Facebook Image Sizes: Your Handy Guide

Having a strong presence on Facebook is no longer a luxury, but rather essential in your marketing and branding efforts. Of course, an important part of your Facebook strategy is having the right images. If you try to upload the wrong Facebook image your Facebook page or your Facebook ads, they could be cropped in bad positions or rejected altogether, which means you can’t communicate effectively with your audience to reach your goals. But with this Facebook image sizes guide and cheat sheet, you’ll have the perfect quick reference to make sure your images are compliant with the current guidelines.

(P.S. - Scroll down to the end if you want to skip the reading and check out the cheat sheet)

Desktop News Feed Image Sizes

This image, demonstrated above, is what shows up in an ad in the main column of Facebook’s layout when browsing on a computer or laptop, called the news feed. It’s designed to look virtually the same as a normal post within Facebook, and it’s a great placement to take advantage of. The recommended size for this image is:

Width: 1,200 pixels

Height: 628 pixels

Right Column Ad Image

The right column Facebook image sizes is perhaps the most underrated placement. It usually offers a lower cost to your brand, although it is smaller, lacking some of the features of news feed ads, and not as prominent as the news feed placements. To ensure your right column images display correctly for your company’s ads, adhere to the following sizes:

Width: 1,200 pixels

Height: 628 pixels

Facebook Image Sizes : Mobile

Considering that Facebook has over 1.5 billion (yes billion with a b) monthly active users on mobile, it’s worth dedicating some decent ad spend targeting users on the go. The mobile version of facebook is essentially a big single-column feed, so only news feed ads are available. Here’s what to do for your mobile Facebook ad size images:

Width: 1,200 pixels

Height: 628 pixels

Wait...they’re all the same size?

You may have noticed that for all three placements (Desktop News Feed, Right Column, and Mobile News Feed) the same image sizes were recommended. That’s because, for most FB ads, a size of 1,200 by 628 pixels is the safest bet to ensure that your ad displays correctly for all placements on all devices.

While Facebook will automatically adjust the size of your images to fit the screen size of the user, you still want to stay within the recommended size to avoid a stretched out (pixelated) or cropped image. However, there is one very notable exception you should know about that has a different recommended size:

Facebook Image Sizes : Carousel

Carousel is a special format that allows you to display a slideshow of 3 to 5 images or videos, including individual headlines, links, and calls to action for each one. The carousel format can be used for ads on desktop, tablet, and mobile devices. Size your carousel images like so:

Width: 600px

Height: 600px

Additional Rules

In addition the size requirements for the Facebook ad size, there a variety of extra rules you need to comply with to make sure your posts and ads are displayed without issue:

• Images must be relevant to the product advertised
• Cannot exploit sensitive issues, such as sexuality or politics
• May not focus on or imply sexual undertones or nudity
• Must not indicate functionality that does not exist, such as a “play” button that does not play a video
• No QR codes
• Cannot use Facebook’s brand images such as icons without prior permission
• Images must not include more than 20% text, including logos or company slogans. (However, book covers or text on the actual product do not count as “text” for this rule, so you may use them in addition to the 20% of text).

Branded Facebook Page

Unlike with ads, there are different formats and rules applied to your Facebook page.

Cover Image

Your brand’s Facebook page (outlined in red above) is allowed to have a large cover image that prominently displays when someone visits your page. An important aspect of the cover image is that it will actually be cropped on mobile, cutting off portions of the right and left side. The final width of your mobile cover image will be 563 pixels, so make sure anything vital to your brand is situated in the middle 563 pixels of your image.

Therefore aim for the following cover photo size:

Width: 828 pixels

Height: 315 pixels

Profile Image

Your profile image (outlined in red above) is crucial to a great Facebook marketing campaign. Understand that it will display as 160 pixels x 160 pixels on desktop and 140 x 140 pixels on mobile. To be safe and cover both situations, upload a profile image with the following dimensions:

Width: 180 pixels

Height: 180 pixels

The Cheat Sheet

When in doubt, here’s a convenient cheat sheet you can reference whenever you’re about to upload your image to Facebook. Download, print it out, and keep it handy:

Branding yourself or your company on Facebook takes a lot of work and strategic thinking. But luckily, you don’t have to do it alone. Take advantage of the cheat sheet and advice above to get the most out of your Facebook images. Pretty soon, you’ll see your Facebook marketing and advertising results skyrocket.

Need Help Optimising Your Facebook Ads?

Need professional help with your Facebook ad management? We work closely with our clients to determine and test the best Facebook ad copy for your unique business. Remember, effective Facebook ads that work will cost you less per conversion, so it pays to get it right. Contact us here to see how we can help.