YouTube thumbnail maker
Turn a photo into a 3840 × 2160 thumbnail with bold text, emoji and a gradient, saved as a JPG under 2 MB.
Drop a photo for your thumbnail, or click to choose
JPG, PNG or WebP. It stays on your device.
How it works
- Choose a photo. It is cropped to 16:9 straight away, with a line of bold text ready to type over.
- Write the title and dress it up. Type a few words, drag them into place, add an emoji and lay a gradient over the photo so the text stands out. Crop moves the frame to show a different part of the photo.
- Download the JPG. It saves at 3840 × 2160 and just under 2 MB, ready to upload in YouTube Studio or the YouTube app.
YouTube thumbnail size and limits
From YouTube's own custom thumbnail help page, checked on 1 November 2026:
| Recommended size | 3840 × 2160 pixels |
|---|---|
| Aspect ratio | 16:9 |
| Smallest width | 640 pixels |
| File type | JPG or PNG |
| File size | 2 MB in the mobile app, 50 MB on desktop |
This maker saves at 3840 × 2160 and squeezes the JPG to just under 2 MB, so the same file uploads from a phone or a computer. If you need a smaller file, type a lower size under Save as. Custom thumbnails are available once your YouTube account is verified.
What makes a thumbnail easy to read
- Few words, big letters. Thumbnails are often seen at the size of a stamp on a phone. Three to five words in bold, outlined text stay readable there; a full sentence does not.
- One clear subject. A face, a product or the result of the video, cropped close. Use Crop to move the frame onto it.
- Contrast behind the text. A dark gradient across the bottom or one side gives white text something to sit on without hiding the photo.
- Keep the bottom right clear. YouTube shows the video length in that corner, over your image.
- Match the title, do not repeat it. The title sits right under the thumbnail, so the image can add to it rather than say the same words again.
Thumbnails must follow YouTube's Community Guidelines; YouTube can remove a thumbnail that breaks them.
Your photo stays on your device
The thumbnail is drawn and saved in your browser. The photo is never uploaded, and saving drops hidden metadata such as the GPS location. This is an independent tool, not made by or affiliated with YouTube. For other platforms, the image resizer has social sizes, and the full photo editor works at any size.