All post sizes Nothing uploaded
Instagram Reel size
1080 × 1920 px (9:16, the size guides recommend), up to 20 minutes; the cover is 420 × 654 px
Instagram accepts Reels from 1.91:1 to 9:16, at least 720 pixels, up to 20 minutes, and recommends a 420 × 654 cover. Drop in a video to check it, or an image or a video frame to make the cover, and see how the profile grid will crop it. It all runs in your browser.
| Format | Pixels | Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| Reel 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 guide | 9:16 |
| Reel cover | 420 × 654 | 1:1.55 |
| Cover 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 guide | 9:16 |
| Reel ad 9:16 | 1440 × 2560 | 9:16 |
Official: Instagram Help Center, Meta Ads Guide. Guides (not the platform’s own figures): Buffer, Hootsuite.
Creators upload. Brands review. One thread.
Every video, note and revision stays in one place inside Myah.Instagram Reel sizes, with sources
Instagram’s Help Center says you can upload a reel with an aspect ratio between 1.91:1 and 9:16, with a minimum frame rate of 30 frames per second and a minimum resolution of 720 pixels. It does not give a pixel size. Two 2026 guides, Buffer and Hootsuite, both give 1080 × 1920 at 9:16, so the table marks that as a guide. For Reels ads, Meta publishes the size itself: the Ads Guide gives 9:16 at 1440 × 2560. The checker reads the 720 as the video’s width, which is its short side at 9:16, because Instagram does not say which side it means.
| Format | Pixels | Ratio | Limits | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ReelVideo | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 | Any shape from 1.91:1 to 9:16. At least 720 px and 30 FPS. Up to 20 minutes. | Size: Buffer (guide). Limits: Instagram Help and Instagram Help (official) |
| Reel coverInstagram’s size | 420 × 654 | 1:1.55 | Can’t be edited after you upload it. | Instagram Help Center (official) |
| Cover, design sizeCommon | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 | The profile grid shows a centred 3:4 slice (a guide). | Buffer, Hootsuite (guides) |
| Reel adMeta ads | 1440 × 2560 | 9:16 | Image: JPG or PNG, 30 MB, 500 px wide. Video: MP4 or MOV, 4 GB, up to 15 minutes, 250 px wide under 30 seconds or 500 px from 30 seconds. | Video ads and image ads (official) |
How the checker works
- Your video’s width, height, file size and length are read in your browser. Nothing is sent anywhere.
- Its shape is compared with 9:16. A video inside Instagram’s range (1.91:1 to 9:16) plays, so it is marked “Fits with changes” and told to export at 9:16 to fill the screen. A shape outside the range is cropped by Instagram.
- Its width is compared with the 720 pixel minimum. Its length is compared with 20 minutes, and with the 3 minutes after which Instagram does not recommend a Reel to new audiences.
- An image is not a Reel, so it is told so, and pointed to the cover formats. For a cover, scrub a video to the frame you want, or drop in an image.
- The download crops to fill (the biggest slice with the right shape, which you can move) or fits the whole picture on bars. Turn on “Grid view” to see what the profile grid cuts.
Instagram Reel length
Instagram’s Help Center says you can record one or several clips that add up to 20 minutes, and adds a note: Reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences. So 20 minutes is the limit and 3 minutes is where Instagram stops recommending a Reel to people who do not follow you. For Reels ads, Meta’s Ads Guide gives a length of up to 15 minutes. The checker marks a video over 3 minutes as “Fits with changes”, and one over 20 minutes as “Won’t work”.
Reel cover size and the profile grid
A Reel’s cover is a frame from the video or an image you choose, and it is what your profile shows. Instagram’s Help Center recommends 420 × 654 pixels for it, a 1:1.55 shape, and says that right now you can’t edit the cover after you upload it. That shape sits between the Reel’s 9:16 (0.5625) and the profile grid’s 3:4 (0.75), which Hootsuite and Buffer report for the grid and Instagram does not publish. The grid view in the checker shows the cut for the size you pick: about 7% from the top and bottom of a 420 × 654 cover, and 12.5% from a 1080 × 1920 one.
Pick the cover first
You can’t change it after you upload, so choose the frame, or make the image, before you share.
