a note or a fail: the YouTube thumbnail size, the aspect ratio, the 640 px minimum, both file size limits and the format, each linked to the YouTube Help page it comes from.
960 × 540 · JPGCrop removes 44%Download JPG
3
Fix and download
Crop or pad to exact 16:9, pick a size, and preview it on search, home, sidebar and phone cards. Then download a JPG at the highest quality that stays under 2 MB.

A YouTube thumbnail size checker that also fixes the file

A YouTube thumbnail tester and resizer in one. It tells you what is wrong, fixes exactly that, and shows the result where viewers will see it.

Every rule, with its source

The report checks the current YouTube thumbnail size rules one by one and links each line to the official page, checked on October 16, 2026. If your file already passes, it says so, and you can upload the original as it is.

export.png · 1920 × 1080 · 16:9 · 5.73 MB · PNGReady to upload from a computer. It is over 2 MB for the YouTube app.

Format: PNGSource
Aspect ratio 16:9Source
At least 640 px wide (1920 px)Source
Below the recommended 3840 × 2160Source
Big enough for Test & compareSource
5.73 MB: over the 2 MB app limitSource
Within the 50 MB computer limitSource

Each rule links to YouTube Help, checked October 16, 2026

Exact 16:9, never stretched

Crop to fill the frame and drag to choose what stays, or pad to keep the whole picture on a blurred, black or white background. The output is always exactly 16:9, or 9:16 for Shorts, so YouTube adds no black bars.

Sample image used in the YouTube thumbnail size examples

Under 2 MB at the best quality

The YouTube app takes thumbnails up to 2 MB. The tool tries JPG qualities and keeps the highest one under 1.95 MB, a little below the limit, because YouTube doesn't say whether 2 MB means 2,000,000 or 2,097,152 bytes.

Target 1.95 MBApp limit 2 MB

q95 · 2.87 MB
q50 · 433 KB
q72 · 853 KB
q83 · 1.49 MB
q89 · 2.06 MB
q86 · 1.75 MB
q87 · 1.85 MB
q88 · 1.95 MB

Example run: each try halves the range, and the file is saved at quality 87, the highest that fits.

No secret upscaling

Enlarging a 1280 px image to 3840 adds pixels, not detail. The tool keeps your image at its own size and tells you so. Only an image under the 640 px minimum is enlarged, just enough, and the report says by how much.

3840600 × 338640 × 360Enlarged 1.07× to the 640 px minimum, and the tool says so

38401920 × 1080, asked for 38401920 × 1080Kept at its own size: enlarging adds no detail

A YouTube thumbnail preview at real sizes

See your thumbnail on generic search, home, sidebar and phone cards at the sizes we measured on youtube.com, in light or dark, with the duration badge in the bottom right corner. Type your own title and duration.

Private by design

The image is read and rebuilt in your browser, and nothing is uploaded. The new file carries no EXIF data, so the camera model, the date and any GPS location from a phone photo are gone.

Your photoCameraPhone 12 ProTaken2026:10:16 14:03GPS35.6895 N, 139.6917 ESoftwareEditor 4.2

Downloaded thumbnailCameraremovedTakenremovedGPSremovedSoftwareremovedNever uploaded

YouTube thumbnail size fixes, before and after

Three sample images in the wrong shape. Top: how YouTube shows them, shrunk to fit with black bars. Bottom: the file this tool makes, exactly 16:9.

12:34
Before · 1:1, 960 × 960
12:34
After · cropped · 960 × 540
A square image
12:34
Before · 4:3, 960 × 720
12:34
After · padded, blurred · 1280 × 720
A 4:3 photo
12:34
Before · 9:16, 540 × 960
12:34
After · padded, blurred · 1696 × 954
A vertical frame

Shown with a 12:34 duration badge. On a search result the thumbnail is 500 × 281 px.

Guide: YouTube thumbnail size in 2026

The numbers, the shape, the file limits, and the parts of the picture YouTube covers.

What size is a YouTube thumbnail?

The recommended YouTube thumbnail size is 3840 × 2160 pixels, the same as 4K video. The minimum is 640 pixels wide. Anything in between works as long as it is 16:9, and YouTube asks for the largest image you have, because the thumbnail is also the preview image in the embedded player.

Many pages still say 1280 × 720 and 2 MB. Those numbers come from an older version of the YouTube Help page. In October 2025 YouTube raised the computer upload limit to 50 MB for 4K thumbnails. 2 MB still applies when you upload from the YouTube app on a phone.

Videos: 3840 × 2160 px, 16:9, at least 640 px wide
Shorts: 2160 × 3840 px, 9:16, at least 640 px tall
Podcast playlists: 1:1
Formats: JPG or PNG
File size: 2 MB from the app, 50 MB from a computer

	Old advice (2024)	Now (October 16, 2026)
Recommended size	1280 × 720	3840 × 2160
Minimum width	640 px	640 px
Formats	JPG, GIF, PNG	JPG, PNG
File size	2 MB	2 MB app, 50 MB computer
Shorts		2160 × 3840, 9:16

YouTube thumbnail aspect ratio and black bars

The YouTube thumbnail aspect ratio is 16:9 for videos and 9:16 for Shorts. A thumbnail in another shape is not cropped. YouTube shrinks it to fit and fills the gaps with black bars, so a square image shows up with two wide bars at the sides.

