Best photo image size 2019 social icons

Social Media Image and Video Sizes 2021 (Simplified)

 

Want to know the best social media image and video sizes in 2021? This simple guide has you covered. 

Have you found other guides that feature the best video sizes and image sizes overly complicated? Is it really necessary to have a different resolution for each video and image and platform? Thankfully, you can keep things quite simple.

computer with the best video and image sizes

You don’t need to create something with a different resolution for every single social network. What really matters is the aspect ratio.

For example: On Tumblr an image that is 1280 pixels wide by 1920 pixels tall works best. On Pinterest an image that is 600 pixels wide by 900 pixels tall performs best. But guess what? The two images have the exact same aspect ratio, 2×3.

So what happens if we upload an image that’s 1280 pixels wide by 1920 pixels tall on Pinterest? It will automatically scale it down to 600×900 and it will look perfect. Anytime you upload an image that’s higher resolution than the platform will display, it automatically scales it down for you (and looks great!).

That’s why this simplified guide is so valuable:

Rather than telling you to make a different sized image for every social network, you can simply pick the image size below. It will look great on every platform listed.

Please note that these are guides for what works well on the feed and in stories. Different image sizes will be needed for cover photos, banners, etc.

Without further ado, here are 2 photos that show a simplified version of the best video and photo sizes for every social network in 2021.

Want to share these images on your blog or website? Please do! Just link back to me at jacob-le.com.

 

infographic best video size for every social media platform
infographic best image size for every social media platform

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you would rather watch than read the information, here is the video with all the details on the best sizes for social media in 2021

[youtube id=”HukdKtYTN2U”]

The best video sizes for social media 2021(Simplified):

  • 1920×1080: YouTube, Twitter
  • 1080×1080 Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest 
  • 1350×1080 Instagram (alternate)
  • 500×700 Tumblr
  • 1080×1920 Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat Stories, Pinterest

The best image sizes for social media 2021 (Simplified):

  • 1024×512: Twitter
  • 1080×1080 Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, Pinterest 
  • 1350×1080 Instagram (alternate)
  • 1280×1920 Tumblr, Facebook, Pinterest
  • 1080×1920 Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat Stories

Bonus tip: Squares are a fantastic image choice for most social networks. When in doubt, keep it a square. Square photos and videos work great on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

The best size for link posts (1200×628 pixels)

On Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, when you link out to another article, your post will show up differently.

For links to other articles, the idea size is 1200×612.

This doesn’t apply to Instagram (you only get a link out in your profile) or Pinterest (1280×1920 works best, including for pins that link out).

Link posts on facebook, instagram, and LinkedIn should be 1200x628

Some other guides make the Facebook Image Size more confusing than it needs to be.

Other articles make Facebook’s image sizes more confusing than it needs to be:

The best size for Facebook Feed is 1200×628? That’s what other guides will tell you. Here’s the thing though.

That is the ideal size if you’re linking out to an article:

Gary Vaynerchuck link post on facebook
When in doubt, look to see what the pros are doing, like Gary Vaynerchuck

For single photo posts? It’s better to stick with something at least as tall as a square:

Gary Vee Photo share on Facebook

Standalone images work best as a square (1080×1080) or a 2×3 (just like Pinterest)

Stick to those two to take up the most space on the feed.

If you see the images coming from the top people, their photo posts aren’t a narrow rectangle, they’re square posts.

Square posts are the simplest. Take up a decent amount of space and work well. They work great for Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. If you want to keep things as simple as possible, use square photos on these 3 platforms.

Choosing the right image and video sizes=more attention for your content

Look at the difference in the amount of space a 1080×1350 post takes up compared to a 1920×1080 post on Instagram.

Instagram photo with camera: 1350x1080 pixels
1080×1350 Image/Video in Feed
Instagram photo tutorial, 1920x1080 resolution
1920×1080 Image/Video in Feed

Instagram image size tip: Make sure your photo looks good on your profile.

Please note that on Instagram, on your profile it will show a square version of your photo (see below and to the right). It’s ideal if you can make the photo look good as a square even if you are posting a 1080×1350 photo.

Here are 2 examples from my profile of 1080×1350 images from my account. The first is from before I was adjusting them to look good in square format. For the 2nd example, I double checked to make sure the post would look good as a square.

Example 1: not optimized to appear as a square on my profile.

Instagram photo example of tall photo
Original post
Instagram profile has square images
What it looks like on my profile

What I should have done is made a slight adjustment so it would appear like this for the square version on my profile like so:

Optimize Instagram photos and videos to appear on well on your profile
Only a slight adjustment was needed to make it look good as a square.

Example 2: optimized to appear as a square.

Instagram photo with camera tall
Instagram optimized profile images

Conclusion: Keep it simple and stick to these image and video sizes for your social media posts in 2021.

You don’t need to overcomplicate your image and sizes. Remember the following 4 things in order to have the very best image and video sizes

1. YouTube and Twitter videos should often be 1920×1080.

2. For Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, square photos and videos look great.

3. 4:6 photos look good on Tumblr, Pinterest, and Facebook.

4. Stories should always be 1080×1920.

That’s it! You know the simplified guide to creating photos and videos on every social media network.Pat yourself on the back.

Do you want to go WAY deeper with your social media knowledge? Take a look at my 111 actionable tips on social media. It has some of the best knowledge from 35 of the top books in the world on social media.

Want to start advertising on Facebook? Take a look at this 2-hour FREE training that will take you from beginner to expert in one session.

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