The two sizes that matter most: profile photo at 200×200 px minimum (upload at 400×400 for Retina clarity), and video at 1080×1920 px (9:16) for full-screen vertical play. TikTok technically supports 1:1 and 16:9 as well, but 9:16 is the only format that fills the screen without black bars or grey sidebars — and fills the screen is where views happen.
| Image type | Recommended size | Aspect ratio | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profile photo | 400 × 400 px | 1:1 | Cropped to circle; 200 px minimum |
| Video (primary) | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 | Full-screen vertical; preferred |
| Video (square) | 1080 × 1080 px | 1:1 | Sidebars on mobile |
| Video (landscape) | 1920 × 1080 px | 16:9 | Letterboxed on mobile |
| In-Feed Ad (image) | 1200 × 628 px | 1.91:1 | JPG or PNG, under 100KB |
| Carousel image ad | 1080 × 1080 px | 1:1 | Up to 35 cards per carousel |
| Profile cover video | 1080 × 1920 px | 9:16 | Loops silently; under 50MB |
Why TikTok's safe zone is smaller than the canvas
The spec says 1080×1920 px, but TikTok overlays UI elements on top of your video: the caption and hashtags cover the lower 20–25% of the screen, and the side action bar (like, comment, share, follow buttons) occupies roughly 80 px on the right. If text or a face lands in those zones, it gets partially hidden for most viewers.
The usable "safe zone" for important visual content is approximately 1080×1420 px centred in the frame — leaving clear margins at the bottom and right. This matters most for talking-head content where subtitles compete with the caption overlay.
Profile photo: the circle crop that trips people up
TikTok displays profile photos as circles at very small sizes — roughly 40 px in the feed and 80 px on your profile page. Upload at 400×400 px (or larger), and keep the subject centred. Anything within about 10% of the edge will be cropped away by the circular mask. A square logo with text running to the edge will lose characters; a headshot with the face centred will look fine at any display size.
For logos and brand images, PNG is worth using — JPEG compression introduces subtle artefacts around hard colour boundaries that become visible when the image is scaled down to feed size.
TikTok ad image sizes: what the Ads Manager actually enforces
TikTok's ad formats change faster than the organic content specs. As of August 2026, the main image-based ad formats are:
- TopView / Brand Takeover (image): 1080×1920 px or 720×1280 px, under 500KB, JPG or PNG
- In-Feed Ad (image): 1200×628 px, under 100KB
- Carousel (image): 1080×1080 px per card, under 500KB each
The 100KB limit for In-Feed image ads is tight. If your creative exceeds it, compress the image to under 100KB while keeping the 1200×628 px dimensions intact — only the file size changes.
What TikTok does to your image after upload
TikTok recompresses all uploaded images and videos. Profile photos are re-encoded as JPEG regardless of what you upload. Videos are transcoded to H.264 or H.265 at TikTok's own bitrate — typically lower than your source. This means uploading at the highest quality you have, and letting TikTok do the compression, beats pre-compressing the file yourself before upload. The one exception is ad creatives with strict file-size caps (the 100KB In-Feed limit) — there you must compress before upload.
Frequently asked questions
What size should my TikTok profile picture be?
TikTok requires a minimum of 200×200 px, but uploading at 400×400 px or larger gives TikTok room to display cleanly on high-resolution screens. The image is always cropped to a circle, so keep important content centred and away from the edges.
What aspect ratio does TikTok prefer for videos?
9:16 vertical (1080×1920 px) fills the screen on mobile and is TikTok's primary format. The 1:1 and 16:9 options are supported but leave visible bars on screen, which reduces immersion in the feed.
What image size does TikTok use for ads?
In-Feed image ads use 1200×628 px at under 100KB. Carousel ads use 1080×1080 px per card. Always verify against TikTok Ads Manager for your specific placement, since ad specs update frequently.
Why does my TikTok thumbnail look blurry?
The thumbnail reflects the source video resolution. If the video was recorded or compressed at low quality before upload, the thumbnail will show that. Upload source video at 1080×1920 px for the best thumbnail result.
Can I use a PNG for my TikTok profile photo?
Yes — TikTok accepts both JPG and PNG. PNG is better for logos and graphics with sharp edges; JPG is fine for photography. TikTok re-encodes the image on its side regardless.