To fix it, crop the image to 16:9 and choose which part stays, or pad it to 16:9 with a background. Never stretch it: faces and text turn wide and flat. Sizes such as 1366 × 768 are close enough (0.05% off), so the checker treats anything within 0.5% of 16:9 as a pass.

File size: 2 MB from a phone, 50 MB from a computer

The limit depends on where you upload. In YouTube Studio on a computer it is 50 MB for videos, Shorts and podcasts. In the YouTube app on Android or iPhone it is 2 MB for video thumbnails and 10 MB for podcasts.

A 3840 × 2160 PNG is often 10 to 25 MB, far over the app limit. A JPG of the same picture at high quality usually fits under 2 MB. If you upload from your phone, choose “Under 2 MB”. If you only use a computer, “Under 50 MB” keeps even more quality.

YouTube Studio, computer50 MBVideos, Shorts and podcasts

YouTube app, phone2 MBVideo thumbnails

YouTube app, podcasts10 MBPodcast thumbnails

Keep text clear of the duration badge

Every video thumbnail gets a duration badge in the bottom right corner. On youtube.com the badge is 20 px tall at every card size, so it covers more of a small card: about a tenth of the width on a search result, but a fifth in the sidebar next to a video.

Keep faces, text and logos out of that corner, and test your thumbnail at the smallest size people see it. The sidebar card is only 189 to 286 px wide, depending on the window.

YouTube Shorts thumbnail size

A Shorts thumbnail is 2160 × 3840 pixels in 9:16, at least 640 pixels tall. You can only add a custom Shorts thumbnail in YouTube Studio on a computer, so the 50 MB limit applies.

On a channel's Shorts tab, YouTube shows the cover in a 2:3 box, so 7.8% is cut off at the top and 7.8% at the bottom. On phones the title and the view count also sit on the lower part of the picture. Keep the important part in the middle.

If you upload a vertical video with a 16:9 thumbnail, YouTube replaces it with an automatic 4:5 thumbnail on the home, explore and subscription pages. Your own thumbnail still shows in the watch feed, in the watch history and on non-mobile platforms such as a computer.

A/B testing thumbnails: stay at 1280 × 720 or more

With Test & compare you can try up to three thumbnails on one video. If any of them is smaller than 1280 × 720, YouTube shows all of them at 854 × 480. Make every thumbnail in a test at least 1280 × 720, and ideally the full YouTube thumbnail size of 3840 × 2160.

All three shown at 854 × 480

Before you upload

Custom thumbnails need a verified account, which takes a phone number check. There is also a daily limit on how many you can upload. If you see “Daily custom thumbnail limit reached”, try again after 24 hours.

Thumbnails must follow the Community Guidelines: no nudity or sexually provocative images, hate speech, violence or harmful content. A thumbnail that breaks them can be removed and earn your channel a strike.

Who uses this YouTube thumbnail size tool

Anyone who uploads videos and wants the cover to look right on every screen.

Frame from your clip
12:34
Ready as a thumbnail
AI video creators
Grab a frame from your AI clip with the Video Frame Extractor, or make a picture with Text to Image at 16:9, then check the YouTube thumbnail size here before you upload.
Shorts creators
Switch to Shorts, make the cover exactly 9:16, and see how much the 2:3 crop and the phone title take away.
client-thumbnail-3840x2160.jpgunder 2 MB · no metadataFits the appFits Studio
Designers
Export once at full size and send the client a JPG that fits both the 2 MB and the 50 MB limit, with no metadata left in it.
teammate-v3.jpg · 3840 × 2160 · 1.42 MB · JPGReady to upload, from a computer or the YouTube app.
- Format: JPG
- Aspect ratio 16:9
- At least 640 px wide (3840 px)
Channel managers
Check a file from a teammate in seconds: right size, right shape, right format, ready for the app or for Studio.
4:3
Pad, blurred · 16:9
Teachers and course creators
Turn a square slide or a 4:3 screenshot into a clean 16:9 thumbnail without black bars.
≥ 1280 × 720
≥ 1280 × 720
≥ 1280 × 720
A/B testers
Make sure every version in a Test & compare run is at least 1280 × 720, so none of them pulls the others down to 854 × 480.

YouTube thumbnail size FAQ

Short answers about the size, shape and file rules for YouTube thumbnails.

Make the picture with AI, then get the size right

Create a 16:9 image with Text to Image, then come back to check the YouTube thumbnail size and download a file that fits.

Open Text to Image See pricing

The checker runs in your browser

The checker is free

No sign-up to check a file