YouTube Shorts Sizeand Safe Zone Tool
The YouTube Shorts size is 1080 by 1920 pixels, a vertical 9:16 frame. Crop a photo, title card or cover image to it and see where YouTube places its buttons, channel name and caption, so nothing important sits underneath.
Drop a photo here
JPEG, PNG and WebP work everywhere; HEIC opens in Safari. You can also paste a screenshot.
Never uploaded. It all happens in your browser.
You get
- Shorts cover1080 × 1920
Your files stay on this device. Nothing is uploaded, and location data is removed from every export.
The size, in full
The tool exports these exact pixel sizes, and compresses a file only when the network has a size limit.
| Size | Pixels | Shape | File |
|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube shorts cover | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 | JPEG or PNG |
How it works
- 1
Upload your image
Choose a photo, title card or cover image. It opens in your browser and is never uploaded.
- 2
Frame it inside the safe zone
Move and zoom until text sits clear of the buttons on the right and the caption at the bottom.
- 3
Download the frame
Save a file at 1080 by 1920 pixels, ready for your video editor or the Short itself.
How YouTube frames a Short
A Short is a vertical video, 9:16 at 1080 by 1920 pixels, up to 3 minutes long. YouTube treats any square or vertical upload within that length as a Short. Anything landscape is a normal video.
YouTube covers the edges with its interface: the top bar, the channel name, caption and sound along the bottom, and the like, comment and share buttons down the right. Keep text out of the top 240 pixels and the bottom 380 pixels, and 120 pixels in from the right.
This tool crops still images, not video. Use it for a title card, a photo to open the Short with, or artwork you will place in your video editor. YouTube picks a Short’s thumbnail from its frames, so a strong opening frame doubles as the cover.
Questions
- What is the YouTube Shorts size?
- 1080 by 1920 pixels, a vertical 9:16 frame. Square video also counts as a Short; landscape video does not.
- How long can a YouTube Short be?
- Up to 3 minutes. A square or vertical video within that length is treated as a Short.
- What is the YouTube Shorts safe zone?
- Keep text out of the top 240 pixels and the bottom 380 pixels, and 120 pixels in from the right, where the like, comment and share buttons sit. The tool shades those areas.
- Can I schedule YouTube Shorts?
- Yes. Posty uploads your vertical video at the time you schedule, with the visibility you choose. Posty checks that it is vertical or square before it can be scheduled, so it goes out as a Short.
- Is my image uploaded anywhere?
- No. Your image opens in your browser and is processed on your own device; it is never sent to Posty or anyone else. Saving a download re-encodes the image, which also strips the EXIF data your camera stored, including GPS location. You do not need an account.
More tools
Every tool runs in your browser, with nothing to install. See all tools
- YouTube thumbnailCrop a thumbnail to 1280 by 720, see the length badge and export under YouTube’s 2 MB limit.
- TikTok sizeCrop photos and cover images to TikTok’s vertical frame with the safe zone drawn on.
- Reel coverMake a Reel cover from a video frame or an image, with the full screen and grid crops shown together.
- Instagram StoryCrop a photo to the Instagram and Facebook Story size with the button areas shaded.
Schedule your Shorts with Posty
Posty uploads YouTube videos and Shorts at the time you schedule, with the visibility you choose, alongside your Reels and TikToks on one calendar.
Plans from $29 per workspace a month. Schedule YouTube Videos