# Social Media Image Size Guide: 2026 Cheat Sheet for Stores

> A 2026 social media image size guide for online stores: post, story, ad and link preview sizes for Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, X and LinkedIn.

Updated 2026-11-02

Canonical: https://yuhuapps.com/learn/social-media-image-size-guide

This social media image size guide covers safe dimensions for posts, stories, ads and link previews on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, Pinterest, X, LinkedIn and YouTube in 2026. The short version: make images at least 1080 pixels wide. Use 1:1 or 4:5 for feeds, 9:16 for stories and short video, 2:3 for Pinterest and about 1.91:1 for wide link previews.

## Why aspect ratio matters more than exact pixels

Networks change their recommended pixel sizes all the time. The shapes they display change much less often. If you get the **aspect ratio** right and upload at a good resolution, the platform scales your image down cleanly. Get the shape wrong and it crops your product, letterboxes it or squashes it.

So treat this guide as a set of shapes first and pixel sizes second:

- **1:1 (square):** works almost everywhere. It's the safe default.
- **4:5 (portrait):** takes up more of the mobile feed on Instagram and Facebook.
- **9:16 (full vertical):** stories, Reels, TikTok and Shorts.
- **2:3 (tall):** Pinterest's standard pin.
- **16:9 / 1.91:1 (wide):** X posts, YouTube thumbnails and most link previews.

Build your images at 1080 px wide or more and you'll rarely have quality problems. Going far beyond about 2000 px usually only makes files bigger without making them look better.

## The social media image size cheat sheet for 2026

Bookmark this table. These sizes are widely used, safe choices. Platforms do tweak their specs, so for paid campaigns check the network's own help pages before you launch.

| Platform | Placement | Recommended size | Aspect ratio |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Instagram | Feed post (square) | 1080 × 1080 | 1:1 |
| Instagram | Feed post (portrait) | 1080 × 1350 | 4:5 |
| Instagram | Stories and Reels | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 |
| Facebook | Feed post | 1080 × 1080 or 1080 × 1350 | 1:1 or 4:5 |
| Facebook | Stories and Reels | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 |
| Facebook | Link preview | about 1200 × 630 | ~1.91:1 |
| TikTok | Video and photo posts | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 |
| Pinterest | Standard pin | 1000 × 1500 | 2:3 |
| X (Twitter) | In-feed image | 1600 × 900 or 1080 × 1080 | 16:9 or 1:1 |
| X (Twitter) | Header | 1500 × 500 | 3:1 |
| LinkedIn | Feed image | 1200 × 1200 or 1080 × 1350 | 1:1 or 4:5 |
| LinkedIn | Link preview | about 1200 × 627 | ~1.91:1 |
| LinkedIn | Company page cover | 1128 × 191 | ~6:1 |
| YouTube | Video thumbnail | 1280 × 720 | 16:9 |
| YouTube | Shorts | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 |
| YouTube | Channel banner | 2560 × 1440 (keep content in the centre) | 16:9 |
| All | Profile photo | 400 × 400 or larger, square | 1:1 (shown as a circle) |

## Instagram image sizes

Instagram is where shoppers notice cropping most, because the feed is full screen on a phone.

- **Feed posts:** 1080 × 1350 (4:5) gives you the most screen space. Square 1080 × 1080 still works fine and is easier to reuse elsewhere.
- **Profile grid:** the grid shows taller, cropped thumbnails, so keep your product in the middle of the frame.
- **Carousels:** every slide uses the first slide's ratio, so make the whole set the same shape.
- **Stories and Reels:** 1080 × 1920. Keep text and stickers away from the top and bottom, where the username, buttons and captions sit (see the safe zones section below).

## Facebook image sizes

Facebook uses roughly the same feed shapes as Instagram, which makes cross-posting easy.

- **Feed posts:** 1080 × 1080 or 1080 × 1350.
- **Stories and Reels:** 1080 × 1920.
- **Page cover photo:** upload at least 851 × 315 and keep your logo and text near the centre, because mobile crops the sides.
- **Shared links:** these use your page's Open Graph image, not an image you upload. Covered below.

