Preventing Non-Displayed Images in YouTubes Shorts

Video thumbnails are important since they encourage people to click and watch the video. But what if your set YouTube Shorts thumbnail is not showing? YouTube will use a random part of the video as the thumbnail. It may be an unflattering or uninteresting shot. Then, your Shorts video is doomed.

That said, it is a problem you want to solve. Here are 7 FAQs about YouTube Shorts thumbnails. They may help you with fixing this issue.

Q1. Can I Customize YouTube Shorts Thumbnails?

Yes, you can. YouTube did allow short-form video creators to upload custom thumbnails for their Shorts. However, they aren’t that optimized. For instance, some people may not see them on the Shorts shelf. Also, if you share a link to the video somewhere else, the old video thumbnail may show instead of the new one.

Adding a custom thumbnail for YouTube Shorts is the same as adding one for long-form videos on the platform. Follow these steps:

• Open the YouTube mobile app. Click the “Plus” icon at the bottom center > “Create Short.” Upload, edit, and post your video.

• Get to your desktop computer or laptop. Open your channel’s YouTube Studio.

• On the left navigation menu, click “Content.”

• Click the “pencil” icon next to the Shorts you just uploaded. This video should be at the top of the list.
• Navigate to the Thumbnail section. Click “Create Thumbnail.”

Q2. Why Are YouTube Shorts Thumbnails Not Showing?

It’s not you who’s the only one with Shorts thumbnails not showing. Many short-form content creators on the platform are also facing this issue. A YouTuber took to Reddit to complain about how he uploaded custom thumbnails for all his videos. The thumbnails are correct in the editor. However, YouTube still displays a random frame as the thumbnail on the Shorts shelf.

“They ALL have randomly selected different parts of each video I have uploaded & somehow generated a new/unknown thumbnail that was neither what I uploaded as the custom option nor 1 of the 3 that YouTube auto populated.”

YouTuber on Reddit

The reason behind this is the difference in the thumbnail size. Regular YouTube video thumbnails are in the ratio of 16:9. Meanwhile, Shorts uses a ratio of 9:16. The thing is that YouTube does not yet allow you to upload 9:16 thumbnails. Thus, the thumbnail for Shorts may show correctly on the video section but not on the Shorts shelf.

Q3. How to Fix YouTube Shorts Thumbnail Problem?

Unfortunately, there is no reliable fix to this problem yet. YouTubers have tried different things in hopes that YouTube will display the correct thumbnail for their Shorts.

Some YouTubers have tried using different images. Others have experimented with changing the aspect ratio of the thumbnail or using Adobe editor for ratios. Clearing histories and cache, using different browsers, resizing, and changing the images’ resolution have also been done. Sadly, these are all failed attempts.

Q4. How To Boost Views When I Have no Control Over YouTube Shorts Thumbnails?

Attracting viewers on Shorts is the same as attracting viewers on the main YouTube. You use interesting thumbnails and video titles. Since thumbnails are out of the options, selecting great video titles has become even more important.

Here are some pointers. Your title should be at most 40 characters. Also, it should be concise and irresistible. And forget about SEO since no one is searching for YouTube Shorts anyway. People consume what they see in their feeds. So instead, the title should be “snappy.” It should intrigue, entertain, or enlighten the viewers. That will net you some views for your Shorts content.

Q5. How To Get More Views on YouTube Shorts?

Forgoing the intro is the way to go. An intro will just prolong the video when people are in Shorts to find bite-sized videos. So jump right into the video content. You can also start the video with a still frame instead. Using hashtags, captions, and text effects are also recommended. And interacting with your audience through comments and pinned comments will keep them coming back to your Shorts channel.

Of course, ensuring that the video quality is high is key to getting more views. For that, you need a good video editor. You can try Wondershare Filmora , a powerful and easy-to-use video editor.

Free Download For Win 7 or later(64-bit)

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

The best thing is that you don’t need to transfer the video from your phone to your computer and back. Wondershare Filmora is available on mobile. And it’s one of the best tools for enhancing a short-form video.

