Instagram Story Cover Size and Design Tips for 2026

Instagram Stories display at 1080×1920px, a 9:16 vertical frame. That ratio hasn't changed in years and still covers TikTok as well, so a design built at this size works across both. The shape is what trips people up, not the exact pixels.

Don't just crop a square cover

A square design cropped into 9:16 usually loses either the top or bottom of the image and can cut the title off entirely. Compose for the vertical shape from the start instead of resizing something built for a different ratio.

Keep key elements out of the top and bottom safe zones

Instagram's own UI, the profile icon at the top, the reply bar at the bottom, sits over roughly the outer 15% of the frame on each end. Keep your title and any important imagery inside the middle two-thirds of the vertical space so nothing important gets covered.

Use the extra height, don't just stretch

A tall frame has room a square doesn't, stack a kicker line above the main title, or let the image breathe with more empty space above and below the text. Stretching a square composition vertically usually looks distorted rather than intentional.

In Bolicover, the Story format composes fresh at the full 9:16 canvas rather than cropping your square design, so the layout above is built in rather than something you have to fight for.