YouTube Thumbnail File Size Limit
How to keep your thumbnails under YouTube's 2 MB file size limit without sacrificing image quality.
| Maximum File Size | 2 MB (2,097,152 bytes) |
| Typical JPG Size | 100-400 KB(At 85-90% quality, 1280x720) |
| Typical PNG Size | 500 KB - 1.5 MB(Depends on complexity) |
| Recommended Format | JPG for photos, PNG for graphics |
| JPG Quality Setting | 85-90%(Best quality-to-size ratio) |
| Dimensions | 1280 x 720 pixels |
- Use JPG format at 85-90% quality to keep file sizes well under 2 MB.
- PNG files are larger but better for thumbnails with text, logos, or flat graphics.
- Reduce colors or simplify gradients if your PNG is too large.
- Avoid saving at 100% JPG quality, which creates unnecessarily large files with minimal visual improvement.
- Use image optimization tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh to reduce file size without visible quality loss.
Frequently Asked Questions
The maximum file size for a YouTube custom thumbnail is 2 MB (megabytes). Files larger than 2 MB will be rejected when you try to upload them.
To reduce file size: (1) Save as JPG instead of PNG, (2) Lower JPG quality to 85-90%, (3) Use image compression tools like TinyPNG, (4) Ensure your image is exactly 1280x720 and not larger.
JPG files are typically much smaller than PNG for photographic thumbnails. A 1280x720 JPG at 90% quality is usually 200-400 KB, while the same image as PNG can be 1-2 MB.
Moderate JPG compression (85-90% quality) produces virtually no visible quality loss. The difference between 90% and 100% quality is imperceptible on thumbnails but can halve the file size.
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