Short-form video watchers love filters, transitions, and effects. And Filmora gives you access to all of that. It provides you with fun and amazing filters, effects, transitions, and stamps that can add a wow factor to your short-form video.

Q6. Do YouTube Shorts Make Money?

Making money from YouTube Shorts was challenging. The platform pays content creators who are doing well through the Creator Fund. However, as Shorts grew, the payout became smaller.

Luckily, that’s going to change. Starting this year, Shorts will be a part of the YouTube Partner Program. This means that you can make money from the ads that people watch on Shorts. According to YouTube, creators will keep 45% of the revenue. It will be distributed based on your share of total Shorts views.

YouTube also adjusted the requirements to qualify for the YPP. They made it easier for Shorts content creators to get into the program.

Q7. How Do You Make YouTube Shorts Play Normal?

You can watch Shorts like normal YouTube videos where you can rewind when you want to. Follow these steps.

On a Desktop Computer

• Open a Shorts video on YouTube.

• Pause the video.

• Click “Library” on the left panel.

• Select the Shorts you just watched. It should be on the top and first on the list.

On a Mobile Phone

• Open the YouTube app. Watch a Shorts video.

• Like the Shorts video.

• Tap “Library”

• Scroll down to find “Liked Videos.” Click on it.

• Select the Shorts video you just watched. It should be at the top of the list.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, custom thumbnails not showing on Shorts does not have a fix yet. So to attract viewers, you must leverage the things in your control. You must title your videos in a way that will make users click the video. Also, adding effects and filters on the video using an editor like Wondershare Filmora can help.

Users can subscribe to Shorts channels. And if they see that your videos are well-edited and high-quality, they’ll be more likely to do so. Once they are subscribed, they will see and watch your videos more often.

Free Download For macOS 10.14 or later

The best thing is that you don’t need to transfer the video from your phone to your computer and back. Wondershare Filmora is available on mobile. And it’s one of the best tools for enhancing a short-form video.

Short-form video watchers love filters, transitions, and effects. And Filmora gives you access to all of that. It provides you with fun and amazing filters, effects, transitions, and stamps that can add a wow factor to your short-form video.

Q6. Do YouTube Shorts Make Money?

Making money from YouTube Shorts was challenging. The platform pays content creators who are doing well through the Creator Fund. However, as Shorts grew, the payout became smaller.

Luckily, that’s going to change. Starting this year, Shorts will be a part of the YouTube Partner Program. This means that you can make money from the ads that people watch on Shorts. According to YouTube, creators will keep 45% of the revenue. It will be distributed based on your share of total Shorts views.

YouTube also adjusted the requirements to qualify for the YPP. They made it easier for Shorts content creators to get into the program.

Q7. How Do You Make YouTube Shorts Play Normal?

You can watch Shorts like normal YouTube videos where you can rewind when you want to. Follow these steps.

On a Desktop Computer

• Open a Shorts video on YouTube.

• Pause the video.

• Click “Library” on the left panel.

• Select the Shorts you just watched. It should be on the top and first on the list.

On a Mobile Phone

• Open the YouTube app. Watch a Shorts video.

• Like the Shorts video.

• Tap “Library”

• Scroll down to find “Liked Videos.” Click on it.

• Select the Shorts video you just watched. It should be at the top of the list.

Conclusion

Unfortunately, custom thumbnails not showing on Shorts does not have a fix yet. So to attract viewers, you must leverage the things in your control. You must title your videos in a way that will make users click the video. Also, adding effects and filters on the video using an editor like Wondershare Filmora can help.

Users can subscribe to Shorts channels. And if they see that your videos are well-edited and high-quality, they’ll be more likely to do so. Once they are subscribed, they will see and watch your videos more often.

The Ultimate Thumbnails Guide: What Size Yields Success?

Best YouTube Thumbnail Size You Should Know[The Ultimate Guide]

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

Around 300 hours of video is uploaded to Youtube in every single minute. Then content creators need to be more innovative and creative than others in the market. A thumbnail is worth a thousand words that show its real meaning in the case where every month YouTube records a whopping 2 billion active users. To create an impressive and tempting thumbnail, you should set a perfect youtube thumbnail size first.

