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Instagram and Facebook Ad Safe Zone Checker

Upload an ad and see which parts Reels, Stories and Feed cover with the profile, caption and call-to-action button, and which parts they crop. The overlay uses the percentages Meta publishes in its Ads Guide. Free, no signup, and your file never leaves the browser.

Specs checked against Meta's Ads Guide on October 12, 2026.

Sample ad creative with a headline at the top and an offer at the bottom
Profile and account name
Caption, call-to-action button and controls

Images and videos. Drag a file onto the preview or use the button. Your file stays in this browser; nothing is uploaded to a server.

Sample creative

1,080 × 1,920 px · 9:16

Reels (Instagram and Facebook)

On your file, keep text, logos and the product out of the top 269 px, the bottom 672 px and 65 px on each side. That leaves a safe area of 950 × 979 px.

Ads with a disclaimer should keep the bottom 40% clear instead of 35%.

Every placement at a glance

  • Reels9:16 · 1,440 × 2,560

    Fits the frame

    Above the minimum, below the recommended size

  • Stories9:16 · 1,440 × 2,560

    Fits the frame

    Above the minimum, below the recommended size

  • Feed4:5 · 1,440 × 1,800

    15% cut off top and bottom

    Below Meta's recommended minimum

  • Square1:1 · 1,080 × 1,080

    22% cut off top and bottom

    Meets the recommended resolution

Making every ratio by hand is the slow part. Build feed, square and vertical versions of each concept from one product URL.

Try it on a product URL

Meta ad safe zones in pixels

For 9:16 ads in Reels and Stories, Meta asks you to keep the top 14%, the bottom 35% and 6% on each side free of text, logos and other key elements. Those areas sit under the profile name, the caption and the call-to-action button, and they are the first to go when a taller phone zooms the creative.

Safe zone margins for 9:16 Meta ads by file size
File sizeTop (14%)Bottom (35%)Each side (6%)Safe area
1,080 × 1,920269 px672 px65 px950 × 979 px
1,440 × 2,560358 px896 px86 px1,268 × 1,306 px
1,080 × 1,920 with a disclaimer269 px768 px (40%)65 px950 × 883 px

Facebook and Instagram ad sizes by placement

Two files cover almost every placement: 4:5 for Feed and 9:16 for Stories and Reels. A square 1:1 version adds Facebook's right column and Marketplace.

Recommended Meta ad sizes by placement
PlacementRatioRecommendedKeep clear
Reels (Instagram and Facebook)9:161,440 × 2,560 pxTop 14%, bottom 35%, sides 6%
Stories (Instagram and Facebook)9:161,440 × 2,560 pxTop 14%, bottom 35%, sides 6%
Feed 4:5 (Instagram and Facebook)4:51,440 × 1,800 pxBottom and side edges on Instagram (no published percentage)
Square 1:1 (Feed, right column, Marketplace)1:11,080 × 1,080 pxNo published safe zone

Facebook lists 1440 × 1800 px as the recommended minimum for 4:5 Feed images. Facebook's right column and Marketplace recommend at least 1200 × 1200 px. For every format and the text limits, see the Meta ad specs cheat sheet.

What Meta does with a creative in the wrong ratio

  • Feed crops tall media. Instagram Feed accepts 1.91:1 to 9:16 but crops anything taller than 4:5, so a 9:16 image loses about 15% at the top and bottom. Headlines near the edge disappear first.
  • Stories and Reels letterbox wide media. A 1:1 or 4:5 file in a 9:16 placement is shown whole with a background above and below. Nothing is cut, but the ad looks borrowed from Feed.
  • Tall phones zoom. On screens taller than 9:16, Meta may zoom the creative to fill the screen, which crops outside the safe zone, or show it at 9:16 with black space.
  • Desktop Facebook Feed shows video at 1:1. A 4:5 video gets black bars on either side on a computer.

Since Meta started removing placement controls from ad sets, the file you upload is the main control you have over how an ad looks in each placement. For video, the 9:16 production specs guide covers frame rate, codecs and captions.

Check it once more in Ads Manager

The Instagram interface shifts between app versions and devices, so treat this overlay as the design check and Ads Manager as the final one. When you build the ad, turn on the safe zone guardrail in the creative preview: the safe area is the part inside the yellow overlay.

Frequently asked questions

What is the safe zone for Instagram Reels ads?

Meta's Ads Guide asks you to keep the top 14%, the bottom 35% and 6% on each side of a 9:16 Reels ad free of text, logos and other key elements. On a 1080 × 1920 file that is 269 px at the top, 672 px at the bottom and 65 px per side, which leaves a safe area of about 950 × 979 px. Reels ads with a disclaimer should keep the bottom 40% clear.

Is the Instagram Stories safe zone the same as Reels?

Yes, for ads. Meta's Ads Guide gives Stories ads the same 9:16 guidance as Reels: roughly 14% at the top, 35% at the bottom and 6% on the sides. An older Help Center article still quotes 20% for the Stories bottom; the larger 35% covers both.

What size should a Facebook or Instagram ad image be?

Meta recommends 4:5 at 1440 × 1800 px for Facebook and Instagram Feed, and 9:16 at 1440 × 2560 px for Stories and Reels. Square 1:1 at 1080 × 1080 px still works in Feed, and Facebook's right column and Marketplace recommend at least 1200 × 1200 px. Making each concept in 4:5 and 9:16 covers almost every placement without cropping.

Does Instagram Feed crop a 9:16 ad?

Instagram Feed accepts media from 1.91:1 to 9:16 but crops anything taller than 4:5 down to 4:5, so a 9:16 image loses about 15% at the top and at the bottom. Nine-by-sixteen video in Instagram Feed follows the Reels and Stories safe zone instead.

Is my file uploaded anywhere?

No. The checker reads your image or video inside your browser to measure it and draw the overlay. Nothing is sent to AdRiseLab or stored, and closing the tab discards it.

Does this work for TikTok safe zones?

No. This checker uses Meta's published percentages. TikTok publishes its safe zone as downloadable template files in TikTok Ads Manager Help, and the safe area there shrinks as the caption gets longer, so use those templates for TikTok.

Sources

Get every concept in 4:5, 1:1 and 9:16

Paste a product URL and AdRiseLab builds image ads in feed, square and vertical formats, so nothing has to be resized or cropped by hand. You review every concept, and nothing reaches Meta until you approve.

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