It can be frustrating to keep up with social media image sizes when social networks change their design every few months. One moment you’ve got the perfect cover page for your account. Next thing you know, it’s been resized, and now it looks all pixelated and wrong!

• How To Download Twitter Cover Photo For Instagram

Worst of all, information about official dimensions and image sizes can be a chore to find.

How to Download Pictures from Twitter. It is possible to download photos and other images from Twitter either on your phone or your computer. This article describes how to do that, as well as how to download. How to Download Pictures from Twitter. It is possible to download photos and other images from Twitter either on your phone or your computer. This article describes how to do that, as well as how to download images from tweets with more.

But not if you consult our guide to social media image sizes first!

Here are the most recent social media image dimensions, as of 2018:

Social media image sizes in 2018

Instagram image sizes

Twitter image sizes

Facebook image sizes

LinkedIn image sizes

Pinterest image sizes

Tumblr image sizes

Google+ image sizes

Bonus: Get the always-up-to-date social media image size cheat sheet. The free resource includes recommended photo dimensions for every type of image on every major network.

Instagram image sizes

The platform supports horizontally and vertically-oriented images, in addition to the square images it originally preferred.

This increases your options, but also makes image dimensions a little trickier to get right. Follow these guidelines to make sure your images end up looking their best:

Instagram profile photo size: 110 by 110 pixels

Tips: These are displayed as a circle, so make sure any logos you use are centered and don’t get cropped out when you upload. Profile photos are stored at 320 x 320 pixels, so make sure to upload an image at least that big, to future-proof.

Instagram feed photos size:

Landscape: 1080 by 566 pixels
Portrait: 1080 x 1350 pixels
Square: 1080 x 1080 pixels
Supported aspect ratios: anywhere between 1.91:1 and 4:5
Recommended image size: width of 1080 pixels, height between 566 and 1350 pixels (depending on whether the image is landscape or portrait)

Tips: If you want your images to look their best on Instagram, aim to upload an image that is 1080 pixels wide. (Larger images will be sized down to 1080 pixels, and images less than 320 pixels will be sized up to 320 pixels wide.)

If your image is between 320 and 1080 pixels wide, Instagram will keep that photo at its original resolution, “as long as the photo’s aspect ratio is between 1.91:1 and 4:5 (a height between 566 and 1350 pixels with a width of 1080 pixels).” If the aspect ratio of your photo isn’t supported, it will be “cropped to fit a supported ratio.”

Instagram thumbnail size:

Display size: 292 by 292 pixels
Recommended upload size: 1080 pixels wide

Tips: Instagram stores versions of these thumbnails that are as large as 1080 by 1080 pixels. To future-proof your Instagram, upload images that are as large as possible.

Instagram stories image size: 1080 pixels wide, 1920 pixels tall (recommended)

Tips: These images are highly dependant on the device that the story is being displayed on (each story is tailored to the resolution of your device) so it’s hard to suggest an exact image size. For best results, upload an image that is 1080 pixels wide and 1920 pixels tall.

Instagram ads sizes:

Landscape: 1080 by 566 pixels
Square: 1080 by 1080 pixels
Minimum width: 320 pixels
Maximum width: 1080 pixels
Supported aspect ratios: anywhere between 1.91:1 and 4:5

Instagram stories ads sizes: 1080 pixels wide, 1920 pixels tall (recommended)

Tips: Because the exact dimensions of stories are highly dependant on the device they’re displayed on, Instagram recommends leaving roughly “14% (250 pixels) of the top and bottom of the image free from text and logos” to prevent them from being covered. Also remember that images that consist of more than 20 percent text may experience reduced delivery, due to Instagram’s rules around text in images.

Twitter image sizes

Tweets that include images consistently get more clickthroughs, more likes, and more retweets than non-image tweets. So it pays to get images right on Twitter. If you’re unsure which image dimensions to use, stick to the recommended sizes below:

Twitter profile photo size:

Recommended image size: 400 by 400 pixels
Minimum image size: 200 by 200 pixels

Twitter header image size: 1500 by 500 pixels (recommended)

Tips: Twitter will accept an image as small as 1024 by 280 pixels, but it’s best to use the maximum available size.