So you may be wondering what the best youtube thumbnail size is, and how to create a attractive thumbnail for your YouTube videos? Don’t worry I’ll explain everything here. You will learn:

• Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of YouTube Thumbnail Size
• Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail to Your Video
• Part 3: Q&A– About Creating YouTube Thumbnails

Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of Youtube Thumbnail Size

Every content creator needs to select the right youtube thumbnail size for any given video.

1. What’s the Best YouTube Thumbnail Size(Dimensions)?

According to the YouTube guidelines , the best-suited youtube thumbnail size is 1280x720 pixels with a minimum pixel width of 640 pixels. Also, the custom thumbnail image must be as large as possible as it will be utilized as a preview image in the embedded player.

2. What Are the Compatible Formats for YouTube Thumbnail Image?

The recommended thumbnail image formats are .JPG, .PNG, .GIF, .BMP

3. What’s the Maximum YouTube Thumbnail Size?

The maximum YouTube thumbnail size must be below 2MB. Keeping the limit in mind design your thumbnail image as high-resolution as possible. This will ensure your custom thumbnail doesn’t get rejected by YouTube.

4. What’s the Recommended Aspect Ratio of YouTube Thumbnail?

Usually, the 16:9 ratio is deemed an ideal choice for any YouTube video aiming high view volume. As it is most widely used in YouTube players and previews.

Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail

With a verified account, you can upload custom thumbnail on new videos as well as change the thumbnail of uploaded videos.

1. For New Video

YouTube makes it very simple and easy for any content creator to publish custom YouTube thumbnail on their video while uploading the video onto the platform. Here’s the method to do so:

• Upload your desired video to YouTube in the Upload section.

• When your upload to the YouTube is completed a section will appear at the down portion of the browser screen showing Video Thumbnails. Here YouTube automatically creates some thumbnail images from your uploaded video and shows them here. These are the screenshots from your video, and you can select any one of them to be your thumbnail.

• You will be able to see a button right next to the image – Custom thumbnail. Click on the button and you can upload a set of images of your choice as the thumbnail of your video.
• Once done you can see the custom image just uploaded as the thumbnail of your video.

• If you want to update the image or change it with another one you can just click on the same image in the video thumbnail section and swap it with any other image.

2. For Already Uploaded Video

To change the thumbnail on an already uploaded video you need to follow these steps:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio associated with your YouTube channel.
• From the menu go to Videos and then select the video you want to upload a custom thumbnail to via its title or thumbnail

• Now in the thumbnail section if you already haven’t uploaded a custom thumbnail, click Custom thumbnail.
• Select your intended thumbnail file and click Save.

Part 3: Q&A– About YouTube Thumbnail Images

You may want to know:

• Question 1: How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?
• Question 2: How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

1. How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?

YouTube will not allow you to upload a custom thumbnail image if it is bigger than the 2MB limit. So, you need to make sure the file size is below the limit to be able to successfully upload a custom thumbnail. To reduce the image size you can follow the steps below:

• 1. Open Microsoft Paint and open the thumbnail image that is above 2MB size
• 2. Now go to the File menu and click Save as then select JPEG picture
• 3. Select the location you want the file to be saved to
• 4. The thumbnail picture will be reduced to Kilobytes only while maintaining the image quality

2. How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

Utilizing online platforms and software tools to make your thumbnail image informative and attractive can potentially increase your views and traffic. You can use any advanced tools like Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio, or Canva to create an aspiring and luring image that will get more views on YouTube just because of the thumbnail image. Here we will show you how to do it with Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio and Canva:

1. Try Wondershare Filmora>>

Wondershare Filmora is an outstanding tool if you want to make a perfect thumbnail image. Consider and optimize your thumbnail for mobile devices to offer the best experience to your users on every possible device. Make it stand out as the thumbnail can be the very first thing that might attract a viewer.

