Guide 2024: sizes and formats of images on social networks
Social networks are an essential tool for any brand or business that wants to have an online presence and connect with its target audience .
It is not enough to publish any content , but you must take care of the quality and design of the images and videos that are shared on each platform. Do you know what sizes and formats of images on social networks you should use in 2024 to optimize your digital marketing strategy? In this article we tell you everything.
Why is the size and format of images on social networks important?
Images are one of the most important elements of any publication on social networks, since they capture the attention of users, transmit the brand message and generate engagement.
Not all social networks have the same requirements or the same characteristics when it comes to displaying images. Therefore, it is essential to adapt the size and format of the images to each social network, to prevent them from looking pixelated, cut or distorted.
The size and format of images on social networks also influence the SEO positioning of your website, since they affect the loading speed, organic traffic and user experience.
Therefore, choosing the right size and format for each social network can help you improve your online visibility and attract more visitors to your website.
What sizes and formats of social media images should you use in 2024?
Each social network has its own specifications and recommendations about the size and format of images that can be published on it. These specifications may change over time, so it's a good idea to stay up to date with the latest updates and trends.
Below, we show you the sizes and formats of images on social networks that you should use in 2024:
Facebook is the most popular social network in the world, with almost 3 billion monthly active users in 2024. To take full advantage of the potential of this platform, you should take into account the following image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 170 x 170 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Cover photo : 820 x 312 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1250 x 312 pixels and a duration between 20 and 90 seconds.
Publications with photo : 1200 x 630 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1080 pixels and an MP4 or MOV format.
Posts with link : 1200 x 630 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. The link title must have a maximum of 25 characters and the description a maximum of 30.
Advertisements : 1600 x 628 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 600 x 315 pixels (horizontal) or 600 x 600 pixels (square) and an MP4 or MOV format.
Carousel : 1080 x 1080 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. You can use up to 10 images or videos, with text of up to 125 characters each.
Stories : 1080 x 1920 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels and be up to 15 seconds long.
Reels : 1080 x 1920 pixels, in MP4 format. Reels are short videos of up to 30 seconds, with effects and music, that can be shared in the feed or in the stories.
Instagram is the most visual and creative social network, with more than 1.5 billion monthly active users in 2024. To stand out on this platform, you must follow these image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 180 x 180 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Photo posts : 1080 x 1080 pixels (square), 1080 x 566 pixels (horizontal) or 1080 x 1350 pixels (vertical), in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1080 pixels and an MP4 or MOV format.
Stories : 1080 x 1920 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels and be up to 15 seconds long.
IGTV : 1080 x 1920 pixels (vertical) or 1920 x 1080 pixels (horizontal), in MP4 format. IGTV videos are long videos of up to 60 minutes, with an aspect ratio of 9:16 (vertical) or 16:9 (horizontal). The cover image must have a resolution of 420 x 654 pixels and a JPG or PNG format.
Reels : 1080 x 1920 pixels, in MP4 format. Reels are short videos of up to 30 seconds, with effects and music, that can be shared in the feed or in the stories.
Twitter is the social network for information and current affairs, with more than 400 million monthly active users in 2024. To communicate effectively on this platform, you should use these image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 400 x 400 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Cover photo : 1500 x 500 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Tweet with photo : 1600 x 900 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels (vertical) or 1920 x 1080 pixels (horizontal) and an MP4 or MOV format.
Tweet with link : 600 x 335 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. The link title must have a maximum of 70 characters and the description a maximum of 200.
Advertisement with multiple images : 1200 x 670 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. You can use up to 4 images, with text up to 280 characters.
LinkedIn is the professional social network par excellence, with more than 800 million monthly active users in 2024. To enhance your personal or business brand on this platform, you should use these image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 400 x 400 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Cover photo : 1584 x 396 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Publications with photo : 1200 x 627 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1080 pixels and an MP4 or MOV format.
Posts with link : 1200 x 627 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. The link title must have a maximum of 70 characters and the description a maximum of 256.
Advertisements : 1200 x 627 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1080 pixels and an MP4 or MOV format.
Carousel : 1080 x 1080 pixels, in JPG or PNG format. You can use up to 10 images, with text of up to 150 characters each.
Pinterest is the social network of inspiration and discovery, with more than 600 million monthly active users in 2024. To capture the attention of your audience on this platform, you should use these image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 165 x 165 pixels, in JPG or PNG format.
Pin : 1000 x 1500 pixels (vertical), 1000 x 1000 pixels (square) or 1000 x 667 pixels (horizontal), in JPG or PNG format. If you use a video, it must have a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels (vertical) or 1920 x 1080 pixels (horizontal) and an MP4, MOV or M4V format.
Dashboard : 222 x 150 pixels (large) or 55 x 55 pixels (small), in JPG or PNG format.
Youtube
YouTube is the social network for videos par excellence, with more than 2.5 billion monthly active users in 2024. To create and share quality videos on this platform, you must respect these image sizes and formats:
Profile photo : 800 x 800 pixels, in JPG, PNG, BMP or GIF format.
Cover photo : 2560 x 1440 pixels, in JPG, PNG, BMP or GIF format.
Video : 1920 x 1080 pixels (HD), 3840 x 2160 pixels (4K) or 7680 x 4320 pixels (8K), in MP4, MOV, AVI, WMV, FLV, 3GP or WebM format.
Video cover image : 1280 x 720 pixels, in JPG, PNG, BMP or GIF format.
Advertisement : 300 x 250 pixels (medium rectangle), 300 x 60 pixels (mobile banner) or 300 x 600 pixels (half page), in JPG, PNG, BMP or GIF format.
How to optimize images on social networks for SEO
Now that you know what sizes and formats of images on social networks you should use in 2024, we are going to give you some tips to optimize images on social networks for SEO . In this way, you can improve the performance of your publications and increase traffic to your website.
- Use quality, original and relevant images for your content and your audience. Avoid blurry, pixelated or generic images.
- Adjust the size and format of the images to each social network, following the specifications that we have indicated. This will prevent details from being cut, deformed or lost.
- Compresses images to reduce their weight and improve loading speed. You can use online tools like [TinyPNG] or [Compressor.io] to compress images without losing quality.
- Use keywords in the file name, title, description, and alt text of images. This will make it easier for search engines and users to index and understand your images.
- Include links to your website or other relevant pages in image descriptions or text. This way, you will generate more clicks and visits to your website.
- Take advantage of tags, hashtags, mentions, and placements to increase the reach and visibility of your images on social media. This way, you will be able to reach more users interested in your topic and generate more interactions.
The benefits of using images on social networks for your brand
Finally, we want to highlight the benefits of using images on social networks for your brand, both at the marketing and SEO levels.
These are some of the benefits you can obtain if you use images on social networks appropriately:
- Increase the recognition and reputation of your brand by showing your visual identity, your personality and your values.
- Improve the engagement and loyalty of your audience , by generating emotions, opinions and reactions in users.
- Differentiate yourself from the competition by offering unique, creative and valuable content for your audience.
- Increase traffic to your website by attracting the attention of users and directing them to your website through links.
- Improve the SEO positioning of your website by optimizing images for search engines and social networks.
We hope that this guide has been useful for you to know the sizes and formats of social media images that you should use in 2024, as well as to optimize social media images for SEO.
Remember that images are a key element for your digital marketing strategy, so you must take care of their quality and design on each platform.
Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After leading several digital businesses and advising several other businesses; I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and enhancing digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.