What are the dimensions of 720p?

720p is 1280 pixels wide by 720 pixels tall, written width first as 1280 x 720. A vertical (portrait) 720p video is 720 x 1280. The physical size is not fixed: the same grid is about 46 PPI on a 32-inch TV and about 294 PPI on a 5-inch phone.

What is 720p resolution?

720p refers to a display or video frame that is 1280 pixels wide and 720 pixels tall (1,280 x 720 = 921,600 total pixels), progressive scan, at a 16:9 aspect ratio. The "p" stands for progressive, meaning every line is drawn in each frame rather than interlaced.

How many pixels does 720p have?

1280 x 720 = 921,600 pixels, about 0.92 megapixels per frame. 1080p has 2.25 times as many (2,073,600) and 4K UHD has 9 times as many (8,294,400).

What is the aspect ratio of 720p?

16:9. Dividing 1280 and 720 by their greatest common divisor, 80, gives 1280 ÷ 80 = 16 and 720 ÷ 80 = 9, the same widescreen shape as 1920 x 1080 and 3840 x 2160.

Which standard defines 720p?

ITU-R Recommendation BT.1543 and SMPTE ST 296 define the 1280 × 720 progressive HD image format with square pixels at 16:9. It was one of the HDTV formats in the US ATSC digital TV standard, and appears in the CTA-861 list of video timings used over HDMI.

What bitrate should I use for 720p?

For YouTube uploads the official recommendation is 5 Mbps at 24–30 fps and 7.5 Mbps at 48–60 fps for SDR, and 6.5 Mbps and 9.5 Mbps for HDR. Live streaming and other platforms publish their own limits, so check the destination before exporting.

How much storage does one hour of 720p video take?

Size = bitrate × seconds ÷ 8. At 5 Mbps, 5 × 3,600 ÷ 8 = 2,250 MB, or 2.25 GB per hour; at 2.5 Mbps it is about 1.1 GB. Uncompressed 8-bit 4:2:2 720p at 30 fps runs at 1280 × 720 × 16 bits × 30 ≈ 442 Mbps, about 199 GB per hour.

Is 720p still considered HD?

Yes. 1280 × 720 is an HD format in ITU-R BT.1543 and SMPTE ST 296, and the European “HD ready” display label requires at least 720 lines. 1080p is called Full HD and 2160p is 4K Ultra HD. Whether 720p looks sharp depends on distance: on a 40-inch screen a 20/20 eye stops resolving individual pixels at about 7 ft 10 in.

What is the PPI of a 720p screen?

PPI = √(1280² + 720²) ÷ diagonal = 1,468.6 ÷ diagonal inches. A 32-inch 720p TV is about 45.9 PPI, while a 5-inch 720p phone screen is about 293.7 PPI. Use the calculator on this page for any diagonal size.

Is a 1080p file always 2.25 times larger than 720p?

No. 1080p has 2.25 times the pixels, but file size is set by bitrate and duration. YouTube recommends 8 Mbps for 1080p30 and 5 Mbps for 720p30, a 1.6× difference, and the gap depends on codec and content.

720P Resolution Reference

720p HD is 1280 × 720 pixels (921,600 pixels, 16:9). Get PPI and 20/20 viewing distance for your screen, file size from bitrate, and a sourced resolution table.

720p resolution size is 1280 x 720 pixels: 1,280 wide by 720 tall, 921,600 pixels in total (about 0.92 megapixels), at a 16:9 aspect ratio.

Resolution

1280 x 720

pixels (W x H)

Total Pixels

921,600

per frame

Aspect Ratio

16:9

widescreen

Standard Name

720p HD

ITU-R BT.1543 / SMPTE ST 296

PPI, Viewing Distance & File Size Calculator

Preloaded with 1280 × 720. Enter your screen diagonal, or change the dimensions to analyze any other display or video against 720p.

Width (px)

Height (px)

Diagonal (in)

Bitrate (Mbps)

Duration (minutes)

Aspect ratio

Total pixels

Megapixels

Pixels vs 720p

Pixel density

Pixel pitch

20/20 acuity distance

Video size (decimal)

PPI = √(width² + height²) ÷ diagonal. The acuity distance is where one pixel subtends one arcminute; beyond it a 20/20 eye cannot separate adjacent pixels. File size = bitrate × duration ÷ 8, excluding audio and container overhead.

