Test your thumbnail before you publish
The thumbnail and the title are most of what people see before they decide to click. A design that looks great full screen in your editor can turn into a blur in a crowded home feed or in the narrow Up next column. This YouTube thumbnail preview puts your image and title into mockups of the places it will appear, so you can test it at real sizes, in light and dark mode, on desktop and mobile.
- Home feed: the large grid on desktop, where your thumbnail sits between other videos.
- Search: the results list with the thumbnail on the left and the title next to it.
- Mobile: the full-width phone feed, where most viewers see it.
- Up next: the small thumbnails beside a playing video, the hardest test for readability.
Size and format
YouTube recommends thumbnails of 1280 × 720 pixels (often written 1280x720) in the 16:9 aspect ratio, at least 640 pixels wide, as JPG, PNG or GIF and under 2 MB. The checks show whether your file meets these numbers. If it does not, the download button makes a 1280 × 720 JPG from the center of your image and keeps it under 2 MB.
The bottom right corner holds the duration badge, so keep faces and important words away from it. Titles are cut after two lines in most views, so put the words that matter first.
What makes a thumbnail readable
- Few, big words: three to five words are usually the most you can read at the small sizes. Let the title carry the rest.
- One clear subject: a face or an object that fills a good part of the frame reads better than a busy scene.
- Contrast: check both light and dark mode. A thumbnail with a white or black edge can melt into the page.
- Compare: add a second version as B and look at both at the smallest size. The one you understand faster usually wins.
How to use the YouTube Thumbnail Preview
- 1Drop your thumbnail image on the box, or choose it from your device.
- 2Type the video title, channel name, views and duration, and add your channel avatar if you like.
- 3Switch between Home, Search, Mobile and Up next, and between light and dark mode. Add a second thumbnail to compare.
- 4Read the checks and download the thumbnail as a 1280 × 720 JPG if it needs resizing.
Frequently asked questions
What size should a YouTube thumbnail be?
YouTube recommends 1280 × 720 pixels, a 16:9 aspect ratio, at least 640 pixels wide and a file under 2 MB in JPG, PNG or GIF. The download button here gives you exactly 1280 × 720 as a JPG under 2 MB, cropped to fill the frame.
Is my thumbnail uploaded anywhere?
No. The images are opened and resized by your browser on your own device. Nothing is sent to a server or to YouTube, so you can test thumbnails for videos that are not public yet.
Is this exactly how YouTube looks?
It is a close mockup, not a screenshot. The layout, the two-line title, the duration badge and the light and dark colors follow the real pages, but YouTube changes its design from time to time and sizes vary with the screen. Use it to judge readability and contrast, not exact pixels.
How do I compare two thumbnails?
Add a second image with "Add thumbnail B". Both appear next to each other in every view and get their own checks. Look at them in the Up next view and on mobile, where thumbnails are smallest, and pick the one you can read at a glance.
Why does my thumbnail look cut off?
Thumbnails are shown in a 16:9 frame. An image with another shape, like a square or a phone screenshot, is cropped to fill that frame, so the edges disappear. Design in 1280 × 720 from the start, or use the download here, which crops to 16:9 from the center.