How to use the YouTube Thumbnail Maker

Add a background image, or pick a background colour.
Type the title, then adjust size, colours, outline and position. Click or drag on the preview to move the text.
Choose an export size and format, select Create thumbnail and download it.

Example

Input

Background: screenshot from the video
Text: “I tried it for 30 days”, white with black outline
Export: 1280 × 720, JPEG

Result

A 1280 × 720 JPEG thumbnail, usually a few hundred KB.

About this tool

Thumbnails are mostly seen small, in search results and on phones. Big, short text with a strong outline stays readable at that size; long sentences do not. Use the “Darken image” slider when the background is busy, so the title stands out.

JPEG at 1280 × 720 is the safest choice: it looks sharp on most screens and stays well under the 2 MB mobile upload limit. Choose 1920 × 1080 or 3840 × 2160 when uploading from a computer for extra sharpness on large screens.

Known limitations

One text block per thumbnail. For several labels, logos or cut-out faces, use a full design app.
Fonts: Schibsted Grotesk is built in. The condensed and serif options use fonts installed on your device, so they can look different on other computers.
YouTube Help (checked October 2026) lists 16:9 thumbnails up to 3840 × 2160 px, at least 640 px wide, JPG or PNG, and up to 2 MB when uploading from the mobile app.
Uploading custom thumbnails on YouTube requires a verified account.

Frequently asked questions

What is the right YouTube thumbnail size?

A 16:9 image. YouTube Help recommends up to 3840 × 2160 px with a minimum width of 640 px; 1280 × 720 is a common, safe choice.

Can I use any image as a background?

Use your own images or ones you have the rights to. Thumbnails must also follow YouTube's community guidelines.

Is my image uploaded?

No. The thumbnail is drawn on a canvas in your browser and saved directly to your device.