Let’s see how you can create your thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora:

2. Try Wondershare PixStudio>>

Wondershare PixStudio provides you massive pre-designed templates which help you to create attractive YouTube Thumbnail. Let’s see the video below and see how you can design your YouTube Thumbnail easily.

3. Try Canva>>

With Canva you can make a distinct and stand-out YouTube thumbnail image. Canva hosts a number of readymade designs that you can use to design and customize it for your use.

Note:

To download the image without the watermark you’ll need to sign-up for a premium account on the Canva.

To sum up

YouTube thumbnail plays an important part for the audience’s first impression on your video. And it is of essential essence as it can attract more viewers to your content. So you should get the right youtube thumbnail size before you start customing your thumbnail. We’ve gone through all the detailed requirements of youtube thumbnail size and how to make the best thumbnail by using the best software solutions. Please leave your comments below if any suggestions. We’d love to hear them!

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

Around 300 hours of video is uploaded to Youtube in every single minute. Then content creators need to be more innovative and creative than others in the market. A thumbnail is worth a thousand words that show its real meaning in the case where every month YouTube records a whopping 2 billion active users. To create an impressive and tempting thumbnail, you should set a perfect youtube thumbnail size first.

So you may be wondering what the best youtube thumbnail size is, and how to create a attractive thumbnail for your YouTube videos? Don’t worry I’ll explain everything here. You will learn:

• Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of YouTube Thumbnail Size
• Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail to Your Video
• Part 3: Q&A– About Creating YouTube Thumbnails

Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of Youtube Thumbnail Size

Every content creator needs to select the right youtube thumbnail size for any given video.

1. What’s the Best YouTube Thumbnail Size(Dimensions)?

According to the YouTube guidelines , the best-suited youtube thumbnail size is 1280x720 pixels with a minimum pixel width of 640 pixels. Also, the custom thumbnail image must be as large as possible as it will be utilized as a preview image in the embedded player.

2. What Are the Compatible Formats for YouTube Thumbnail Image?

The recommended thumbnail image formats are .JPG, .PNG, .GIF, .BMP

3. What’s the Maximum YouTube Thumbnail Size?

The maximum YouTube thumbnail size must be below 2MB. Keeping the limit in mind design your thumbnail image as high-resolution as possible. This will ensure your custom thumbnail doesn’t get rejected by YouTube.

4. What’s the Recommended Aspect Ratio of YouTube Thumbnail?

Usually, the 16:9 ratio is deemed an ideal choice for any YouTube video aiming high view volume. As it is most widely used in YouTube players and previews.

Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail

With a verified account, you can upload custom thumbnail on new videos as well as change the thumbnail of uploaded videos.

1. For New Video

YouTube makes it very simple and easy for any content creator to publish custom YouTube thumbnail on their video while uploading the video onto the platform. Here’s the method to do so:

• Upload your desired video to YouTube in the Upload section.

• When your upload to the YouTube is completed a section will appear at the down portion of the browser screen showing Video Thumbnails. Here YouTube automatically creates some thumbnail images from your uploaded video and shows them here. These are the screenshots from your video, and you can select any one of them to be your thumbnail.

• You will be able to see a button right next to the image – Custom thumbnail. Click on the button and you can upload a set of images of your choice as the thumbnail of your video.
• Once done you can see the custom image just uploaded as the thumbnail of your video.

• If you want to update the image or change it with another one you can just click on the same image in the video thumbnail section and swap it with any other image.

2. For Already Uploaded Video

To change the thumbnail on an already uploaded video you need to follow these steps:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio associated with your YouTube channel.
• From the menu go to Videos and then select the video you want to upload a custom thumbnail to via its title or thumbnail

• Now in the thumbnail section if you already haven’t uploaded a custom thumbnail, click Custom thumbnail.
• Select your intended thumbnail file and click Save.

