How to Create or Add A YouTube Channel Art

YouTube channel art is essentially YouTube version of the Facebook cover photo.

Channel art features in a prominent place on your YouTube channel, which means it is absolutely vital for any YouTube channel to use customized art to share your personality or more about your brand with your audience.

The perfect sizes for YouTube channel art

The best place to start with your channel art is with the optimal image size that works across multiple devices.

For the best results, YouTube recommends uploading a single 2560 x 1440 pixel image.

Minimum width: 2048 X 1152 px. This is the “safe area”, where text and logos are guaranteed not to be cut off when displayed on different devices.

Maximum width: 2560 X 423 px. This means that the “safe area” is always visible; the areas to each side of the channel art are visible depending on the viewers browser size.

File size: 4MB or smaller recommended.

YouTube also supplies a Channel Art Template in both PNG and PSD formats to help your figure out the perfect layout for your channel are and how it will look across platforms:

2 top tips for YouTube channel art

1. Ensure any text and logos are within the safe area

The text and logo safe area is the 1546 x 423 pixel space at the center of the YouTube channel art template. This is the area that will be displayed on YouTube when your channel is viewed on desktop screens.

Be careful to ensure any important information such as branding, text, taglines, and key images are within this space so that it’s always displayed as part of your channel art across every device.

2. Consider your channel links

YouTube enables you to add links to your channel and these are displayed in the bottom right corner of your channel art.

How to add art to your YouTube channel

If you are just setting up your YouTube channel, you will notice the channel art space is blank with a clear call to action to add your art:

Once you have clicked this link, you will see a popup window that gives you the option to upload your own custom channel art.

Adjusting the crop

Once you have uploaded your channel art, YouTube allows you to adjust the cropping of your image so that you can ensure it is all lined up correctly.

Changing your current channel art

If you already have some channel art in place and would like to update it, head over to your channel homepage. From here, move your mouse over your cover art and you will notice a little edit button appear in the top right-hand corner:

Once you have clicked on this icon, you can update your channel art.