YouTube Shorts safe zone
The short answer
A YouTube Short is 1080 × 1920 (9:16), and the usable area is roughly the centre-left of the frame once the right-hand action rail and the bottom title and progress rows are excluded — checked 31 July 2026.
Source: YouTube Help — Create YouTube Shorts · Last checked · CORROBORATED
YouTube publishes 9:16 (1080 × 1920) for Shorts but does not publish pixel safe zones. The overlay percentages here were measured from the current Shorts player and are marked as observed, not quoted.
Safe-zone workbench
1080 × 1920 · 9:16
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Why this asset is awkward
YouTube does not publish pixel safe zones for Shorts, which is why every guide gives a different number. What is verifiable is where the interface sits: a column of action buttons down the right, a title and channel row across the bottom, a progress bar under that, and a thin strip of chrome at the top.
This page maps those regions onto your own frame so you can see what survives. You can export the clean image for upload, or export a guide proof with the overlays burned in — useful for sending to an editor or a designer who is not in this tab.
Exact specification
| Asset | Pixels | Ratio | Formats | File limit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| YouTube Shorts frame | 1080 × 1920 | 9:16 | png, jpeg | Not published |
This one page also answers: youtube shorts thumbnail size, shorts safe area, youtube shorts dimensions. They describe the same asset, so they share a single URL rather than getting a thin page each.
What the overlays mean
The clear region is what remains after the observed interface areas are removed. It is measured from the current Shorts player rather than quoted from YouTube documentation, and it is deliberately conservative: a caption two lines long will eat further into the bottom.
- Shorts safe areakeep content here
- The central band left clear once the top chrome, the right-hand action rail and the bottom title, channel row and progress bar are accounted for. Measured from the current Shorts player, not published by YouTube.
- Action railcovered
- Like, dislike, comment, remix and share buttons stack down the right edge.
- Title and channel rowcovered
- The channel name, title and progress bar occupy the bottom strip.
Three things that go wrong
- 01
Keep captions out of the bottom fifth
Burned-in subtitles placed at the very bottom of the frame sit behind the title row and the progress bar on most devices.
- 02
The right edge belongs to YouTube
The action rail is always there. Compose with your subject left of centre and treat the right sixth as background.
- 03
Export the proof, not just the asset
If someone else is editing the video, send them the guide proof export so the safe zone is visible in their timeline.
Questions people actually ask
What is the YouTube Shorts safe zone?
There is no officially published pixel measurement. In practice, the usable area of a 1080 × 1920 Short excludes the right-hand action rail, roughly the bottom fifth for the title, channel row and progress bar, and a thin top strip. This tool draws those observed regions on your frame.
Is the Shorts safe zone the same as the TikTok safe zone?
They are similar in shape but not identical — TikTok reserves more of the bottom, and its own guidance says the area varies with caption length. If you post the same vertical video to both, compose for whichever is stricter, which is usually TikTok.
Can I export the overlay itself?
Yes. The guide-proof export burns the safe-zone regions into the image so you can share it with a collaborator. The clean export gives you the frame with no overlays for actual upload.
More YouTube sizes
The same job on other platforms
Need several of these at once? The One Image to Social Pack takes a single focal point and exports every destination you choose as one ZIP with a manifest.