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youtube9 dimensionsVerified by Tal Weiss

YouTube image and video sizes

A YouTube video is 1920 x 1080 px at 16:9 (1080p); YouTube's next sizes up are 2560 x 1440 and 3840 x 2160 (4K), and a Short is 1080 x 1920 at 9:16. The banner is the one asset with a published safe area - 1235 x 338 inside a 2048 x 1152 frame.

Every frame below is drawn to scale against the others in its section, and every number carries the YouTube page we read it on. Click a size to copy it.

YouTube video size

1920 x 1080 at 16:9 is the standard YouTube video size. These are the rungs of YouTube's own resolution ladder, drawn to scale: 4K is four 1080p frames. Every rung is 16:9, so any of them plays without padding.

Video, 4K (2160p)
Video, 1440p (2K)
Video, 1080p (HD)
Video, 720p (HD)

Drawn to scale against each other

Video, 4K (2160p)3840x2160
The top rung most channels need. YouTube lists 8K (7680 x 4320) above it, and since 2022 has been removing playback at sizes between 4K and 8K, such as 5K, so export exactly 4K or exactly 8K.
16:9support.google.com
Video, 1440p (2K)2560x1440
16:9support.google.com
Video, 1080p (HD)1920x1080
The default answer to "what size is a YouTube video". A video at another ratio is not stretched: the player resizes to it and pads what is left.
16:9support.google.com
Video, 720p (HD)1280x720
The smallest size YouTube still calls HD. Below it the ladder continues at 854 x 480, 640 x 360 and 426 x 240 (SD).
16:9support.google.com

YouTube Shorts size

Vertical, 9:16, uploaded at up to 1080p.

Short

Drawn to scale against each other

Short1080x1920
Square counts as a Short too. Length is what decides it: 3 minutes or under, square or vertical, and YouTube files it as a Short.
9:16up to 3 minsupport.google.com
length: support.google.com

Thumbnails

The number here moved. YouTube now asks for 4K, not the 1280 x 720 that has been copied around for a decade.

Video thumbnail
Shorts thumbnail

Drawn to scale against each other

Video thumbnail3840x2160
YouTube's current recommendation. The minimum width is still 640 px, which is why the old 1280 x 720 keeps working.
16:9min width 640support.google.com
Shorts thumbnail2160x3840
The same frame stood on its end - a Short gets its own thumbnail recommendation.
9:16support.google.com

Questions

What size is a YouTube video?
1920 x 1080 px at 16:9, which is 1080p. YouTube's full ladder for 16:9 video is 7680 x 4320 (8K), 3840 x 2160 (4K), 2560 x 1440 (1440p), 1920 x 1080 (1080p), 1280 x 720 (720p), 854 x 480, 640 x 360 and 426 x 240.
What is the YouTube video size in pixels for 4K?
3840 x 2160 px. YouTube has been removing playback at sizes between 4K and 8K since 2022, so export exactly 3840 x 2160, not 5K.
What happens if my video is not 16:9?
YouTube does not stretch it. The player changes shape to fit the video and the viewer's device, and adds padding where needed, for example around a 9:16 video on a computer. Do not add black bars yourself: YouTube says they stop the player from resizing to your video.
What size is a YouTube banner?
Upload 2560 x 1440 px. YouTube's minimum is 2048 x 1152 at 16:9 and its file cap is 6MB. Keep text and logos inside the safe area - 1235 x 338 at the minimum size, which scales to 1544 x 423 on a 2560 px wide banner.
What is the YouTube banner safe area?
1235 x 338 px, centred, measured at YouTube's 2048 x 1152 minimum. It is the only part of the banner that survives on every device from a phone to a TV.
What size should a YouTube thumbnail be?
3840 x 2160 px at 16:9 for a video, and 2160 x 3840 at 9:16 for a Short. YouTube raised this from the 1280 x 720 most guides still quote; 640 px wide is still the accepted minimum.
How long can a YouTube Short be?
Up to 3 minutes. Any video uploaded square or vertical at 3 minutes or under is filed as a Short automatically, at up to 1080p.

Sources, verified 2026-09-28

Pixels are the half of the rules the platforms publish and our engine does not enforce. The other half - file formats, size caps, how many images fit in one post, what our API path will accept - is generated from the engine's own table at YouTube specs. Neither page restates what the other one owns.

  1. [support.google.com]The standard aspect ratio for YouTube on a computer is 16:9. For the default 16:9 aspect ratio, encode at these resolutions: 4320p (8k) 7680x4320, 2160p (4K) 3840x2160, 1440p (2k) 2560x1440, 1080p (HD) 1920x1080, 720p (HD) 1280x720, 480p (SD) 854x480, 360p (SD) 640x360, 240p (SD) 426x240. A video at another ratio gets padding from the player; avoid adding black bars yourself.support.google.comverified 2026-09-28
  2. [support.google.com]A Short is up to 3 minutes long with a square or vertical aspect ratio, uploaded at a maximum resolution of 1080p. Videos uploaded on or after 15 October 2024 that are square or vertical and 3 minutes or shorter are categorised as Shorts.support.google.comverified 2026-08-25
  3. [support.google.com]Banner image: minimum 2048 x 1152 px with a 16:9 aspect ratio; at that minimum the safe area for text and logos is 1235 x 338 px; 2560 x 1440 recommended; 6MB or smaller. Profile picture: an image that renders at 98 x 98 px, under 15MB, JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG with no animated GIFs. Video watermark: minimum 150 x 150 px, square, under 1MB.support.google.comverified 2026-08-25
  4. [support.google.com]YouTube publishes the rendered size (98 x 98) and the 15MB file cap, but no recommended upload size. 800 x 800 is our own pick - a square comfortably above every place YouTube draws the picture.support.google.comverified 2026-08-25no official doc confirms this number
  5. [support.google.com]A custom thumbnail should have a resolution of 3840 x 2160 px for videos and 2160 x 3840 for Shorts, with a minimum width of 640 px for videos; 16:9 for videos and 9:16 for Shorts; JPG or PNG; 2MB on mobile and 50MB on desktop.support.google.comverified 2026-08-25