Social Media Image Size Guide (2026)

Every platform has its own aspect ratio and minimum resolution, and posting the same image everywhere at the same size ends up cropped or blurry somewhere.

Summary

Every platform has its own aspect ratio and minimum resolution, and posting the same image everywhere at the same size ends up cropped or blurry somewhere.

Step by step

Decide the platform and content type first (post, story, cover image); each expects a different ratio.
Keep the original image at a high resolution if you can. Scaling down is always safer than scaling up.
When cropping, use the ratio the platform recommends. A free-form crop can get edges cut off later by the platform itself.
Before publishing, check the image at its real size, not a small preview, and confirm any text on it is still readable.

Why it matters

What makes an image readable at first glance on social media is usually its aspect ratio more than its pixel count. A vertical design dropped into a horizontal slot loses its top and bottom. A horizontal poster posted as a story ends up as a thin strip in the middle of the screen. The platform will crop or squeeze your image to fit its own frame. If you do that step yourself, you decide what stays visible.

Think in ratio groups

Rather than memorizing every platform's size chart, it's easier to work with a few core ratios. Square (1:1) is still a safe choice for feed posts. Vertical 4:5 takes up more room in a feed. 9:16 is the full-screen format for stories, reels and short video. 16:9 covers video thumbnails and horizontal video. Cover and banner images sit outside these, usually in very wide ratios, and they get cropped differently on desktop and mobile.

Common mistakes

Putting text at the very bottom of the image. On stories and reels, the bottom is covered by captions and buttons, and the top shows profile info.
Scaling up a small logo. If the source file is too small, no amount of resizing will hide the blur.
Uploading something far larger than needed. Very high-resolution files can get hit harder by the platform's own compression. Uploading close to the recommended size usually looks cleaner.
Thin fonts and low-contrast text. Someone looking at their phone outside in bright light won't be able to read it.
Placing key details near the edges of a banner. On mobile the sides get cropped and only the middle survives.

A realistic scenario

A small cafe makes a poster for a weekend event, designed at a horizontal print size. In the Instagram feed the text is tiny, and as a story the poster shows up as a narrow band. The fix is three versions from the same content: 4:5 for the feed, 9:16 for stories and a wide version for the event page cover. In each one, the date and time move into the safe area in the middle.

A simple workflow

Start the design at the largest size you'll need and derive the other versions from it. Put the ratio in the file name, like event-4x5.jpg, so you never upload the wrong one. Compress the image before uploading to keep the file size sensible, then zoom in and check that the text hasn't picked up artifacts.