Social Rocket
Wrong image formats waste unnecessary time in everyday social media work and can cause important image elements to be cropped. For 2026 the basic rule stays simple: 1080 pixels wide is a good starting point on many platforms, 4:5 works well in the feed and 9:16 is the standard for full-screen formats such as Stories and Reels.
The following figures are based on Hootsuite's current 2026 format guide and, where possible, were cross-checked against current platform information.
The most important social media image sizes at a glance
- Instagram feed portrait: 1080 × 1350 px
- Instagram feed square: 1080 × 1080 px
- Instagram Stories & Reels: 1080 × 1920 px
- Facebook feed portrait: approx. 1080 × 1350 px
- Facebook Stories & Reels: 1080 × 1920 px
- LinkedIn feed landscape: 1200 × 627 px
- LinkedIn feed square: 1200 × 1200 px
- X feed landscape: 1280 × 720 px
- X feed portrait: 720 × 1280 px
- TikTok vertical: 1080 × 1920 px
- YouTube thumbnail: 1280 × 720 px
For designs with text or logos, the raw pixel size is not the only thing that matters. Mobile interfaces place buttons, profile names and captions over the image. Important content therefore belongs in a safe central zone.
Instagram: 4:5 in the feed, 9:16 for Stories and Reels
For Instagram, 1080 × 1350 pixels at a 4:5 ratio remains the most sensible portrait format for classic feed posts. Square posts still work at 1080 × 1080 pixels.
Stories and Reels should be created at 1080 × 1920 pixels (9:16). Hootsuite recommends not placing important elements all the way to the top and bottom edges, because interface controls can cover parts of the image.
If you create creatives for Instagram regularly, you can also use our overview of Instagram Marketing and Google's new AI image editing tool Pics as complementary workflows.
Facebook: feed formats similar to Instagram
For Facebook, many Instagram creatives can be reused. Portrait feed graphics work at roughly 1080 × 1350 pixels, square posts at 1080 × 1080 pixels, and Stories or Reels at 1080 × 1920 pixels.
For the Facebook cover, the format remains noticeably wider. Hootsuite gives 851 × 315 pixels as the base size. Since cover images are cropped differently depending on the device, logos or text should not sit directly at the edges.
LinkedIn: distinguish between feed and company page
For LinkedIn posts, 1200 × 627 pixels in landscape and 1200 × 1200 pixels for square feed graphics are safe sizes.
Company pages follow their own specifications. LinkedIn currently recommends 400 × 400 pixels for the page logo and 4200 × 700 pixels for the company page cover. This is considerably larger than older guides often state.
For B2B teams, it is therefore worth distinguishing between post creatives and permanent page branding, rather than using the same templates everywhere.
X: 16:9 and square remain the safest formats
For X, Hootsuite gives 1280 × 720 pixels as a sensible landscape size and 720 × 1280 pixels for vertical images. Square images can be created at 1080 × 1080 pixels.
The header image is recommended at 1500 × 500 pixels. X crops headers differently depending on screen and browser, so key elements should sit well within the visible area.
TikTok: 9:16 remains the standard
TikTok is clearly designed for vertical display. For images, Stories and most video creatives, 1080 × 1920 pixels at a 9:16 ratio remains the safe standard.
For ads, additional specifications apply depending on the format. For organic social creatives, 9:16 is still the most sensible master file, because it makes optimal use of the available smartphone screen.
The platform's reach remains relevant for European campaigns: TikTok now reports 189 million monthly users in the EU.
One master format is not enough for everything
A common mistake is to automatically distribute a single 1080 × 1080 motif across all platforms. This works technically, but often wastes space on mobile feeds.
A more practical approach is a small set of three master layouts:
- 1080 × 1350 px (4:5) for feed posts
- 1080 × 1920 px (9:16) for Stories, Reels and TikTok
- 1200 × 628/627 px for link and B2B landscape formats
This allows most social media assets to be adapted without a complete redesign.