Twitter in-stream image size:

Recommended size: 1024 x 512 pixels
Supported formats: .GIF, .JPG, .PNG
Maximum file size: 3 MB for photos, 5 MB for animated gifs

Twitter summary card image size:

Size: 280 x 150 pixels
Supported formats: GIF, JPG, PNG
Maximum file size: 1MB

Twitter ad image size:

Website card image: 800 x 418 pixels for 1.91:1 aspect ratio, 800 x 800 pixels for 1:1 aspect ratio
App card image: 800 x 800 pixels (max 3mb) for 1:1 aspect ratio. 800 x 418 pixels (max 3mb) for 1.91:1 aspect ratio
Single and multi-image tweets: Minimum 600 X 335 pixels, use larger images for best results
Direct Message card: Minimum width 800 pixels

Facebook image sizes

Facebook updates its design and image dimensions constantly, so the best strategy to use on the platform is to future-proof. Always upload the highest-quality image you can, and stick to Facebook’s recommended file formats for best results.

Facebook profile photo size: Width of 720, 960 or 2048 pixels, 1:1 aspect ratio (recommended)

Tips: Your profile picture will display at 170 x 170 pixels on desktop, and 128 x 128 on smartphones. To avoid any compression, upload a .JPG or .PNG image less than 100 KB large with a width of 720 or 960 pixels and avoid any cropping.

Facebook cover photo size:

Recommended size: 851 pixels by 315 pixels
Display size desktop: 820 pixels by 312 pixels
Display size smartphone: 640 pixels by 360 pixels
Minimum size: 400 pixels by 150 pixels

Tips: To avoid any compression or distortion, upload a .JPG or .PNG file (experiment to see which works best) less than 100 KB, and don’t drag to reposition once you’ve uploaded your cover photo.

Resource: More tips on creating great Facebook cover photos.

Facebook timeline photos size:

Recommended size: 1200 pixels by 630 pixels
Minimum size: 600 pixels wide, 315 pixels tall

Facebook event cover photo size: 1920 by 1080 pixels (16:9 ratio)

Tips: Images narrower than 1920 pixels will be enlarged to fit, images wider than 1920 pixels will be cropped on both sides. Images taller than 1080 pixels will be cropped from top and bottom.

Bonus: Get the always-up-to-date social media image size cheat sheet. The free resource includes recommended photo dimensions for every type of image on every major network.

Facebook panorama or 360 photo size:

Minimum image size: 600 by 600 pixels

Tips: Facebook automatically recognizes and processes these images based on “camera-specific metadata found in photos taken using 360-ready devices.”

Facebook ads size:

Facebook timeline ads size: at least 1200 by 628 pixels, 9:16 to 16:9 aspect ratio

Tips: Facebook recommends that you upload “the highest resolution image available” in either .JPG or .PNG format, cropped to a supported aspect ratio. Also remember that images that “consist of more than 20 percent text may experience reduced delivery,” as per Facebook’s text in images rules.

Facebook right column ads size: at least 1200 pixels by 628 pixels, 9:16 to 16:9 aspect ratio

Tips: Same rules as timeline images (upload highest resolution possible, keep text to a minimum). Remember that right column ads are a desktop-only format.

Facebook instant articles ads size: at least 1,200 by 628 pixels, 9:16 to 16:9 aspect ratio

Facebook Marketplace ads size: at least 1,200 by 628 pixels, 9:16 to 16:9 aspect ratio

LinkedIn image sizes

Pairing your Linkedin updates—whether it be through your personal profile, or through a company page—been consistently shown to increase comments and sharing on the platform. Stick to the recommended sizes below for best results, and always make sure to look at your profile and content on multiple devices before finalizing.

Linkedin profile photo size: 400 by 400 pixels or larger (recommended)

Tips: Linkedin can accommodate large profile photo files (anything up to 8MB) so upload as large as you can to future-proof.

Linkedin profile cover image size: 1584 by 396 pixels (recommended)

Aspect ratio: 4:1

Tip: Cover photos are cropped differently on mobile and desktop—make sure to view your profile on both kinds of display before finalizing.

Linkedin company page sizes:

Cover photo size: 1536 by 768 pixels
Company logo size: 300 by 300 pixels
Overview tab image size: 360 by 120 pixels
Overview tab cover image size: 1192 by 220 pixels
Life tab hero image size: 1128 by 376 pixels
Life tab custom modules image size: 502 by 282 pixels
Life tab company photos image sizes: 900 by 600 pixels

Tips: When posting image updates to your company page, make sure to use .PNG or .JPG images and an aspect ratio of 1.91:1 (1200 by 627 pixel images are ideal).

