Real sizes
Paste a YouTube video link to preview its thumbnail at the sizes viewers actually see — home feed, search results, and the suggested sidebar — so you can check that text and faces still read when small.
How to test a thumbnail
Preview sizes
Displayed sizes vary by device and screen width, so the previews are close approximations rather than exact pixels.
At sidebar size, only big shapes and three or four words survive. If you cannot read it here, simplify.
YouTube places the video length in the bottom-right corner. Keep important text and faces away from it.
Thumbnails that stand out from YouTube’s interface — strong contrast, clear subject — are easier to spot in a busy feed.
Common questions
Sizes, readability, and testing before you publish.
YouTube recommends uploading thumbnails as large as possible: 3840 × 2160 pixels (16:9) for videos, with a minimum width of 640 pixels. Use JPG or PNG and stay under the upload limit of 2 MB on mobile or 50 MB on desktop.
Small. In the suggested sidebar a thumbnail can be only around 120–170 pixels wide depending on the screen. That is why bold, simple designs perform well.
This tool previews thumbnails that are already published. To test a new design, upload it to an unlisted video first, then preview it here.
Yes. Use the YouTube Thumbnail Downloader to save every available size, including the 1280 × 720 version when it exists.
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