LinkedIn Content Tools and Automation: A Strategy for Professional Growth
Stop spamming and start connecting. Learn how to use LinkedIn automation tools to amplify your personal brand without losing your authentic voice in 2026.
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For 2026, two master files cover almost every network. Use a 1080 x 1920 px vertical video (9:16, MP4, H.264) for Reels, TikTok, Shorts, Threads, video Pins and Stories. Use a 1080 x 1350 px portrait image (4:5, JPG) for feed posts on Facebook, Instagram, Threads and LinkedIn. The hard limits are what catch people out: images are capped at 2 MB on Bluesky, and video at 30 seconds on Google Business Profile.
Every spec below was checked against the network's own help center or developer docs in October 2026, and each table links its source. Values a network does not publish are marked "not officially published", and our own suggestions are labeled as recommendations.
Quick reference: safe default sizes
These are our recommendations, chosen to sit inside the official ranges listed in the sections below.
| Network | Feed image (recommended) | Vertical video (recommended) | Hard limits to watch |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1080 x 1350 (4:5), JPG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | Reels 3–90 s via API; 10 MB photo upload cap | |
| 1080 x 1350 (4:5), JPG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | Feed ratio 4:5 to 1.91:1; JPEG only via API; 8 MB images | |
| Threads | 1080 x 1350 (4:5), JPG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | Video max 5 min, 1 GB |
| 1080 x 1350 (4:5), JPG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | Image 5 MB and 3:1 to 4:5; video 1:2.4 to 2.4:1, max 15 min | |
| X | 1080 x 1350 (4:5), JPG | 720 x 1280 (9:16), MP4 | Image 5 MB; video ratio 1:3 to 3:1 |
| TikTok | Photo posts: 1080 x 1920, JPG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | API video max 10 min; photos max 1080p, 20 MB |
| YouTube | Thumbnail 1280 x 720 or larger (16:9) | Shorts: 1080 x 1920, up to 3 min | Long-form: 16:9 standard |
| 1000 x 1500 (2:3), JPG/PNG | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | Organic video 4 s to 5 min | |
| Google Business Profile | 720 x 720 or larger, JPG/PNG | 720p or higher, max 30 s | Photos 10 KB to 5 MB; video 75 MB |
| Bluesky | 1080 x 1350, JPG under 2 MB | 1080 x 1920 (9:16), MP4 | 4 images per post; video up to 300 MB |
| Mastodon | 1080 x 1350, JPG | MP4 under 99 MB | Limits vary by server |
X is the one network that needs a smaller vertical export: its developer docs recommend 720 x 1280 for portrait video and list a 1280 x 1024 dimension limit.
Meta does not publish one organic spec sheet for Pages, so these figures come from its developer docs and official Ads Guide.
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Page photo (API) | JPEG, BMP, PNG, GIF, TIFF; max 10 MB; PNG under 1 MB recommended; Facebook resizes images automatically | Graph API: Page photos |
| Feed image (Ads Guide) | JPG or PNG; 4:5; 1440 x 1800 px; max 30 MB | Meta Ads Guide: Facebook Feed image |
| Feed video (Ads Guide) | MP4, MOV or GIF; 4:5 recommended; 1440 x 1800 px; max 4 GB; 1 second to 241 minutes; minimum width 120 px | Meta Ads Guide: Facebook Feed video |
| Reels | MP4 recommended; 9:16; 1080 x 1920 recommended, 540 x 960 minimum; 24–60 fps; 3–90 seconds; file size not officially published | Meta Reels Publishing API |
| Page cover photo | Fastest loading at 851 x 315 px, sRGB JPG under 100 KB; minimum 400 x 150 px | Facebook Help: cover photo |
The 90-second Reels limit applies to the API, which is how scheduling tools publish.
These are the Instagram Content Publishing API rules that every scheduler has to follow.
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Feed image | JPEG only; max 8 MB; aspect ratio 4:5 to 1.91:1; width 320–1440 px (larger images are scaled down); sRGB | Instagram API: IG User Media |
| Reels | MOV or MP4; HEVC or H.264; 23–60 fps; max 1920 px wide; 9:16 recommended; 3 seconds to 15 minutes; max 300 MB | Same |
| Reel cover | JPEG; max 8 MB; 9:16 recommended (other ratios are cropped to the center 9:16) | Same |
| Story image | JPEG; max 8 MB; 9:16 recommended | Same |
| Story video | MOV or MP4; 3–60 seconds; max 100 MB; 9:16 recommended | Same |
| Carousel | Up to 10 images and/or videos; Reels cannot go in carousels | Same |
Meta's Ads Guide for Instagram Feed recommends 1440 x 1800 px at 4:5; 1440 px is also the API's maximum width. See the Social9 Instagram channel page for format notes.
Threads
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image | JPEG or PNG; max 8 MB; aspect ratio limit 10:1; width 320–1440 px; sRGB | Threads API documentation |
| Video | MOV or MP4; HEVC or H.264; 23–60 fps; max 1920 px wide; 9:16 recommended; up to 5 minutes; max 1 GB | Same |
| Carousel | 2 to 20 items | Same |
| Text | 500 characters | Same |
Threads accepts PNG; Instagram's API does not, so share JPEGs between the two.