Linkedin blog post link image size: 1200 by 628 pixels (recommended)

Linkedin photo share image size: 1200 by 1200 pixels for desktop, 1200 by 628 pixels for mobile (recommended)

Linkedin ads size:

Company logo size for ads: 100 by 100 pixels
Spotlight ads logo size: 100 by 100 pixels
Spotlight ads custom background image: 300 by 250 pixels
Sponsored content images: 1200 by 627 pixels (1.91:1 aspect ratio)

Pinterest image sizes

Pinterest profile photo size: 165 by 165 pixels (recommended)

Tips: Your profile image will be scaled down to 32 by 32 pixels elsewhere, so make sure to preview on desktop and mobile before finalizing.

Pinterest pin image size: between 600 and 735 pixels wide, 2:3 aspect ratio (recommended)

Tips: Remember that in previews and on boards, pins are 236 pixels wide and cropped vertically (make sure nothing important is cropped out when uploading pins that are particularly long/tall).

Promoted pins, one-tap promoted pins, promoted app pins size:

Recommended size: 600 by 900 pixels (aspect ratio between 2:3 and 1:3.5)
Minimum width: 600 pixels
Minimum height: 900 pixels
Maximum height: 2100 pixels
Recommended format: .GIF, .JPG or .PNG
Thumbnail sizes: 69 by 69 pixels for small thumbnails, 216 by 146 pixels for large thumbnails

Tumblr image sizes

Tumblr profile photo size:

Recommended size: 128 by 128 pixels
Minimum size: 64 by 64 pixels

Dashboard view image:

Minimum size: 500 by 750 pixels
Maximum size: 1280 by 1920 pixels

Tumblr photo set:

One image: each photo 500 pixels wide
Two image: each photo 245 pixels wide
Three image: each photo 160 pixels wide

Tumblr images in a shared link or text post:

• The thumbnail image in a link will display at 130 x 130 pixels.
• Images in a text post display at a width of 125 pixels, but expand when clicked on.

Tumblr audio post image size: 169 by 169 pixels

Tumblr link post image size: 130 pixels by 130 pixels

Tumblr ads image size: 1280 by 1920 pixels (recommended)

Snapchat image sizes

Snapchat ads image size: 1080 by 1920 pixels (recommended)

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Snapchat Geofilter image size: 1080 by 1920 (recommended)

Aspect ratio: 9:16

Resource:How to create a custom Snapchat geofilter

More advice about social media images

Beyond sizes, here are some other important things to know about creating images for social media:

Bonus: Get the always-up-to-date social media image size cheat sheet. The free resource includes recommended photo dimensions for every type of image on every major network.

When someone visits your Facebook page, the first thing they see is a large splash image taking up almost a quarter of the screen: your Facebook cover photo. This is your profile’s headline, a big, bold banner image that introduces your brand to potential Facebook followers.

You can feature a lot in your Facebook cover photo: images of your product or team, ads and promotions, or even something as simple as graphic that sets the right mood. A good cover photo can result in increased engagement, whether that’s more page likes or boosted traffic to your website or other social channels.

So, how do you make Facebook cover photos—and get the most out of them?

This article will go over everything you need to know about Facebook cover photos, from the ideal Facebook cover photo size, to picking attention-grabbing images—or videos!—that set the right tone and convince people to interact with your page.

I’ll also highlight some best practices, share good examples, and explain why they’re successful.

Let’s start with the basics: making sure your image fits the Facebook cover photo size guidelines (and their other guidelines, too).

Bonus:Download a free guide that teaches you how to turn Facebook traffic into sales in four simple steps using Hootsuite.

Facebook cover photo size: 851 x 315 pixels

The minimum dimensions for a Facebook cover photo (sometimes referred to as “Facebook banner size”) are 851 x 315 pixels. This is the best size to choose if you’re making a cover photo and want to know exactly how it will look before you upload it.

For the highest quality photographic experience, Facebook recommends using a PNG file. Choose this option if you want to display a high definition logo in your cover image, or if your cover image contains copy that really needs to stand out.

On mobile, it’s often better to prioritize image types that load quickly and don’t use a lot of data. In this case, Facebook recommends uploading an sRGB JPEG file that also follows these two requirements:

• Dimensions: 851 x 315 pixels
• File size: less than 100 kb

Remember, on desktop, Facebook cover photos are more rectangular, accounting for larger/widescreen displays. On mobile, the cover photo is more square, allowing it to fit on a portrait-oriented screen.

While 95 percent of Facebook users access the site via mobile, that doesn’t mean you should ignore the 31 percent of users who also browse via desktop. For a Facebook cover photo that looks good on any screen, Facebook recommends an image that’s 820 pixels x 462 pixels. This also applies to the platform’s newer cover format: Facebook cover videos.

