One of the tasks that consumes a lot of our time as bloggers, is to create featured images for our blog that will also look good when we share the links on social media.
Besides finding the right image, we come across a couple of issues such as:
- which is the current size recommended (because social platforms change it frequently)
- what is the aspect ratio?
Since what matters to us is how the posts from our blog are going to look like, this post is focused only on the sizes for images in link shares on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
The Aspect Ratio and Recommended Sizes
Aspect ratio is the ratio of the width of a display compared to its height. At calculateaspectratio.com you can find an Aspect Ratio Calculator.
Now, instead of searching for that one great tutorial detailing every recommended size for this year, go to the source! Here are the current recommended sizes and the links so you can save them in your browser and learn more from them.
| Platform | Size | Aspect Ratio |
|---|---|---|
| 1200×630 | 19.1 | |
| 1200×630 | 19:1 | |
| 1200×600 | 2:1 | |
| Twenty Twenty Theme | 1200×720 | See below |
Best Featured Image Size for the Twenty Twenty Theme
When we learned about the details of our theme, we saw that the recommended size for featured images on our post is 2000×1200. So, if we want to make just one image to look good on the mentioned platforms, that size results into a 1200×720.
Therefore, all you need to do is to create one image of 1200×720, and then the social media platforms (mentioned above) will crop the rest of the height.
However: you need to make sure – while creating that image – to stay inside a height of 600px for what’s important to you. For instance: if you are adding text or there’s a group of people or a little detail on the top or/and bottom of your image, make sure that they are inside (and centered) among the 600px of the height.
I resized the following image by Pixabay, to fit the 1200×720 for the Twenty Twenty Theme (at 31%); but, as you can see, we’d be loosing a lot of the top.
When something like this happens (and you don’t have the tools to tweak it, with photoshop for instance), it’s up to you to sacrifice that height or search for a new image.
Resources:
- You can create free images at canva.com; you’ll find templates for social media designs that won’t match the sizes I mentioned but they do the work, of course. Remember the intention of this post is to create a featured image for the Twenty Twenty Theme that will look good on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn
- Find gorgeous free images at Pexels.com