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image | Max 5 MB; at least 552 x 276 px; 1080 px wide recommended; aspect ratio 3:1 to 4:5 (wider images are center-cropped); up to 20 photos per multi-photo post | LinkedIn Help: Share photos |
| Image formats (API) | JPG, GIF, PNG; under 36,152,320 pixels; GIFs up to 250 frames | LinkedIn Images API |
| Video | MP4, MOV, WEBM, MKV, AVI and others; 75 KB to 5 GB; 3 seconds (desktop) to 15 minutes; 256 x 144 to 4096 x 2304 px; aspect ratio 1:2.4 to 2.4:1; 10–60 fps | LinkedIn Help: video specs |
LinkedIn warns that some files, such as ProRes, may upload but fail to process.
X
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image | JPG, PNG, GIF, WEBP; max 5 MB | X API media best practices |
| Animated GIF | Max 15 MB; max 1280 x 1080 px; max 350 frames | Same |
| Video | Recommended 1280 x 720 (landscape), 720 x 1280 (portrait) or 720 x 720 (square); aspect ratio 1:3 to 3:1; 60 fps or less; 0.5 seconds to 20 minutes (125 minutes for Premium); max 8 GB (16 GB for Premium); H.264 High Profile and AAC-LC recommended | Same |
TikTok
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Video (TikTok Studio web upload) | MP4 or WebM; 720 x 1280 or higher; up to 30 minutes; under 10 GB | TikTok Support: creator tools |
| Video (Content Posting API) | MP4 (recommended), WebM, MOV; H.264 recommended; 23–60 fps; 360–4096 px on each side; max 4 GB; max 10 minutes via API | TikTok Content Posting API: media transfer guide |
| Photo posts (API) | JPEG or WebP; max 1080p; max 20 MB per image | Same |
TikTok publishes no recommended organic pixel size; we recommend 1080 x 1920 at 9:16, which clears the 720 x 1280 minimum. More on our TikTok channel page.
YouTube
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Long-form video | MP4 container; H.264; AAC-LC, Opus or Eclipsa Audio; keep the original frame rate (24, 25, 30, 48, 50, 60 fps); 16:9 is standard on desktop; bitrate tables cover 360p to 8K | YouTube Help: recommended upload encoding settings |
| Max upload | 256 GB or 12 hours, whichever is less; unverified accounts are capped at 15 minutes | YouTube Help: upload videos longer than 15 minutes |
| Shorts | Square or vertical video up to 3 minutes is treated as a Short; use a wider ratio such as 16:9 to avoid Shorts classification; exact pixel size not officially published | YouTube Help: Shorts up to 3 minutes |
| Thumbnail | 16:9 for videos, 9:16 for Shorts; up to 3840 x 2160 (videos) / 2160 x 3840 (Shorts); min width 640 px (videos) or min height 640 px (Shorts); JPG or PNG; 50 MB on desktop, 2 MB on mobile | YouTube Help: custom thumbnails |
A vertical clip of 3 minutes or less becomes a Short automatically; export at 16:9 if you want a regular video.
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image Pin | BMP, JPEG, PNG, TIFF, WEBP; max 20 MB on web | Pinterest Help: Review Pin specs |
| Image size | 2:3 recommended, 1000 x 1500 px; Pins taller than 2:3 may be cut off in feeds | Pinterest Help: ad specs |
| Video Pin (organic) | MP4 or M4V on web (MOV too on mobile); 4 seconds to 5 minutes; 9:16 / 1080 x 1920 recommended for full-bleed; 1:2, 2:3, 3:4, 4:5 and 1:1 also supported; max file size not officially published for organic Pins | Pinterest Help: Review Pin specs |
| Video ads | MP4, MOV, M4V; H.264 or H.265; up to 2 GB; 4 seconds to 15 minutes | Pinterest Help: ad specs |
Google Business Profile
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Photo | JPG or PNG; 10 KB to 5 MB; 720 x 720 px recommended; minimum 250 x 250 px | Google Business Profile Help: photos and videos |
| Video | Up to 30 seconds; up to 75 MB; 720p or higher | Same |
These are the tightest video limits of the 11 networks, so cut a 30-second version from your master edit.
Bluesky
Bluesky has no spec page; these limits come from its official post lexicons (the schema all Bluesky apps follow) and its blog.
| Format | Spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image | Up to 4 per post; up to 2 MB each (formerly 1 MB); any image type | atproto lexicon: app.bsky.embed.images |
| Video | One per post; MP4 in the post record (the app accepts .mp4, .mpeg, .webm and .mov uploads and converts them); up to 300 MB (formerly 100 MB) | atproto lexicon: app.bsky.embed.video, Bluesky blog: video launch |
| Video length | Current maximum not officially published as a spec; the January 2026 Bluesky blog post describes three-minute videos as the present ceiling | Same |
| Account limits | Email verification required before uploading video; daily upload cap (25 videos / 10 GB at launch, subject to change) | Bluesky blog: video launch |
The 2 MB image cap is the smallest on this list, so check exported file sizes.
