Get the dimensions wrong and your Short shows up with black bars or gets your text cropped by the interface. Here are the exact specs, plus the safe zone that keeps your captions and CTAs visible.
The exact YouTube Shorts dimensions
- Resolution: 1080 × 1920 pixels.
- Aspect ratio: 9:16 (vertical).
- Length: up to 3 minutes.
- Format: MP4 (H.264) is the safe, universal choice.
Square (1:1) and other vertical ratios also qualify as Shorts, but 9:16 is the only one that fills the entire phone screen edge to edge. Anything else gets letterboxed, which looks unpolished and wastes space.
Mind the safe zone
The full 1080×1920 frame is visible, but the edges are covered by the UI — the title, channel name, like/comment buttons, and the caption all sit on top of your video. If you put text near the bottom or right edge, it gets hidden.
- Keep important text and faces in the center of the frame.
- Avoid the bottom ~15% (caption + progress) and right edge (action buttons).
- Leave breathing room at the top for the title overlay.
This is the same thinking as regular thumbnails — you can preview safe areas with the thumbnail safe-area previewer to get a feel for where the UI eats the frame.
Shorts vs. regular video specs
Don't confuse Shorts dimensions with regular YouTube video or thumbnail specs. Horizontal videos are 16:9 (1920×1080), and custom thumbnails are also 16:9 — see YouTube thumbnail size. Shorts are the vertical exception.
Hook fast or lose the viewer
Size is the easy part — retention is what makes a Short succeed. The first second decides everything in the vertical feed, so lead with your strongest hook. Use the Shorts hook generator for openers, and see shorts hook examples for what works.
Make Shorts that get watched
Tubely's free tools help you write hooks, titles, and descriptions for Shorts — and manage every channel from one Mac app.