## TikTok image sizes

TikTok is vertical only. Use **1080 × 1920** for videos and photo carousels. The caption, the profile icon and the like and share buttons cover the bottom and right side of the screen, so put product names and prices in the upper-middle area.

## Pinterest image sizes

Pinterest rewards tall images. A **1000 × 1500 (2:3)** pin takes up a lot of space in the feed without being cut off. Much taller pins can get truncated. Square images work, but they look small next to standard pins.

For stores, that means a product photo shot in landscape often does badly on Pinterest. Plan a tall version with a short text line (the product type or the benefit) near the top. Our [traffic guide](https://yuhuapps.com/learn/drive-traffic-to-shopify-store.md) explains why Pinterest is worth the extra effort for many stores.

## X (Twitter) image sizes

- **Single image post:** 1600 × 900 (16:9) shows without cropping. Square 1080 × 1080 also displays well on mobile.
- **Multiple images:** X crops each image into a grid, so keep the subject centred.
- **Header:** 1500 × 500. Your profile photo covers part of the lower left.
- **Shared links:** these use your page's `twitter:image` or `og:image` tag.

## LinkedIn image sizes

- **Feed images:** 1200 × 1200 square, or 1080 × 1350 portrait if you want more space on mobile.
- **Company page cover:** 1128 × 191. It's very thin, so keep it simple.
- **Link posts:** use the page's Open Graph image, about 1200 × 627.

## YouTube image sizes

- **Thumbnails:** 1280 × 720. Use big, readable text, because thumbnails are often shown tiny.
- **Shorts:** 1080 × 1920.
- **Channel banner:** upload 2560 × 1440, but only the centre strip appears on every device. Keep the logo and tagline there.

## Ad image sizes

Ads use mostly the same shapes as organic posts. The difference is that one campaign often runs across several placements at once.

- **Meta (Facebook and Instagram) ads:** prepare 1:1 or 4:5 for feeds and 9:16 for stories and Reels. If you upload one image only, Meta crops it for the other placements, and that's usually where products lose their edges.
- **Pinterest ads:** use the same 2:3 shape as organic pins.
- **TikTok ads:** 9:16 vertical.
- **LinkedIn and X ads:** square or wide, the same as their feed posts.

A good habit: for each ad, export one **square**, one **4:5** and one **9:16** version from the same design. Three files cover nearly every placement.

## Link preview images (Open Graph)

Link previews work differently from posts. When someone pastes your product URL into Facebook, WhatsApp, LinkedIn, X or iMessage, the platform pulls the image from your page's `og:image` tag. You don't upload anything at share time. The image has to be ready on the page already.

Most platforms show a wide card, about 1.91:1. Some apps show a square or a small thumbnail instead. Keep the important content in the middle so it survives either crop. Since you can't control every crop, check how the card actually looks on each platform.

We go into the full specs, file sizes and setup in [our Shopify OG image guide](https://yuhuapps.com/learn/shopify-og-image-app.md), and into what controls the preview card in [link preview on Shopify](https://yuhuapps.com/learn/link-preview.md), so we won't repeat them here.

## Safe zones: where not to put text

Whatever the pixel size, interface elements cover parts of your image:

- **Stories, Reels, TikTok, Shorts:** leave roughly the top and bottom 250 px of a 1920 px-tall frame free of text. Avoid the right edge on TikTok and Reels.
- **Profile photos:** shown as circles, so the corners disappear.
- **Covers and banners:** the sides are cropped on mobile.
- **Link previews:** the centre is safest. Some apps crop wide images to squares.

Most design tools let you make a simple template with these zones marked. Make it once and reuse it for every post.