Part 3: Q&A– About YouTube Thumbnail Images

You may want to know:

• Question 1: How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?
• Question 2: How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

1. How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?

YouTube will not allow you to upload a custom thumbnail image if it is bigger than the 2MB limit. So, you need to make sure the file size is below the limit to be able to successfully upload a custom thumbnail. To reduce the image size you can follow the steps below:

• 1. Open Microsoft Paint and open the thumbnail image that is above 2MB size
• 2. Now go to the File menu and click Save as then select JPEG picture
• 3. Select the location you want the file to be saved to
• 4. The thumbnail picture will be reduced to Kilobytes only while maintaining the image quality

2. How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

Utilizing online platforms and software tools to make your thumbnail image informative and attractive can potentially increase your views and traffic. You can use any advanced tools like Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio, or Canva to create an aspiring and luring image that will get more views on YouTube just because of the thumbnail image. Here we will show you how to do it with Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio and Canva:

1. Try Wondershare Filmora>>

Wondershare Filmora is an outstanding tool if you want to make a perfect thumbnail image. Consider and optimize your thumbnail for mobile devices to offer the best experience to your users on every possible device. Make it stand out as the thumbnail can be the very first thing that might attract a viewer.

Let’s see how you can create your thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora:

2. Try Wondershare PixStudio>>

Wondershare PixStudio provides you massive pre-designed templates which help you to create attractive YouTube Thumbnail. Let’s see the video below and see how you can design your YouTube Thumbnail easily.

3. Try Canva>>

With Canva you can make a distinct and stand-out YouTube thumbnail image. Canva hosts a number of readymade designs that you can use to design and customize it for your use.

Note:

To download the image without the watermark you’ll need to sign-up for a premium account on the Canva.

To sum up

YouTube thumbnail plays an important part for the audience’s first impression on your video. And it is of essential essence as it can attract more viewers to your content. So you should get the right youtube thumbnail size before you start customing your thumbnail. We’ve gone through all the detailed requirements of youtube thumbnail size and how to make the best thumbnail by using the best software solutions. Please leave your comments below if any suggestions. We’d love to hear them!

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

Around 300 hours of video is uploaded to Youtube in every single minute. Then content creators need to be more innovative and creative than others in the market. A thumbnail is worth a thousand words that show its real meaning in the case where every month YouTube records a whopping 2 billion active users. To create an impressive and tempting thumbnail, you should set a perfect youtube thumbnail size first.

So you may be wondering what the best youtube thumbnail size is, and how to create a attractive thumbnail for your YouTube videos? Don’t worry I’ll explain everything here. You will learn:

• Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of YouTube Thumbnail Size
• Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail to Your Video
• Part 3: Q&A– About Creating YouTube Thumbnails

Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of Youtube Thumbnail Size

Every content creator needs to select the right youtube thumbnail size for any given video.

1. What’s the Best YouTube Thumbnail Size(Dimensions)?

According to the YouTube guidelines , the best-suited youtube thumbnail size is 1280x720 pixels with a minimum pixel width of 640 pixels. Also, the custom thumbnail image must be as large as possible as it will be utilized as a preview image in the embedded player.

2. What Are the Compatible Formats for YouTube Thumbnail Image?

The recommended thumbnail image formats are .JPG, .PNG, .GIF, .BMP

3. What’s the Maximum YouTube Thumbnail Size?

The maximum YouTube thumbnail size must be below 2MB. Keeping the limit in mind design your thumbnail image as high-resolution as possible. This will ensure your custom thumbnail doesn’t get rejected by YouTube.

4. What’s the Recommended Aspect Ratio of YouTube Thumbnail?

Usually, the 16:9 ratio is deemed an ideal choice for any YouTube video aiming high view volume. As it is most widely used in YouTube players and previews.

Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail

With a verified account, you can upload custom thumbnail on new videos as well as change the thumbnail of uploaded videos.

1. For New Video

YouTube makes it very simple and easy for any content creator to publish custom YouTube thumbnail on their video while uploading the video onto the platform. Here’s the method to do so:

• Upload your desired video to YouTube in the Upload section.

• When your upload to the YouTube is completed a section will appear at the down portion of the browser screen showing Video Thumbnails. Here YouTube automatically creates some thumbnail images from your uploaded video and shows them here. These are the screenshots from your video, and you can select any one of them to be your thumbnail.