Facebook cover video size: 820 x 462 pixels

Facebook cover videos are another way to grab a user’s attention and drive user interactions on your page. On desktop, cover videos definitely look more engaging than static photos, and can really bring your page to life. However, they’re less effective on mobile, as they don’t autoplay, and instead load as a thumbnail.

Here’s Facebook’s recommended settings for cover video size and duration:

• Dimensions: 820 x 462 pixels (820 x 312 minimum)
• Duration: 20 to 90 seconds (no more, no less!)

Note: Facebook cover videos can have audio, but it won’t play unless you actually click on the video. For best results, make sure the video you upload works equally well with or without sound. This is something you should keep in mind even outside cover videos: 85 percent of Facebook users watch videos with the volume turned off.

Other requirements for Facebook cover photos and videos

Besides these technical requirements, there are specific rules for the kinds of content you can display in Facebook cover photos and videos. These rules are fairly standard:

• Make sure you’re not violating anyone’s copyright.
• Make sure your cover photo or video is family-friendly and safe-for-work.
• Make sure that if you’re advertising a product with your cover photo or video, you’re not breaking any of Facebook’s advertising rules.

For a full breakdown of these policies, check out the Facebook page guidelines.

How to make a Facebook cover photo

Note: all screenshots used in this article are from Adobe Photoshop CC 2018 (19.1.2 release).

The best way to make Facebook cover photos is by creating a template in Adobe Photoshop and saving it for all your future needs. Once you’ve followed these six easy steps, you’ll be good to go for all your future cover photo needs.

1. Create a Facebook cover photo template

a) Open Photoshop, and go to File > New.
b) Now you’ll be presented with the screen where you set your template dimensions.
c) Name your file (spoiler alert: my cover photo is sushi!) and enter your image dimensions. I’m making a Facebook cover photo for desktop, so I’ve entered 851 for width and 315 for height.

d) Once you’ve done this, click the blue Create button in the bottom right, and you’ll arrive at this screen showing a blank template.

2. Select your Facebook cover photo image

Go to File > Open and select the photo you’d like to see appear on top of your Facebook profile. It will open in a new tab in Photoshop.

3. Make a copy of your photo and move it to your template

a) In the bottom right corner, right click the Layers panel and select Duplicate Layer. This will open up a dialogue box, as seen in the second image.

b) Under Destination, change the file name to the one you named your template—in my case, it’s “Best Sushi Ever.” Click OK.

4. Resize the photo in your template

a) Tab back to your template file. You’ll see the formerly white space is now filled with an image. When I first did this step, I ended up with this, which looks like a hot mess. But don’t worry! This happened because I didn’t resize the image within the template yet.

b) To resize the image to fit the template, go to Edit > Free Transform (or press Control/Command + T).

c) A border (bounding box) encompassing all the cropped-off parts of your image will appear around the template. If you’re too zoomed-in you won’t be able to see it; zoom out if this is the case.

d) Shift-click one of the corners of the bounding box and drag it inwards to scale your image down so the sections you want to be visible appear within the template. Once you’ve scaled it the way you want, press the Enter key to lock in your image.

5. (Optional step) add text or other design elements

Here’s when you can add your logo, ad copy or other text/design elements. I went with some thematically-appropriate kanji (“Best sushi ever!”) for this example.

6. Save your Facebook cover photo

Go to File > Save. Name your cover photo and select a file format. I picked PNG as recommended for maximum, mouth-watering detail.

Ta-da! Here’s a cover photo that will look delicious on desktop or mobile.

Now that you’ve made a template, you can skip step 1 when making your cover photos in future.

How to upload Facebook cover photos

Once you’re finished making your Facebook cover photo, uploading it is easy.

1. Navigate to your Facebook business page and mouse over the cover photo space at the top.
2. Click Add a Cover in the top left corner.
3. Click Upload Photo/Video and select the photo you’d like to upload.
4. A preview of your photo will appear in the cover space. Click the photo and drag it up or down to the vertical orientation of your liking.
5. Click Publish.

If you don’t like how your Facebook cover photo is positioned after you’ve published it, you can click Update Cover and then Reposition, which will return you to step 4.

As you upload more cover photos, you’ll build up a library. If you ever want to replace your current cover photo with an older one, click Select Photo instead of Upload Cover Photo in step 3, and you’ll be able to choose from previously uploaded images.

Finally, the Select Artwork button contains a number of premade background images for your cover photo space. These look fine in a pinch, but I’d recommend creating branded images for your business page that showcase your organization’s personality, products, or services.

