Digital Specifications Guide

Here are the basic specs for many of the platforms available to your campaign

While we list the majority of creative sizes, some may not be needed. Please refer back to our initial proposal to see which campaigns we have set forth.

Naming Conventions:

Creative Size Name Campaign Type Example
728×90 ClientName Campaign-Name _Leaderboard 728x90_CLIENT-NAME-CAMPAIGN-NAME_Leaderboard.jpg
160×600 ClientName Campaign-Name _Skyscraper 160x600_CLIENT-NAME-CAMPAIGN-NAME_Skyscraper.jpg
300×250 ClientName Campaign-Name _BigBox 300x250_CLIENT-NAME-CAMPAIGN-NAME_BigBox.jpg

Please provide all files in a ZIP archive.

Newsfeed:

These need to abide by the 80/20 rule. You can use this test to see if they will pass: https://www.facebook.com/ads/tools/text_overlay

Design recommendations

Use these guidelines to design an ad that looks good everywhere it appears on Facebook. The recommended image size ensures your image always looks high quality. The recommended text length is how many characters of ad copy could be displayed on smaller screens.

Recommended image size:
1,200 x 628 pixels
Text:
125 characters
Headline:
25 characters
Link description:
30 characters

Your image should include minimal text. Test your image/text ratio at the link above.

Call to action

Add a call-to-action button to tell people what you want them to do when they see your ad.


Instagram:

These need to abide by the 80/20 rule. You can use this test to see if they will pass: https://www.facebook.com/ads/tools/text_overlay

Design recommendations

Image ratio: 1:1
Image size: 1080 x 1080 pixels
Caption: Text only, 125 characters recommended

Technical requirements

Image ratio: Landscape (1.91:1), Square (1:1), Vertical (4:5)
Minimum resolution: 600 x 315 pixels (1.91:1 landscape) / 600 x 600 pixels (1:1 square) / 600 x 750 pixels (4:5 vertical)
Caption: Text only, max 2,200 characters Limited support for landscape format
Maximum resolution: 1936 x 1936 pixels
File type: .jpg or .png
Maximum size: 30MB

Your image may not include more than 20% text. Test your image/text ratio at the link above.

Call to action

A full width call-to-action will appear below your ad’s photo. A click on the call-to-action itself will immediately link offsite. A click on your ad’s image will highlight the call-to-action in blue, confirming a person’s intent to go offsite. If you do not choose a call-to-action, the “Learn More” call-to-action that links to your website will automatically appear below your ad.


Video:

Design recommendations

Use these guidelines to design an ad that looks good everywhere it appears on Facebook. The recommended video and thumbnail image guidelines ensures your ad always looks high quality. The recommended text length is how many characters of ad copy could be displayed on smaller screens.

Text: 90 characters
Aspect Ratios Supported: 16:9 (full landscape) to 9:16 (full portrait)
Mobile in feed: Videos will be rendered as is up to 2:3, with masking to 2:3 for aspect ratios between 2:3 to 9:16
Desktop in feed and desktop player: For desktop in feed, vertical video will continue to be letter-boxed to 1:1. For desktop player, vertical video will be 9:16 with no black bar letter-boxing
Recommended aspect ratio for vertical video: 9:16 (full portrait), ensuring core content falls in the 2:3 mask for mobile News Feed
Video: H.264 video compression, high profile preferred, square pixels, fixed frame rate, progressive scan. 15 seconds for Instream and Instagram stories.
Format: .mp4 container ideally with leading moov atom, no edit lists
Audio: Stereo AAC audio compression, 128kbps + preferred

Technical requirements

Caption length text: Text only, max 2,200 characters
Recommended aspect ratio: 1.77:1 / 16:9 / HDTV, 2:39:1 or 2:40:1 / Widescreen / 9:16, 1:1 / 1.33:1 / 4:3 / SDTV, 1.375:1 / film, 1.85:1 / Film, no pillar boxing or letter boxing
Length: 120 minutes max
Minimum resolution: Minimum width 500 pixels, length dependent on video aspect ratio
File Size: Up to 4GB max
Frames: 30fps max
Format: Full list of supported file formats here
Bitrate: No limit to bitrate file if you’re using two pass encoding, as long as long as your file doesn’t exceed 1 GB. Otherwise, 8 megabits per second for 1080p and 4 megabits per second for 720p.

Your image should include minimal text. Test your image/text ratio at the link above.


Slideshow design guidelines

Design Recommendations

The carousel format allows you to showcase up to 10 images or videos within a single ad, each with its own link. With more creative space within an ad, you can highlight different products, showcase specific details about one product, service or promotion, or tell a story about your brand that develops across each carousel card.

Minimum number of cards: 2
Maximum number of cards: 10
Image file type: jpg or png
Video file type: Supported file formats
Video maximum file size: 4GB
Video length: up to 240 minutes
Image maximum file size: 30MB
Recommended resolution: at least 1080 x 1080px
Recommended ratio: 1:1
Text: 125 characters
Headline: 40 characters
Link Description: 20 characters

Images that consist of more than 20% text may experience reduced delivery. Learn more about text in images.