## File format and quality tips

- **JPG** for product photos. Keep files reasonably small (a few hundred KB is usually plenty) so they load fast on mobile.
- **PNG** for graphics with text, flat colours or logos.
- **sRGB colour** so your product colours look the same on phones.
- **Don't upscale.** A 600 px photo stretched to 1080 px looks soft everywhere. Shoot or export at full size from the start. Our [product photography tips](https://yuhuapps.com/learn/product-photography-tips.md) cover framing photos so they still look good when cropped.
- **Name the files clearly** (`linen-shirt-story.jpg`). It saves time when you're exporting three versions of everything.

## Store examples

**A candle shop launching a new scent.** They shoot one product photo with plenty of space around it. From that one file they export a 1080 × 1350 Instagram post, a 1080 × 1920 story with the scent name in the upper third, and a 1000 × 1500 pin with "Hand-poured soy candle" at the top. Because they framed the shot loosely, every crop keeps the whole jar.

**A clothing store running a weekend sale.** Their Meta ad uses the same design in 1:1, 4:5 and 9:16, so no placement crops off the "30% off" text. They also check what their product links show when customers share them in WhatsApp groups, because that card is often the first thing a friend sees.

**A homeware store sharing blog posts on LinkedIn and Pinterest.** Each article gets a wide image for the link preview and a tall pin with the article title. They check both before publishing, because a blog post without a set image can show a random picture from the page, or none at all.

## Mistakes to avoid

1. **Using one landscape photo everywhere.** It gets letterboxed in stories and cropped badly on Pinterest.
2. **Putting text near the edges.** Interface buttons and circular crops will cover it.
3. **Uploading low-resolution images.** Anything under about 1080 px wide can look blurry on modern phones.
4. **Forgetting link previews.** You plan every post, but customers share your product URLs too, and those cards use whatever image your page provides.
5. **Trusting old cheat sheets.** Platforms change their layouts. Check the official specs before a paid campaign.
6. **Mixing ratios in a carousel.** The first slide sets the shape for the rest.
7. **Not testing.** Preview on a real phone before posting. For links, a preview checker shows the card before your customers see it.

## How Yuhu helps

Yuhu's Social Media Share Image app takes care of the link preview part for Shopify stores, with no coding. It generates a branded 1200×1200 share image for products, collections, blog articles and (optionally) pages, and serves it as the page's og:image. You can add your logo, price or discount text and multi-photo layouts. Each image can also be downloaded as a Story (1080×1920), Square (1080×1080) and Wide (1200×628) JPG for posting, and an optional 1000×1500 Pinterest image can be generated too. See [9 ways to control your Shopify link previews](https://yuhuapps.com/docs/control-your-shopify-link-previews.md) or try the [app](https://apps.shopify.com/social-media-share-image) with its 7-day free trial.

## FAQ

### What is the best image size for all social media?

No single size is perfect everywhere, but a 1080 × 1080 square is the safest all-rounder for feed posts. Add a 1080 × 1920 vertical version for stories and short video, and a 1000 × 1500 version if you use Pinterest.

### What size should Instagram posts be in 2026?

Use 1080 × 1350 (4:5) for the most screen space in the feed, or 1080 × 1080 for square posts. Stories and Reels should be 1080 × 1920, with text kept away from the top and bottom edges.

### What size is a link preview image?

Most platforms show link previews as a wide card of about 1.91:1, so around 1200 × 630 is a common choice. Some apps show a square or a small thumbnail instead, so keep the key content in the centre and test how the card looks.

### Why does my image look blurry after uploading?

It's usually too small or was upscaled before uploading, so the platform has to stretch it. Export at 1080 px wide or more, use JPG for photos and PNG for graphics with text, and don't enlarge small originals.

### Do social media image sizes change often?

The main shapes (square, 4:5, 9:16, 2:3 and wide) have stayed fairly stable, but platforms adjust their layouts and recommended pixel sizes from time to time. Check each network's official help pages before running paid ads.

## Related docs

- [Control your link previews](https://yuhuapps.com/docs/control-your-shopify-link-previews.md)
- [Shopify Social Share Image Setup](https://yuhuapps.com/docs/shopify-social-share-image.md)
- [Link Preview Checker (Free Tool)](https://yuhuapps.com/docs/test-shopify-link-preview-checker.md)