How to upload Facebook cover videos

Uploading a Facebook cover video is almost the same as uploading a cover photo, with a couple of extra steps.

1. Navigate to your company page and mouse over the space at the top.
2. Click Add a Cover in the top left corner.
3. Click Upload Photo/Video and select the video you’d like to upload.
4. A preview of your video will appear in the cover space. Click the video and drag it up or down to the vertical orientation of your liking.
5. Choose a thumbnail from the 10 available options Facebook provides (hint: pick the one that’s most likely to pique interest and reel someone in).
6. Click Publish.

Facebook cover photos: best practices

Now that you know the basics of creating and uploading cover photos, it’s time to look at some powerful examples, and the strategies behind them.

1. Use a simple image with a clear focal point

The whole point of your profile banner is to grab attention and elicit curiosity so people take action on your page. Use memorable imagery with colors that reflect your brand, and don’t be afraid to make use of negative space, particularly if you’re including copy: it’ll help your words stand out.

Bonus:Download a free guide that teaches you how to turn Facebook traffic into sales in four simple steps using Hootsuite.

This playful cover photo from Zendesk uses bright colors and negative space to make their copy pop.

2. Pair your Facebook cover photo with your profile picture

A Facebook cover photo that matches with the profile picture always looks professional and put-together. It might sound limiting, but it’s also a good opportunity to get creative.

Target’s eye-catching Facebook cover photo makes clever use of their bullseye logo. The optical illusion caught me off-guard, earning this cover photo my full attention.

3. Optimize your cover photo for mobile

When you’re choosing an image for your Facebook cover photo, think about how it’s going to look on the screens of Facebook’s 1.15 billion smartphone users. If there’s tiny text, will it be readable? How will the finer details look on a smaller screen? What’s being cut off when your cover photo is panned-and-scanned to mobile format?

I was surprised to find that many companies (big companies!) don’t actually bother to optimize for this, making it an easy way to provide a better page experience than your competitors.

Duolingo has smartly chosen an image that doesn’t change too much between desktop and mobile. Nothing is lost in translation, providing both audiences with an equally good browsing experience.

As an added bonus, the brand name in the banner leaves the profile picture open for Lingo (their company mascot) to greet visitors to the page.

4. Balance your Facebook cover photo with right-aligned elements

Centered images work well on cover photos, but aligning your image content to the right is aesthetically pleasing and has strategic value. Facebook’s call-to-action buttons appear on the right side of your profile; ideally, your images should draw the eye to that section of the page. If possible, include elements that draw attention to your CTA.

Here, YouTube star and cake-decorating sensation Yolanda Gampp uses the cover photo to advertise her new cookbook, How to Cake It. This banner effectively leads the eye, starting with the copy, then to the book cover, which is placed right over the Watch Video CTA. It’s a direct route to her YouTube channel—and an invitation join her 3.6 million subscribers!

5. Update your cover photo regularly

Your Facebook cover photo is the ideal place to announce what’s new at your company. Keep this space updated with fresh content, whether you’re promoting a new product or service, or referencing current events in relation to your brand.

Here, KFC uses their cover video to advertise the Canadian launch of the latest twist on the infamous Double-Down. This profile video works well because the animation is on a short loop so it’s not too distracting. It really creates a mood!

6. Link out from your Facebook cover photo

Including a link within the cover photo page itself is a good way to drive traffic to your other pages via Facebook. Use a link shortener like ow.ly to create a customized URL format that’s unique to your brand. It makes links more manageable, and conceals the UTM code you should be using to track your traffic sources.

Here, Threadless uses an all-too-relatable drawing of a cat to drive traffic to their website. When you click the cover photo, you find a link directing you to purchase the T-shirt. The link contains a UTM code, allowing Threadless to track page views from their Facebook cover photo.

Although they haven’t done it here, another strategy is to have this URL direct to the same page as the CTA on your main profile, offering another chance for conversion. This also lets you experiment with other CTAs on your Facebook page (Facebook currently has seven to choose from).

Check out this post if you want to more about how to write an irresistible call to action.

7. Pin important updates below your Facebook cover photo

Remember, the goal of a headline is to get you to read the article below, and Facebook cover photos are no different. Pin your most important current content to the top of your Facebook page.

When people are drawn in by your cover photo, they’ll see the most relevant information as soon as they scroll down.

Hootsuite is currently promoting an upcoming webinar series on Demystifying Social ROI. In addition to a cover video highlighting the event, we’ve pinned it as the first post on our page so people remember to sign up.

How To Download Twitter Cover Photo For Instagram

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