Recommended sizes for YouTube videos
Limits
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 |
|---|
| Recommended minimum | 426 × 240 px |
|---|
| Maximum size | 7680 × 4320 px |
|---|
Safe zone and tips
- Other aspect ratios are fine: the player adapts automatically, so you do not need to add black bars yourself.
- Uploading in 1440p or 4K often gives viewers better quality even when they watch at 1080p.
- Keep titles and lower thirds away from the very bottom, where the player controls and captions appear.
- Export at the frame rate you recorded in; converting frame rates on export can make motion stutter.
Making a 16:9 image from a phone photo
A typical 12-megapixel phone photo is 4032 × 3024. The largest 16:9 area you can cut from it is 4032 × 2268 pixels: crop to that, then scale it down to 1920 × 1080. Cropping first and scaling second keeps everything in proportion.
The calculator is set to 1920 × 1080. Enter your own width and height to see their ratio, or type a new width in box 2 to get the height that matches.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best size for YouTube videos?
Use 1920 × 1080 (1080p (recommended), 16:9), 1280 × 720 (720p, 16:9), 2560 × 1440 (1440p, 16:9), and 3840 × 2160 (4K (2160p), 16:9). The first one is the safest default.
Which aspect ratio should YouTube videos use?
16:9. Crop to the ratio first and then scale to the size in pixels, so nothing is stretched or cut off unexpectedly.
What is the smallest resolution YouTube lists?
YouTube’s standard sizes go down to 426 × 240 (240p). That looks blurry on today’s screens, so 1280 × 720 is a sensible minimum for new uploads and 1920 × 1080 is better.
Other platform sizes
Open the full aspect ratio calculator All platform sizes · All common resolutions
Aspect Ratio Calculator