Common 720p Screen Sizes

Pixel density and 20/20 acuity distance computed from √(1280² + 720²) = 1,468.6 px along the diagonal.

Screen	PPI	Acuity distance
5-inch phone	293.7	1 ft 0 in
10-inch tablet	146.9	1 ft 11 in
13.3-inch laptop	110.4	2 ft 7 in
24-inch TV	61.2	4 ft 8 in
32-inch TV	45.9	6 ft 3 in
40-inch TV	36.7	7 ft 10 in

YouTube 720p Upload Bitrates

Official upload recommendations checked October 2026. Video bitrate only; audio and container overhead are additional.

Upload	Bitrate	GB per hour
SDR, 24–30 fps	5 Mbps	2.25
SDR, 48–60 fps	7.5 Mbps	3.38
HDR, 24–30 fps	6.5 Mbps	2.93
HDR, 48–60 fps	9.5 Mbps	4.28

Source: YouTube recommended upload encoding settings. YouTube re-encodes every upload; live-stream and camera bitrates follow different guidance.

Resolution Comparison: 720p vs 30 Other Formats

Where 1280 × 720 sits among 31 common display, TV, web-video and cinema formats, from 240p to 8K, and which standard defines each one. Note the laptop sizes 1366 × 768 and 1280 × 800 that are often confused with 720p. Search, sort any column, or download the table.

Last verified against the primary sources: October 9, 2026. Data license: CC BY 4.0 (free to reuse with a link to this page).

Download CSV 31 rows


240p	426	240	102,240	0.10	71:40 (~16:9)	Web video	YouTube recommended upload resolutions
360p	640	360	230,400	0.23	16:9	Web video	YouTube recommended upload resolutions
VGA	640	480	307,200	0.31	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
480p (web)	854	480	409,920	0.41	427:240 (~16:9)	Web video	YouTube recommended upload resolutions
SVGA	800	600	480,000	0.48	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
XGA	1024	768	786,432	0.79	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
XGA+	1152	864	995,328	1.00	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
720p HD	1280	720	921,600	0.92	16:9	TV and video	ITU-R BT.1543-1 (2015)
WXGA	1280	800	1,024,000	1.02	16:10	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
SXGA	1280	1024	1,310,720	1.31	5:4	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
WXGA (1360)	1360	768	1,044,480	1.04	85:48 (~16:9)	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
FWXGA (1366)	1366	768	1,049,088	1.05	683:384 (~16:9)	Laptop display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
SXGA+	1400	1050	1,470,000	1.47	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
WXGA+	1440	900	1,296,000	1.30	16:10	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
HD+	1600	900	1,440,000	1.44	16:9	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
UXGA	1600	1200	1,920,000	1.92	4:3	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
WSXGA+	1680	1050	1,764,000	1.76	16:10	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
1080p Full HD	1920	1080	2,073,600	2.07	16:9	TV and video	ITU-R BT.709-6 (2015)
WUXGA	1920	1200	2,304,000	2.30	16:10	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
DCI 2K	2048	1080	2,211,840	2.21	256:135 (~1.90:1)	Digital cinema	DCI Digital Cinema System Specification 1.4.2 (2022)
QWXGA	2048	1152	2,359,296	2.36	16:9	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
UW-FHD	2560	1080	2,764,800	2.76	64:27 (~21:9)	Ultrawide display	CTA-861 video format list
1440p QHD	2560	1440	3,686,400	3.69	16:9	Monitor and video	YouTube recommended upload resolutions
WQXGA	2560	1600	4,096,000	4.10	16:10	Computer display	VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13
UWQHD	3440	1440	4,953,600	4.95	43:18 (~21:9)	Ultrawide monitor	No standard format (vendor/marketing size)
4K UHD	3840	2160	8,294,400	8.29	16:9	TV and video	ITU-R BT.2020-2 (2015)
DCI 4K	4096	2160	8,847,360	8.85	256:135 (~1.90:1)	Digital cinema	DCI Digital Cinema System Specification 1.4.2 (2022)
DQHD (32:9)	5120	1440	7,372,800	7.37	32:9	Super-ultrawide monitor	No standard format (vendor/marketing size)
5K2K	5120	2160	11,059,200	11.06	64:27 (~21:9)	Ultrawide display	CTA-861 video format list
5K	5120	2880	14,745,600	14.75	16:9	Monitor	No standard format (vendor/marketing size)
8K UHD	7680	4320	33,177,600	33.18	16:9	TV and video	ITU-R BT.2020-2 (2015)

Pixel counts, megapixels and exact ratios are computed from width × height. Names such as XGA or WUXGA are industry shorthand: the documents define pixel dimensions, not nicknames. "~" marks the nominal ratio a format is sold under when the exact ratio differs.

