Marketing
9 min read • Updated Sept 2026
How to Create Professional Social Media Images
A definitive guide to standard pixel dimensions, safe zone margins, and composition tactics across major social media platforms.
Current 2026 Social Platform Sizing Cheat Sheet
| Platform | Format | Recommended Pixels | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portrait Post | 1080 × 1350 px | 4:5 | |
| Square Post | 1080 × 1080 px | 1:1 | |
| YouTube | Video Thumbnail | 1280 × 720 px | 16:9 |
| TikTok / Shorts | Vertical Video / Story | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 |
| Feed Post | 1200 × 627 px | 1.91:1 | |
| X (Twitter) | Post Image | 1600 × 900 px | 16:9 |
Respecting UI Safe Zones
On platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts, overlay icons (like like hearts, comments, sound discs, and profile captions) occupy the outer 200 pixels on the bottom and right edges of the display.
Always position critical text, brand logos, and main character faces within the central safe area to ensure they are never obscured by platform buttons.
One-Click Social Resizing
Select any of these social presets and export ready graphics client-side without quality loss:
Open Social Image Resizer →