Instagram Story specification
| Dimensions | 1080 × 1920 pixels |
|---|---|
| Aspect ratio | 9:16 |
| Orientation | Portrait |
| Platform | |
| Best format | JPG for photographs, PNG for flat graphics and text |
| Dimension basis | Practical Image Cosmos canvas based on the linked platform guidance |
| Primary source | Meta Ads Guide ↗ |
| Last verified |
Why 1080 × 1920?
Stories and reels are full-screen vertical at 9:16. 1080 x 1920 matches that exactly, so the image fills the screen with no letterboxing. Few photos are already 9:16, and this page opens with Fit whole image selected, which never cuts anything off but fills the gaps with the background colour. A 3:4 phone portrait such as 3024 × 4032 shrinks to 1080 × 1440 and gains a 240-pixel band above and below it. Those bands land close to the areas covered by the profile row and the reply bar, so a fitted portrait photo often works without further editing. Switch to Crop to fill and the same photo is scaled to 1440 × 1920 instead, losing 180 pixels from the left and right. The crop is always taken from the exact centre and this page has no drag handle, so crop an off-centre subject first with the crop tool.
Before you upload
The top and bottom roughly 250 pixels sit under the profile row and interaction controls. Keep important content in the middle. A landscape phone photo is a poor match for a story frame. At 4032 × 3024, Fit whole image leaves it as a 1080 × 810 strip with 555 pixels of padding top and bottom, and Crop to fill keeps only the middle 1080 pixels of a 2560-pixel-wide resize, well under half the original scene. If you accept padding, choose a background colour that matches the edges of the photo rather than leaving the default white. That colour is painted across the whole canvas for JPG, PNG and WebP alike, so a story exported here never has a transparent background, even from a PNG with a cut-out subject.
Source and verification
Meta's Stories guidance uses a full-screen 9:16 canvas; 1080 by 1920 is the practical 1080p export. Check the Meta Ads Guide guidance ↗.
Last verified: . Platform requirements and visible crops can change, so check the linked primary guidance before a time-sensitive upload.
How to resize an image to 1080 × 1920
- Choose a JPG, PNG or WebP image.
- Pick whether to crop to fill the frame or fit the whole image inside it.
- Resize and download the result at exactly 1080 × 1920 pixels.
Frequently asked questions
What size is instagram story?
1080 × 1920 pixels, an aspect ratio of 9:16. Add an image above and it is resized to exactly that in your browser.
What aspect ratio is instagram story?
9:16. It is portrait, so this page starts on Fit whole image, which keeps a wider-shaped original whole and pads above and below it; Crop to fill trims its sides instead. Crops are always taken from the centre.
Which file format should I use for an Instagram story or reel?
JPG is the safest choice for photographs, and most platforms recompress uploads anyway. Use PNG for crisp flat graphics and text, and WebP when file size matters more than compatibility. No format keeps transparency here, because the resizer paints the background colour, white by default, behind every image.
Other image sizes
Need a size that isn't listed? Use the social media image resizer, or resize to any exact pixel size.