Facebook cover photo size: The complete 2026 guide

Your Facebook cover photo displays at 820 × 312 pixels on desktop and 640 × 360 pixels on mobile. To prevent blurriness or cropping across all screens, upload an sRGB JPG or PNG file sized at 851 × 315 pixels and under 100 KB, with your text and core design elements centered.

Those numbers apply to personal profiles and business pages. Groups and events work differently, and the safe zone rules that govern what actually stays visible on mobile are just as important as the pixel counts. This guide covers every Facebook page type, the file format choices that affect image quality after upload, and the design decisions that separate a cover photo that looks intentional from one that looks like an afterthought.

What are the Facebook cover photo dimensions in 2026?

Facebook cover photos display at 820 × 312 pixels on desktop and 640 × 360 pixels on mobile. Upload your image at 851 × 315 pixels; Facebook scales it down automatically, and starting at the larger size preserves quality after compression.

The upload size and display size are different numbers, and conflating the two causes most alignment problems. Designers who build around 851 × 315 as if that is the visible canvas are working from the wrong frame. The actual display area on desktop is 820 × 312.

The table below lays out the full picture:

Device	Cover photo display size
Desktop	820 × 312 pixels
Smartphone	640 × 360 pixels
Recommended upload size	851 × 315 pixels
Minimum accepted size	400 × 150 pixels

The aspect ratio throughout is 16:9, the same as most TV screens and YouTube videos. Designs that break this ratio get auto-cropped by Facebook in ways that are difficult to anticipate before you publish.

Choose the right file format

Facebook prefers sRGB JPG files under 100 KB. JPG compresses cleanly for photographs and illustrated backgrounds. Use PNG when your cover includes a logo with a transparent background or sharp-edged text, since PNG preserves those edges without compression artifacts.

Set your color space to sRGB before exporting. Uploading a CMYK or P3 file forces Facebook to convert it on upload, and the resulting color shift is often noticeable.

Once your design is ready, the Facebook scheduler lets you upload covers and manage publishing across multiple pages from one place, rather than logging into each page account separately.

Your cover photo is one of the more visible elements of how your brand shows up on the platform. Getting the dimensions and file quality right is part of a broader Facebook marketing strategy that starts with first impressions before anything gets posted.

Does Facebook cover photo size differ by page type?

Yes. Profiles and business pages share the same upload dimensions, but groups and events use larger canvases with different aspect ratios. Using profile dimensions for a group cover will result in a stretched or cropped image.

Here is the full comparison:

Page type	Recommended upload size
Personal profile	851 × 315 pixels
Business page	851 × 315 pixels
Facebook group	1640 × 856 pixels
Facebook event	1920 × 1005 pixels

Understand profile and business page dimensions

Personal profiles and business pages both upload at 851 × 315 pixels and display at 820 × 312 on desktop. The design intent differs: a personal profile cover is optional branding, while a business page cover is often the first visual a potential follower sees when deciding whether your page is worth following.

If you are still in the process of creating a Facebook business page, the cover photo is one of the first design decisions you will make.

Design wider for Facebook group covers

Facebook group covers use 1640 × 856 pixels. The taller format gives community managers room for event announcements, guidelines, or seasonal visuals. Group covers crop differently on mobile, so center key content and test on a phone before publishing.

Plan Facebook event covers for maximum detail

Event covers are the largest format at 1920 × 1005 pixels. Events need to communicate date, time, and venue in a single glance, and the larger canvas gives you room to do that clearly. When setting up a Facebook event, legibility matters more than decoration.

What is the Facebook cover photo safe zone?

The safe zone is the center area of your cover photo that stays fully visible on both desktop and mobile. For profiles and business pages, that area is approximately 820 × 312 pixels, centered within your 851 × 315 canvas.

On mobile, Facebook crops the left and right edges to fit a narrower screen. Elements outside the safe zone disappear. Your logo, text, and key visuals need to sit within that center region.

There is a second crop to plan around: the profile picture. It sits in the bottom-left corner of the cover photo, overlapping roughly 96 pixels from the left and 96 pixels up from the bottom edge on desktop. Keep the bottom-left quarter of your canvas clear of anything that needs to be seen.

This is why cover photos often look polished on desktop and awkward on mobile. One view was designed for, neither was tested. Check your cover on an actual phone before publishing.

How do you create a Facebook cover photo that works on every screen?

A cover that works on every screen starts with the correct canvas dimensions, elements inside the safe zone, and a mobile test before publishing.

Start with 851 × 315 pixels

Build at the correct upload size from the start. Upscaling a smaller image adds blur that is invisible at design stage and obvious once the cover is live on a high-resolution screen.

Center everything that matters

Your logo, tagline, or any call-to-action text should sit within the center 820 × 312 area. Treat the outer edges as decorative space that may or may not appear depending on the device.

Leave the bottom-left corner clear

Your profile picture sits there on both desktop and mobile. Design elements placed in that corner will be partially or fully covered.

Test across devices before publishing

• Open your page in a desktop browser after uploading
• Check it in the Facebook app on a smartphone, not just a mobile browser
• Confirm it looks correct in Chrome and Safari, which can render image compression differently

Optimize the file before uploading

Export as JPG for photos and illustrated backgrounds, PNG for logos or text-heavy graphics. Keep the file under 100 KB. Facebook applies its own compression on upload, so pre-optimizing gives you more control over the final quality.

A social media management platform that handles publishing across multiple pages reduces the manual work of keeping covers updated. The right Facebook marketing tools for your workflow depend on how many accounts you manage.

What are the most common Facebook cover photo mistakes?

The most common Facebook cover photo mistakes come from using the wrong dimensions, ignoring the safe zone, or skipping mobile testing.

• Treating 851 × 315 as the display size. That is the upload size. Your cover displays at 820 × 312 on desktop and 640 × 360 on mobile, so elements at the canvas edges are in the crop zone.
• Skipping mobile testing. A cover built only for desktop will look cropped or off-balance on mobile, where the majority of Facebook users spend their time.
• Placing content in the bottom-left corner. The profile picture sits there on both desktop and mobile and will partially cover anything in that space.
• Uploading an unoptimized large file. A 3 MB PNG uploaded as-is will come out blurrier than an 85 KB JPG you pre-optimized yourself, because Facebook applies its own compression on upload.
• Using the same cover across platforms. LinkedIn, X, and Instagram all have different dimensions and display behaviors. Each platform needs its own correctly sized asset.
• Leaving a stale cover after a rebrand. Your cover is one of the first things a page visitor sees, and an outdated one signals that no one is actively managing the brand.

Tracking Facebook page performance after a cover update shows whether the change affected profile visits, follower growth, or page reach.

Wrapping up

Getting the Facebook cover photo size right comes down to two things: uploading at 851 × 315 pixels, and centering your design within the safe zone so nothing disappears on mobile. Those two decisions account for most cover photos that look unprofessional on smaller screens.

After the technical side is handled, the cover becomes a branding decision. It is the first visual someone sees on your page, and unlike feed content, it does not scroll away. That visibility is worth more attention than a quick image drop.

Frequently asked questions