Keep the title in the middle
Whatever size you choose, the grid shows a centred 3:4 slice, so words near the top or bottom edge can be cut.
Take a frame from the video
Load the Reel, scrub to the frame you want, and download it as a cover image at 420 × 654 or 1080 × 1920.
What sits over a Reel
A correctly sized Reel still has the caption, handle and buttons over it. For Reels ads, Meta’s Ads Guide asks you to leave at least 14% of the top, 35% of the bottom and 6% on each side free of text, logos and other important elements, so they are not cropped, covered by the profile icon or call-to-action, or too close to the edge of a screen taller than 9:16. Instagram publishes no numbers for ordinary Reels. This page checks the file; to see what the interface covers, use the Instagram safe zone checker.
Who it’s for
UGC creators
Check a Reel before you send it to a brand, and make a cover from the best frame before the brand posts it.
Brands and media buyers
Check that a creator’s video meets the Reels ad size and limits, including the wider minimum for ads of 30 seconds or more.
Social managers and editors
Preview what the profile grid will do to a cover, and export it at the size you chose, once.
Common mistakes
Making every Reel as long as it can be
Instagram allows 20 minutes, but its Help Center says Reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences. Length is a choice, not a target.
Exporting below 720 pixels
Instagram lists a minimum resolution of 720 pixels, so a 540 × 960 export is below it. The checker marks it “Won’t work”.
A cover title at the top or bottom
The profile grid shows a 3:4 slice of a 9:16 cover, which cuts about 12.5% from the top and the bottom (a guide). Keep the cover’s title in the middle.
Treating 420 × 654 as 9:16
Instagram’s recommended cover size is a 1:1.55 shape, which is neither the Reel’s 9:16 nor the grid’s 3:4. Pick the cover size on purpose, and look at the grid view before you post.
Choosing the cover after you post
Instagram’s Help Center says that right now you can’t edit your cover photo after you’ve uploaded it. Choose it before you share, and use a frame from the video if you are unsure.
Skipping the wider minimum for a 30-second ad
Meta asks for at least 250 pixels of width for a Reels video ad under 30 seconds, and 500 pixels from 30 seconds. A narrow export that passes at 20 seconds fails at 40.
Common questions
What size is an Instagram Reel?
Instagram’s Help Center says you can upload a reel with an aspect ratio between 1.91:1 and 9:16, at 30 frames per second or more and a resolution of at least 720 pixels. It gives no pixel size. Buffer (March 2026) and Hootsuite (September 2026) both give 1080 × 1920 pixels at 9:16, and Meta’s Ads Guide gives 1440 × 2560 for Reels ads.
How long can an Instagram Reel be?
Instagram’s Help Center says you can record one or more clips that add up to 20 minutes, and notes that Reels over 3 minutes won’t be recommended to new audiences. For Reels ads, Meta’s Ads Guide gives a length of up to 15 minutes.
What size is an Instagram Reel cover?
Instagram’s Help Center recommends 420 × 654 pixels for a cover photo, a 1:1.55 shape, and says you can’t edit the cover after you upload it. That shape is neither the 9:16 of the Reel nor the 3:4 that guides report for the profile grid, so many guides design a cover at 1080 × 1920 and keep the important part in the middle.
What does the profile grid show of a Reel?
Instagram does not publish it. Hootsuite (September 2026) and Buffer (March 2026) report that the grid shows Reels at 3:4, and Hootsuite gives 1080 × 1440 for the grid view. That cuts about 12.5% from the top and from the bottom of a 9:16 cover. Treat it as a guide, not as Instagram’s own figure.
Can a square or landscape video be a Reel?
Instagram accepts Reels from 1.91:1 up to 9:16, so a square or 4:5 video is accepted. Instagram does not say how those shapes are shown, so export a 9:16 version if you want the video to fill the screen.
Is it safe to check a Reel that has not been approved yet?
Yes. The checker works on your own device: the video opens in your browser, nothing is sent to Myah or anyone else, and a cover made from one of its frames is made there too. So a creator can check a draft before the brand has seen it. Close the tab and the file is gone, and a shared link carries only your settings.