The banner, a profile’s first impression
Before reading a single post, people often land on a profile. The banner is then the largest image on the page: at a glance it says who you are and what world you work in. It is also the trickiest format, because it is very wide and part of it is hidden by the profile picture or cropped depending on the screen.
The sizes to use
| Network | Banner | Size | Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Personal profile | 1584 × 396 | 4:1 | |
| Company page | 1128 × 191 | about 6:1 | |
| Cover photo | 820 × 312 | about 2.6:1 | |
| X | Header | 1500 × 500 | 3:1 |
| YouTube | Channel banner | 2560 × 1440 | 16:9 |
All these sizes are one click away in the pixisgood generators: in the export panel, open “Format”, then the “Exact size for a network” menu. The composition redraws itself at the right proportions straight away.
Networks change their formats regularly: these values match the recommendations in force when this guide was last updated.
The hidden areas, network by network
- LinkedIn: the profile picture covers the lower left, and on phones the banner is cropped even more. Put any sentence in the right half, towards the top.
- Facebook: the image shows at 820 × 312 on computers, but in a taller shape on phones, which cuts the sides. Keep the essentials in the central two thirds.
- X: the profile picture overlaps the lower left, and the top and bottom may be slightly cropped depending on the screen. Stay away from the edges.
- YouTube: the same image serves TVs, computers and phones. Only a central band of about 1546 × 423 px is visible everywhere: that is where the name and any text belong. The rest is scenery that may be cut off.
What to put in a banner?
A banner is not a poster: it accompanies the profile. Three approaches work well:
- A mood: a pattern, a texture or a gradient in your colors, with no text. It is the safest option, since nothing important can be hidden.
- A positioning line: five to eight words saying what you do, in the visible area, over a calm background.
- A highlight: an offer, an event, a release, to be changed once it is over.
In every case, keep the same colors as your posts: the banner becomes the business card of your visual world.
Graphic backgrounds for very wide formats
Wide formats flatter anything that repeats: a typographic pattern, a grid of shapes or a texture running across the whole width. A pattern also keeps its strength when cropped, which is precious on banners nobody ever sees in full.
09Try the free toolMotifgoodFragments, grids and offset inksOpen → 11Try the free toolShapegood14 fully vector generative patternsOpen →A flowing gradient or a textured background brings a softer mood instead, ideal for setting a sentence on top.
08Try the free toolGradgoodFluid gradients and iridescent 3D reliefsOpen →A graphic designer’s tips
- Export at ×2: on these formats shown small, a PNG at double size (1640 × 624 for Facebook, for example) stays sharp on high-resolution screens.
- Test with your real profile picture: post it, look at it on a computer and on a phone, then adjust where the text sits.
- Think of the whole: the banner and the profile picture are seen side by side. If the photo is busy, the banner should be calm, and the other way round.
- Keep it up to date: a banner announcing a past event makes a profile look abandoned.
For the sizes of every other image (posts, stories, thumbnails), see Social media image sizes.
10Try the free toolBackgoodGrainy gradients, marble, terrain and still lifesOpen →