OG image size guide
The right Open Graph image size is 1200 × 630 pixels. Here are the exact requirements for Facebook, LinkedIn, X and messaging apps, and how to avoid cropping.
Published 4 min read
Use 1200 × 630 pixels, a 1.91:1 ratio, saved as a PNG or JPG well under 1 MB. That single size displays well on Facebook, LinkedIn, X, Slack, Discord, WhatsApp and iMessage, so there’s no need to make a different image for each platform.
The rest of this guide covers the exact limits for each platform, how cropping works, and how to choose a file format.
Requirements by platform
| Platform | Recommended size | Shape | Minimum | Maximum file size |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1200 × 630 | 1.91:1 | 600 × 315 for a large image | 8 MB | |
| 1200 × 627 | 1.91:1 | 1200 × 627 | 5 MB | |
| X (large image card) | 1200 × 630 works | 2:1 | 300 × 157 | 5 MB |
| X (summary card) | 1200 × 1200 | 1:1 | 144 × 144 | 5 MB |
| Slack, Discord, WhatsApp, iMessage, Telegram | 1200 × 630 | 1.91:1 | Varies | Keep it small |
A few notes on the table:
- Facebook shows images smaller than 600 × 315 as a small thumbnail beside the text instead of a large image across the top. Anything under 200 × 200 isn’t used at all.
- LinkedIn treats 1200 × 627 as its minimum for a full-width preview. A 1200 × 630 image is 3 pixels taller, which makes no visible difference.
- X uses a 2:1 shape for its large image card, slightly wider than 1.91:1. A 1200 × 630 image loses a sliver from the top and bottom, about 15 pixels each, which is why it’s worth keeping text away from the very edges.
- X’s summary card is the small square thumbnail you get when
twitter:cardis set tosummaryrather thansummary_large_image. Most sites want the large card.
Why 1.91:1?
It’s the shape Facebook settled on for link previews, and other platforms followed so that one image would work everywhere. At 1200 pixels wide, it’s also sharp on high-resolution phone screens, where a card is often displayed around 400 to 600 pixels wide.
Going bigger than 1200 × 630 doesn’t help. It only makes the file heavier. Going smaller risks a blurry image, or on some platforms, a small thumbnail instead of a large preview.
Keep important things in the safe area
Because each platform crops slightly differently, treat the outer edge of your image as a margin. A good rule:
- Keep text and logos at least 60 pixels from the edges.
- Put the headline near the centre or left, not right against the top or bottom.
- Assume rounded corners: many apps round the card’s corners, which can clip anything tucked into one.
All the templates on this site follow these rules, and the editor’s previews show you how each platform crops your design.
What about square images?
Square images (for example 1200 × 1200) only make sense if you deliberately use X’s small summary card. Everywhere else they’re cropped to a wide shape, which usually cuts off the top and bottom of the design. The OG checker shows exactly how much gets cropped if your current image isn’t 1.91:1.
File format and weight
- PNG is best for designs with text, flat colour and sharp edges, which describes most OG images.
- JPG is better for photos, because the files are much smaller.
- WebP is supported by X, but not reliably by every platform, so PNG or JPG is the safer choice.
- Avoid SVG, AVIF and HEIC. Most platforms ignore them.
- Keep the file small. The limits above are 5 to 8 MB, but previews appear faster, and more reliably in messaging apps, when the image is a few hundred kilobytes. Anything over 1 MB is worth compressing.
Tell platforms the size
Two optional tags let platforms know the image’s dimensions before they download it. Facebook in particular can then show the image straight away, even the very first time a link is shared:
<meta property="og:image:width" content="1200" />
<meta property="og:image:height" content="630" />Use a full address
og:image must be a complete URL starting with https://, such as https://example.com/og/page.png. A relative path like /og/page.png is ignored by Facebook, LinkedIn and others. This is one of the most common reasons previews show no image. See Open Graph meta tags explained for the full set of tags.
Make one at the right size
The editor creates images at exactly 1200 × 630 by default, with a square option for X’s summary card, and shows how each platform will display them before you download.