• You will be able to see a button right next to the image – Custom thumbnail. Click on the button and you can upload a set of images of your choice as the thumbnail of your video.
• Once done you can see the custom image just uploaded as the thumbnail of your video.

• If you want to update the image or change it with another one you can just click on the same image in the video thumbnail section and swap it with any other image.

2. For Already Uploaded Video

To change the thumbnail on an already uploaded video you need to follow these steps:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio associated with your YouTube channel.
• From the menu go to Videos and then select the video you want to upload a custom thumbnail to via its title or thumbnail

• Now in the thumbnail section if you already haven’t uploaded a custom thumbnail, click Custom thumbnail.
• Select your intended thumbnail file and click Save.

Part 3: Q&A– About YouTube Thumbnail Images

You may want to know:

• Question 1: How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?
• Question 2: How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

1. How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?

YouTube will not allow you to upload a custom thumbnail image if it is bigger than the 2MB limit. So, you need to make sure the file size is below the limit to be able to successfully upload a custom thumbnail. To reduce the image size you can follow the steps below:

• 1. Open Microsoft Paint and open the thumbnail image that is above 2MB size
• 2. Now go to the File menu and click Save as then select JPEG picture
• 3. Select the location you want the file to be saved to
• 4. The thumbnail picture will be reduced to Kilobytes only while maintaining the image quality

2. How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

Utilizing online platforms and software tools to make your thumbnail image informative and attractive can potentially increase your views and traffic. You can use any advanced tools like Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio, or Canva to create an aspiring and luring image that will get more views on YouTube just because of the thumbnail image. Here we will show you how to do it with Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio and Canva:

1. Try Wondershare Filmora>>

Wondershare Filmora is an outstanding tool if you want to make a perfect thumbnail image. Consider and optimize your thumbnail for mobile devices to offer the best experience to your users on every possible device. Make it stand out as the thumbnail can be the very first thing that might attract a viewer.

Let’s see how you can create your thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora:

2. Try Wondershare PixStudio>>

Wondershare PixStudio provides you massive pre-designed templates which help you to create attractive YouTube Thumbnail. Let’s see the video below and see how you can design your YouTube Thumbnail easily.

3. Try Canva>>

With Canva you can make a distinct and stand-out YouTube thumbnail image. Canva hosts a number of readymade designs that you can use to design and customize it for your use.

Note:

To download the image without the watermark you’ll need to sign-up for a premium account on the Canva.

To sum up

YouTube thumbnail plays an important part for the audience’s first impression on your video. And it is of essential essence as it can attract more viewers to your content. So you should get the right youtube thumbnail size before you start customing your thumbnail. We’ve gone through all the detailed requirements of youtube thumbnail size and how to make the best thumbnail by using the best software solutions. Please leave your comments below if any suggestions. We’d love to hear them!

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

Follow @Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

Around 300 hours of video is uploaded to Youtube in every single minute. Then content creators need to be more innovative and creative than others in the market. A thumbnail is worth a thousand words that show its real meaning in the case where every month YouTube records a whopping 2 billion active users. To create an impressive and tempting thumbnail, you should set a perfect youtube thumbnail size first.

So you may be wondering what the best youtube thumbnail size is, and how to create a attractive thumbnail for your YouTube videos? Don’t worry I’ll explain everything here. You will learn:

• Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of YouTube Thumbnail Size
• Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail to Your Video
• Part 3: Q&A– About Creating YouTube Thumbnails

Part 1: The Ultimate Guide of Youtube Thumbnail Size

Every content creator needs to select the right youtube thumbnail size for any given video.

1. What’s the Best YouTube Thumbnail Size(Dimensions)?

According to the YouTube guidelines , the best-suited youtube thumbnail size is 1280x720 pixels with a minimum pixel width of 640 pixels. Also, the custom thumbnail image must be as large as possible as it will be utilized as a preview image in the embedded player.

2. What Are the Compatible Formats for YouTube Thumbnail Image?

The recommended thumbnail image formats are .JPG, .PNG, .GIF, .BMP

3. What’s the Maximum YouTube Thumbnail Size?

The maximum YouTube thumbnail size must be below 2MB. Keeping the limit in mind design your thumbnail image as high-resolution as possible. This will ensure your custom thumbnail doesn’t get rejected by YouTube.