Mastodon
Mastodon is a network of independent servers, and each server sets its own media limits. The defaults below come from the Mastodon docs; each server publishes its real values in configuration.media_attachments (Instance entity).
| Format | Default spec | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Image | PNG, JPG, HEIF, WEBP, AVIF; up to 16 MB; downscaled to 8.3 megapixels (enough for 3840 x 2160) | Mastodon docs: posting |
| Animated GIF | Up to 16 MB; converted to silent MP4; under 1 MP (1280 x 720) | Same |
| Video | MP4, M4V, MOV, WebM; up to 99 MB; transcoded to H.264 MP4, max 1300 kbps, max 120 fps; length not officially published | Same |
| Attachments | Up to 4 images, or 1 video, GIF or audio file per post (the per-server value is max_media_attachments) | Same, plus Instance entity |
Safe zones for vertical video
Apps draw their interface over vertical video: username and caption at the bottom, buttons down the right, sometimes a header at the top.
- Meta (Instagram and Facebook Reels and Stories): Meta's Ads Guide for Instagram Reels says to keep about the top 14%, the bottom 35% and 6% on each side free of text, logos and key visuals. On a 1080 x 1920 frame that is roughly the top 270 px, the bottom 670 px and 65 px on each side.
- TikTok: TikTok publishes downloadable safe-zone templates for ads and notes that the safe area shrinks as the caption gets longer (TikTok Ads: In-Feed ads). It does not publish fixed organic safe-zone percentages.
- YouTube Shorts, Pinterest, Threads: No official safe-zone figures are published.
Our recommendation: keep on-screen text inside Meta's 14/35/6 box for every network, with the hook in the upper-middle of the frame.
How to prepare one asset for 11 networks
- Shoot or design at 9:16, 1080 x 1920 or higher. Keep key elements inside the safe zone above.
- Lock a centered 4:5 area inside the vertical frame. A 1080 x 1350 crop taken from the middle of your 1080 x 1920 frame becomes your feed image for Facebook, Instagram, Threads, LinkedIn, X, Bluesky and Mastodon.
- Export the master video: MP4, H.264, AAC audio, 30 fps (or your source frame rate), 1080 x 1920. That one file meets the stated requirements for Reels, Threads, TikTok, Shorts, video Pins, LinkedIn and Bluesky. Make a 720 x 1280 copy for X, which recommends that size.
- Cut length variants from the same edit:
- 30 seconds or less for Google Business Profile, which also caps files at 75 MB.
- 90 seconds or less for Facebook Reels published through the API.
- 3 minutes or less for YouTube Shorts and Bluesky.
- 5 minutes or less for Threads and organic video Pins.
- Export the image set:
- 1080 x 1350 JPG, sRGB, under 2 MB. This one file stays inside the Bluesky, LinkedIn, X and Instagram caps.
- 1000 x 1500 (2:3) for Pinterest.
- 1280 x 720 or larger (16:9) for the YouTube thumbnail.
- 720 x 720 or larger for Google Business Profile.
- Add a 16:9 version only for long-form YouTube.
- Check the outliers: JPEG only for Instagram's API, Mastodon limits per server.
- Write captions and alt text per network. Bluesky, Mastodon and LinkedIn all support alt text.
Social9 writes and adapts the copy for each of the 11 networks; you supply media that fits the limits above. For ideas, try the free Instagram Reel ideas generator. For timing, see the best times to post on social media in 2026 and the complete scheduling guide. More guides are on the networks hub.
FAQ
What is the best size for a vertical video on social media in 2026?
1080 x 1920 px at 9:16, exported as an H.264 MP4. It meets the stated requirements for Instagram and Facebook Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts, Threads and Pinterest video Pins. For X, export a 720 x 1280 copy, which is the size X's developer docs recommend.
What image size works on the most networks?
A 1080 x 1350 px (4:5) JPEG in sRGB. It fits Instagram's and LinkedIn's ratio ranges and suits Facebook, Threads, X, Bluesky and Mastodon. Keep it under 2 MB for Bluesky.
Why did my Instagram post fail when it was scheduled?
Check the file against Instagram's API limits: JPEG only, 4:5 to 1.91:1, 8 MB per image, and Reels of 3 seconds to 15 minutes under 300 MB.
How long can a YouTube Short be?
Up to 3 minutes, for videos uploaded on or after October 15, 2024. Any square or vertical video of 3 minutes or less is classified as a Short.
What are Mastodon's media limits?
They depend on the server. The default Mastodon settings allow images up to 16 MB and video up to 99 MB, with 4 attachments per post. Each server publishes its own values in its instance configuration, so check yours before batch-scheduling.
Do these specs change often?
Yes. YouTube extended Shorts to 3 minutes in October 2024, and Bluesky raised its caps to 300 MB per video and 2 MB per image. Re-check the linked pages each quarter.
