The Complete Guide to Facebook Cover Photo Size in 2026
Your Facebook cover photo is the first thing visitors see when they land on your profile or business page. It spans the full width of your timeline, taking up more visual real estate than any other element. Getting the Facebook cover photo size right is not just a technical detail -- it is a branding decision that affects how people perceive you or your business within the first few seconds.
In 2026, the recommended Facebook cover photo size is 820 x 312 pixels. This dimension ensures your cover image displays sharply on desktop browsers. On mobile devices, the visible area is slightly different: Facebook crops the cover photo to approximately 640 x 360 pixels. That means you should keep the most important elements -- logos, text, key visuals -- centered in the image to guarantee they are visible on every device.
Understanding Facebook Cover Photo Dimensions on Desktop vs. Mobile
One of the biggest frustrations with Facebook cover photos is the discrepancy between desktop and mobile display. On desktop, the cover photo renders at its full 820 x 312 resolution with slight cropping on the top and bottom. On mobile, the same image is cropped to a taller aspect ratio, meaning the sides get trimmed while more of the top and bottom becomes visible.
The practical takeaway is straightforward: design your cover photo at 820 x 312, but place all critical content within a safe zone roughly 640 pixels wide and centered horizontally. Our resizer tool locks the aspect ratio for you automatically, so you only need to focus on cropping the right area.
Facebook Profile Picture Size Requirements
Facebook profile pictures are uploaded as a square image of at least 170 x 170 pixels. The platform renders them as a circle, so anything in the corners of your square image will be clipped. For best results, position your face or logo in the very center of the frame and leave padding around the edges. While you can upload a larger image (Facebook recommends at least 360 x 360), it will always be scaled down to 170 x 170 on desktop and 128 x 128 on mobile.
Facebook Event Cover Photo Size
If you are promoting events on Facebook, the recommended event cover image size is 1200 x 628 pixels. This is a wider format compared to the standard cover photo, and it is specifically designed to look good in event listings, news feeds, and the event page itself. A high-quality event cover can be the difference between someone scrolling past and someone clicking to learn more about your event.
Make sure to include the event name, date, and a compelling visual. Avoid placing critical text near the very edges since Facebook may crop slightly on different devices.
Facebook Group Cover Image Size
Facebook groups use the largest cover image format at 1640 x 856 pixels. This generous canvas gives you room for bold visuals, community branding, and welcome messages. Since groups are community-focused, many admins use this space to communicate group rules, the group mission, or upcoming community events.
Keep in mind that the group name and buttons overlay the bottom portion of the cover image, so avoid placing important content in the lower third. Test how your cover looks on mobile before finalizing, as the crop can differ significantly from the desktop view.
Image File Format and Quality Tips
Facebook supports JPG, PNG, and GIF file formats for cover photos and profile pictures. For photographic images (landscapes, portraits, product shots), JPG generally produces the best balance between file size and quality. For images with text, logos, or flat colors, PNG preserves sharper edges and avoids compression artifacts.
Facebook compresses all uploaded images, which can degrade quality. To minimize visible compression artifacts, upload images that are slightly larger than the minimum required dimensions and keep file sizes under 100KB for cover photos. Our tool automatically optimizes output quality while keeping files under 2MB.
Cover Photo Design Best Practices
Beyond getting the dimensions right, consider these design principles for cover photos that convert:
- Use brand colors consistently so your cover photo reinforces your visual identity.
- Include a clear call to action when appropriate -- for example, directing visitors to your website, upcoming event, or latest offer.
- Update your cover photo seasonally or when launching campaigns to keep your profile feeling fresh and current.
- Test on multiple devices before publishing. What looks great on a 27-inch monitor may crop oddly on a 5-inch phone screen.
- Avoid text-heavy designs. Facebook previously enforced a 20% text rule on ads; while this is less strict for organic cover photos, clean designs with minimal text tend to perform better.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Even experienced social media managers make these errors when setting up Facebook cover photos:
- Uploading low-resolution images that look fine on your screen but appear blurry on high-density (Retina) displays.
- Placing important content at the edges where it gets cropped on mobile or overlapped by the profile picture and buttons.
- Ignoring the mobile crop entirely. Always preview on a phone before finalizing.
- Using the same image for every format. A cover photo and a group cover have very different aspect ratios -- one size does not fit all.
- Forgetting to check Facebook guidelines. Cover photos must comply with community standards and should not contain misleading information.
How Our Free Tool Compares to Alternatives
Professional design tools like Adobe Express and Canva offer Facebook cover photo templates, but they often require sign-ups, watermark free assets behind paywalls, or slow your workflow with feature-heavy interfaces. Our Facebook Cover Photo Resizer is purpose-built for one job: getting your image to the exact right size, fast.
Everything runs in your browser -- no account needed, no image uploads to external servers, and no waiting. Simply upload, crop, and download. For creators and small business owners who already have their design ready and just need the correct dimensions, this is the fastest path from image to Facebook-ready file.