4. What’s the Recommended Aspect Ratio of YouTube Thumbnail?

Usually, the 16:9 ratio is deemed an ideal choice for any YouTube video aiming high view volume. As it is most widely used in YouTube players and previews.

Part 2: Upload and Change a Custom YouTube Thumbnail

With a verified account, you can upload custom thumbnail on new videos as well as change the thumbnail of uploaded videos.

1. For New Video

YouTube makes it very simple and easy for any content creator to publish custom YouTube thumbnail on their video while uploading the video onto the platform. Here’s the method to do so:

• Upload your desired video to YouTube in the Upload section.

• When your upload to the YouTube is completed a section will appear at the down portion of the browser screen showing Video Thumbnails. Here YouTube automatically creates some thumbnail images from your uploaded video and shows them here. These are the screenshots from your video, and you can select any one of them to be your thumbnail.

• You will be able to see a button right next to the image – Custom thumbnail. Click on the button and you can upload a set of images of your choice as the thumbnail of your video.
• Once done you can see the custom image just uploaded as the thumbnail of your video.

• If you want to update the image or change it with another one you can just click on the same image in the video thumbnail section and swap it with any other image.

2. For Already Uploaded Video

To change the thumbnail on an already uploaded video you need to follow these steps:

• Sign in to YouTube Studio associated with your YouTube channel.
• From the menu go to Videos and then select the video you want to upload a custom thumbnail to via its title or thumbnail

• Now in the thumbnail section if you already haven’t uploaded a custom thumbnail, click Custom thumbnail.
• Select your intended thumbnail file and click Save.

Part 3: Q&A– About YouTube Thumbnail Images

You may want to know:

• Question 1: How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?
• Question 2: How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

1. How do I make my youtube thumbnail less than 2mb?

YouTube will not allow you to upload a custom thumbnail image if it is bigger than the 2MB limit. So, you need to make sure the file size is below the limit to be able to successfully upload a custom thumbnail. To reduce the image size you can follow the steps below:

• 1. Open Microsoft Paint and open the thumbnail image that is above 2MB size
• 2. Now go to the File menu and click Save as then select JPEG picture
• 3. Select the location you want the file to be saved to
• 4. The thumbnail picture will be reduced to Kilobytes only while maintaining the image quality

2. How can I create an attractive youtube thumbnail?

Utilizing online platforms and software tools to make your thumbnail image informative and attractive can potentially increase your views and traffic. You can use any advanced tools like Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio, or Canva to create an aspiring and luring image that will get more views on YouTube just because of the thumbnail image. Here we will show you how to do it with Wondershare Filmora, Wondershare PixStudio and Canva:

1. Try Wondershare Filmora>>

Wondershare Filmora is an outstanding tool if you want to make a perfect thumbnail image. Consider and optimize your thumbnail for mobile devices to offer the best experience to your users on every possible device. Make it stand out as the thumbnail can be the very first thing that might attract a viewer.

Let’s see how you can create your thumbnail using Wondershare Filmora:

2. Try Wondershare PixStudio>>

Wondershare PixStudio provides you massive pre-designed templates which help you to create attractive YouTube Thumbnail. Let’s see the video below and see how you can design your YouTube Thumbnail easily.

3. Try Canva>>

With Canva you can make a distinct and stand-out YouTube thumbnail image. Canva hosts a number of readymade designs that you can use to design and customize it for your use.

Note:

To download the image without the watermark you’ll need to sign-up for a premium account on the Canva.

To sum up

YouTube thumbnail plays an important part for the audience’s first impression on your video. And it is of essential essence as it can attract more viewers to your content. So you should get the right youtube thumbnail size before you start customing your thumbnail. We’ve gone through all the detailed requirements of youtube thumbnail size and how to make the best thumbnail by using the best software solutions. Please leave your comments below if any suggestions. We’d love to hear them!

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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