Edits / Instagram Reels / Cover size & design
The cover is the only part of a Reel people see before they tap - on your profile, in search, in Explore. It's 1080 × 1920, but the grid shows a 3:4 crop, and that gap is where most covers go wrong. Exact safe area, five designs that read at thumbnail size, and how to set or change one.
One file, three places it shows. The cover is the full 9:16 frame; the profile grid crops it to about 3:4; the safe area is the part that survives everywhere.
| Where | Size shown | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Cover file | 1080 × 1920 px · 9:16 | Same as the Reel. PNG or high-quality JPG. |
| Full-screen Reel / Reels tab | 1080 × 1920 · 9:16 | Whole cover shows for a split second before playback; edges must look finished. |
| Profile grid | ~1080 × 1440 · 3:4 | ~240 px trimmed top and bottom. Face and title go in the centre. |
| Explore | Vertical crop similar to the grid | Same rule: centre the subject. |
| Thumbnail width on a phone | ~100–130 px wide | Title ≤ 4 words, ≥ 10% of frame height. |
| Safe area | Centre 1080 × 1440 | Keep every element that matters inside this. |
Note: Instagram has moved the grid from square to taller rectangles; the 3:4 figure is measured from the current app and may shift slightly. Centre everything and you're safe either way. Full video specs are in the Reels size and length guide.
Five steps: canvas, crop, title, set it, change it.
Step 01
Two routes. From the Reel: in Edits, scrub to the best frame, add the title as a text layer, and export a single frame - the cover matches the video exactly. From scratch: open a 9:16 canvas (1080 × 1920) in Edits, Canva or any design app and drop in a photo from the shoot.
Step 02
The profile grid shows roughly the centre 1080 × 1440 of your cover - about 240 px disappears from the top and another 240 from the bottom. Put the face and the title in the vertical middle. If your subject is at the bottom of the frame, move it up or the grid shows a cropped chin.
Step 03
A grid thumbnail is roughly a third of the phone width. At that size, only two to four words in a heavy font stay readable. Write the title as the Reel's promise - "3 rules", "Before/after", "$12 build" - and make it at least 10% of the frame height.
Step 04
On the share screen tap Edit cover. Either slide along the filmstrip to pick a frame from the video, or tap Add from camera roll to upload the cover you designed. Then use the Profile crop slider to position the 3:4 preview so the face and title sit inside it.
Step 05
You don't need to repost. Open the Reel → ⋯ → Edit → Edit cover, pick a new frame or upload a new image, and save. The video, caption, likes and views all stay exactly as they were.
Pick one and use it on every Reel. A consistent cover style is what makes a profile look like one account instead of a camera roll. Each is shown here at grid proportions (3:4).
Portrait centred, title boxed just below the chin. The default for tutorials and talking Reels.
Two halves, two labels, one line down the middle. Reads at any size.
One figure that is the whole promise, in a font that fills the frame. No photo needed.
The best single frame from the Reel, nothing on it. Lets the grid breathe.
Same layout every episode with the number changing. Makes a series look like a series.
Before you post, imagine the cover next to eight others at this size. Can you read it? Does it match? Nine of the same design in different colours is a grid; nine different designs is noise.
Same font, same box, same placement. Only the words and the colour change.
Edits exports any frame with your title on it, at full 1080 × 1920 - free, no watermark.