Sources: ITU-R BT.1543-1 (2015); ITU-R BT.709-6 (2015); ITU-R BT.2020-2 (2015); DCI Digital Cinema System Specification 1.4.2 (2022); VESA DMT 1.0 rev. 13; CTA-861 video format list; YouTube recommended upload resolutions. VESA DMT and CTA-861 are member documents; their format lists were checked against the DMT and CTA-861 mode tables in the Linux kernel EDID code (drm_edid.c). Rows marked "No standard format" are vendor sizes that appear in neither list.

Quick Facts

Scan type: Progressive (p)
Aspect ratio: 16:9, square pixels
Common frame rates: 24, 25, 30, 50, 60 fps
Pixels vs 1080p: 0.44× (each axis ⅔)
Pixels vs 4K UHD: 1/9 (each axis ⅓)
Color primaries (SDR): BT.709
Uncompressed 8-bit RGB, 30 fps: ~0.664 Gbps
PPI constant (diagonal px): 1,468.6 ÷ inches
Not the same as: 1366 × 768 (laptop “HD”)
EU display label: “HD ready” (≥ 720 lines)

Standards and Current References

ITU-R BT.1543-1 defines the 1280 × 720, 16:9 progressively captured image format for production and programme exchange.
ITU-R BT.709-6 defines the BT.709 color primaries used by SDR HD video, including 720p.
YouTube resolution guidance lists 720p as 1280 × 720 for its 16:9 player.
YouTube upload guidance is the source for the SDR/HDR bitrates above; destination requirements can change.

The calculator runs locally in your browser; nothing you enter is uploaded or stored.

Cite this page

APA

Top10k Tools. (2026, October 9). Common Screen and Video Resolutions (720p Resolution Reference). https://top10k.com/tool/720p-resolution-reference

MLA

"Common Screen and Video Resolutions (720p Resolution Reference)." Top10k Tools, 9 Oct. 2026, top10k.com/tool/720p-resolution-reference.

Quick answer

720p resolution size is 1280 x 720 pixels: 1,280 wide by 720 tall, 921,600 pixels in total (about 0.92 megapixels), at a 16:9 aspect ratio. It is the base HD format; 1080p Full HD has 2.25 times as many pixels.

Examples

720p screen size	Pixel density
5-inch phone	293.7 PPI
10-inch tablet	146.9 PPI
24-inch TV	61.2 PPI
32-inch TV	45.9 PPI

Enter your own screen size for its exact 720p pixel density (PPI) and viewing distance.

Summary

720p is the 1280 x 720 progressive HD format — exactly 921,600 pixels per frame — at a 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio, defined in ITU-R BT.1543 and SMPTE ST 296. It was one of the two HDTV broadcast formats of the ATSC era and remains a practical streaming target where bandwidth is limited. This page calculates PPI, 20/20 viewing distance and bitrate-based file size for any dimensions, lists official YouTube upload bitrates, and compares 720p with 30 other resolutions in a sourced table you can search, sort and download.

How it works

Read the spec card to get the key 720p numbers at a glance.
Enter a screen diagonal to get the pixel density (PPI) and the distance at which one pixel subtends one arcminute (20/20 acuity).
Enter a bitrate and duration for a decimal-GB file size, or change the width and height to analyze any other resolution against 720p.
Search or sort the resolution table to compare 720p with 30 display, video and cinema formats, or download it as CSV.

Use cases

Choosing an export resolution for YouTube or streaming platforms.
Verifying PPI for a monitor or TV before purchase.
Comparing file sizes and storage needs across HD resolutions.
Setting FFmpeg or Handbrake encoding parameters for 720p output.
Understanding why 720p is preferred for mobile streaming and low-bandwidth connections.
Teaching or explaining HD resolution concepts to students or clients.

Frequently Asked Questions

Last updated: 2026-10-09 · Reviewed by Nham Vu