# Social Media Image Exports

Platform UIs change often. Use these as high-confidence working defaults, then recheck the final platform uploader when a campaign is high stakes.

## Core Sizes

| Platform | Format | Dimensions | Notes |
|----------|--------|------------|-------|
| Instagram feed portrait | 4:5 | 1080 × 1350 | Strong default for feed reach |
| Instagram story / reel cover | 9:16 | 1080 × 1920 | Keep key content away from edges |
| X card image | 1.91:1 | 1200 × 628 | Safer for link previews |
| LinkedIn feed square | 1:1 | 1200 × 1200 | Clean default for mixed content |
| Facebook feed image | 1.91:1 | 1200 × 630 | Common share preview shape |
| YouTube thumbnail | 16:9 | 1280 × 720 | Text must stay legible at small size |
| Pinterest pin | 2:3 | 1000 × 1500 | Standard pin ratio |
| OG / social preview card | 1.91:1 | 1200 × 630 | Safe default for link previews and embeds |

## Safe-Zone Rules

- Keep essential text, faces, logos, and product edges away from the outer margins.
- Story and reel formats need wider top/bottom safety because UI chrome overlays them.
- Banners and headers crop unpredictably across desktop and mobile.
- A technically correct size can still fail if the real focal point sits too close to an edge.

## Social Export Rules

- Use RGB and sRGB.
- Avoid tiny text that only works in the full-resolution editor view.
- Compress enough to upload fast, but not so hard that gradients, skin, or text show visible damage.
- If text matters, validate legibility on a small preview, not only at full size.
- Platform uploaders often recompress again, so leave enough quality headroom for the second pass.
- Thumbnail crops and in-feed previews may differ from the full asset view, so verify the preview state the audience actually sees.
- If the same campaign must ship to multiple platforms, export per platform rather than trusting one master crop to survive everywhere.

## Content Guidance

- Put the main subject, offer, or headline in the central safe area.
- Do not rely on corner badges, tiny logos, or edge-aligned text surviving previews.
- Faces, products, and callouts need more breathing room in stories, reels, and banners than in square feed posts.
- The real first impression is often the tiny preview tile, not the full-screen asset; optimize for that moment too.

## Quick Checks

```
□ Correct aspect ratio
□ Key content centered within a safe area
□ Text readable on mobile
□ No edge-cropped logos or faces
□ Exported in RGB/sRGB
```