YouTube Aspect Ratio Checker
YouTube's standard aspect ratio is 16:9 (1920×1080 for 1080p, 3840×2160 for 4K). Shorts are vertical 9:16 at 1080×1920. Enter your size to get the matching dimension, the closest standard ratio, or how much black bar or crop a 16:9 or 9:16 frame needs.
Use the YouTube Aspect Ratio Checker
YouTube Format Dimensions
| Format | Ratio | Width (px) | Height (px) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard Video (1080p) | 16:9 | 1,920 | 1,080 | Standard player ratio. Upload at a YouTube resolution (see the table below). |
| Standard Video (4K) | 16:9 | 3,840 | 2,160 | 2160p. Same 16:9 ratio, higher resolution for large screens. |
| YouTube Shorts | 9:16 | 1,080 | 1,920 | Vertical, up to 3 minutes. Fills the Shorts player. |
| Shorts (Square) | 1:1 | 1,080 | 1,080 | Accepted for Shorts; the vertical player shows bars above and below. |
| Video Thumbnail | 16:9 | 3,840 | 2,160 | YouTube Help: 3840×2160, min width 640 (1280×720 still works). JPG/PNG, 2 MB mobile, 50 MB desktop. |
| Shorts Thumbnail | 9:16 | 2,160 | 3,840 | Min height 640 px. Set in YouTube Studio on a computer. |
| Channel Banner (upload) | 16:9 | 2,048 | 1,152 | Minimum upload size, 6 MB or smaller. 2560×1440 is also common. |
| Banner Safe Area | ≈3.65:1 | 1,235 | 338 | Center area visible on every device (1546×423 on a 2560×1440 canvas). |
| Profile Picture | 1:1 | 800 | 800 | Shown as a circle at 98×98. JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG (not animated), up to 15 MB. |
Click any row to load it into the dimension calculator below.
Dimension Calculator
Enter width to calculate height.
Enter height to calculate width.
Calculated Output Dimensions
Custom Dimension Checker
Enter any two pixel dimensions to find the closest YouTube standard ratio.
YouTube Recommended Resolutions
16:9 sizes from YouTube Help; the vertical column is the same size turned 90° for Shorts and other 9:16 uploads.
| Quality | 16:9 landscape | 9:16 vertical | Megapixels |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4320p (8K) | 7680 × 4320 | 4320 × 7680 | 33.18 |
| 2160p (4K) | 3840 × 2160 | 2160 × 3840 | 8.29 |
| 1440p (2K) | 2560 × 1440 | 1440 × 2560 | 3.69 |
| 1080p (HD) | 1920 × 1080 | 1080 × 1920 | 2.07 |
| 720p (HD) | 1280 × 720 | 720 × 1280 | 0.92 |
| 480p (SD) | 854 × 480 | 480 × 854 | 0.41 |
| 360p (SD) | 640 × 360 | 360 × 640 | 0.23 |
| 240p (SD) | 426 × 240 | 240 × 426 | 0.10 |
YouTube removed playback for sizes between 4K and 8K (such as 5K) in 2022. The player resizes to the video, so upload at the native ratio instead of adding black bars.
Letterbox, Pillarbox & Crop Calculator
Fit a source size into a 16:9, 9:16 or custom frame and see the bars or the crop.
Visual Ratio Comparison
Proportional previews — not to absolute scale.
Upload a banner of at least 2048×1152 px (16:9, 6 MB or less). Only the center 1235×338 px shows on every device, so keep logos and text inside it. If you design on a 2560×1440 canvas, the same safe area is 1546×423 px.
Summary
YouTube's standard aspect ratio on a computer is 16:9, uploaded at one of the recommended resolutions from 426×240 (240p) to 7680×4320 (8K). Shorts are square or vertical, ideally 9:16 at 1080×1920. The player resizes itself to the video and the screen, so YouTube advises against adding black bars yourself; a 4:3 or vertical video simply shows padding on wide screens. This page lists the current sizes from YouTube Help for videos, Shorts, thumbnails (now up to 3840×2160), banners (2048×1152 minimum, 1235×338 safe area) and profile pictures, and calculates matching dimensions, the nearest standard ratio, and the bars or crop needed to fit one ratio into another.
How it works
- Find your format in the table (16:9 for standard video, 9:16 for Shorts) or pick it in the dimension calculator.
- Enter a width or height to get the other dimension at that ratio; enter both in the checker to find the closest YouTube ratio.
- In the fit calculator, enter your source size and a target frame. "Fit" scales the whole picture inside and reports the bars (pillarbox for narrower sources, letterbox for wider). "Fill" scales to cover the frame and reports how much is cropped.
- Scale factor: fit = min(frame W ÷ source W, frame H ÷ source H); fill = max of the two. For example 1440×1080 (4:3) fitted to 1920×1080 leaves 240 px bars left and right.
Use cases
- Export a landscape video at 1920×1080 or 3840×2160 so it fills the player.
- Reframe a 16:9 clip as a 1080×1920 Short and see how much of the picture a center crop keeps.
- Check whether 2560×1080 (21:9) footage will be letterboxed and by how much.
- Size a thumbnail, a Shorts thumbnail or a channel banner to the current YouTube Help specs.
- Find the nearest standard ratio for an odd export such as 1280×536.