Technical Requirements

Aspect Ratio Tolerance: 3%

Plain text tweet

Tweet copy: 280 characters (note: each link used reduces character count by 24 characters, leaving 256 characters for Tweet copy.)

Webcard

Tweet copy: 116 characters are available (24 characters are used for images).
Website title length: 70 characters. Please note — depending on device and app settings this description may truncate. Although not guaranteed, limiting the description to 50 characters should ensure that truncation won’t occur across most devices.
Image size: 800 x 418 pixels (max 3mb)
Aspect ratio: 1.91:1
File types: PNG and JPEG are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.

Single image tweet

Note: When using the same image across desktop and mobile, we recommend sticking to the mobile specs — which will work across both. Selecting desktop specifications may result in cropping on mobile.

Mobile
Tweet copy: 280 characters are available when composing Tweets using www.twitter.com and our native applications. In ads.twitter.com, 280 characters are available in the creatives dropdown and via the blue compose button in the upper right hand corner of your ads dashboard.
Image width/height: Minimum 600 X 335 pixels, although larger images (for example 1200 X 675) will be better optimized for when users click to expand images.
Aspect ratio: 16:9.
Image file size: Max 15mb on twitter.com and 3mb on ads.twitter.com.
File types: PNG, JPEG, or GIF are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.
Desktop
Tweet copy: 280 characters are available when composing Tweets using www.twitter.com and our native applications. In ads.twitter.com, 280 characters are available in the creatives dropdown and via the blue compose button in the upper right hand corner of your ads dashboard.
Image width/height: We recommend a minimum width of 600 pixels, although larger images (for example 1200 pixel images) will be better optimized for when users click to expand images. Any height is acceptable, although if the height exceeds the width, we will crop to 1:1 (see aspect ratio details).
Aspect ratio: Any aspect between 2:1 and 1:1 is acceptable. For example, 1200 X 600 (2:1), 1200 X 800 (3:2) or 1200 X 1200 (1:1). After 1:1 aspect ratio (for example, 1200 X 1400) we’ll crop to a 1:1 aspect ratio.
Image file size: Max 15mb on twitter.com & 3mb on ads.twitter.com.
File types: PNG, JPEG, or GIF are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.

Promoted video

Tweet copy: Media Studio and Ads Manager allow the full 280 characters when tweeting.
Title (under video): 70 characters.
Description (under video): 200 characters.
File type: MP4 or MOV.
File size: 1GB Max
Max time: 2 minutes and 20 seconds (Select advertisers are eligible to request an increase up to 10 minutes. Please contact your Twitter Account Manager for more information.)
Video codec recommendation: H264, Baseline, Main, or High profile with a 4:2:0 color space.
Frame rate recommendation: 29.97FPS or 30FPS. Higher is acceptable. If the available video has a lower frame rate don’t try to “upsample” it.
Video bitrate recommendation: 6,000 – 10,000k (recommended 6,000k) for 1080p. 5,000k – 8,000k (recommended 5,000k) for 720p).
Audio codec recommendation: AAC LC (low complexity).
Recommended aspect ratio: 16:9 or 1:1

Thumbnail

Supported file types: PNG or JPEG.
Recommended aspect ratio: 16:9 or 1:1
Minimum size: 640 pixels by 360 pixels.
Max size: 5mb

Lead card

Tweet copy: Tweet copy: 256 characters are available (24 characters are used for the Conversational Card)
Hashtag: 21 characters.
Pre-populated user Tweet: 116 characters.
Headline: 23 characters.
Thank you text: 23 characters.
Thank you URL (optional): 23 characters.
Video (if used): Same specifications mentioned in the “Promoted video” section.
Image Specs (if used): File size: 3 MB, Aspect ratio: 5:2, Image width / height: 800 X 320PX, File formats: JPEG, PNG, non-animated GIFs.

Plain text tweet

Tweet copy: 280 characters (note: each link used reduces character count by 24 characters, leaving 256 characters for Tweet copy.)

Webcard

Tweet copy: 116 characters are available (24 characters are used for images).
Website title length: 70 characters. Please note — depending on device and app settings this description may truncate. Although not guaranteed, limiting the description to 50 characters should ensure that truncation won’t occur across most devices.
Image size: 800 x 418 pixels (max 3mb)
Aspect ratio: 1.91:1
File types: PNG and JPEG are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.

Single image tweet

Note: When using the same image across desktop and mobile, we recommend sticking to the mobile specs — which will work across both. Selecting desktop specifications may result in cropping on mobile.

Mobile
Tweet copy: 280 characters are available when composing Tweets using www.twitter.com and our native applications. In ads.twitter.com, 280 characters are available in the creatives dropdown and via the blue compose button in the upper right hand corner of your ads dashboard.
Image width/height: Minimum 600 X 335 pixels, although larger images (for example 1200 X 675) will be better optimized for when users click to expand images.
Aspect ratio: 16:9.
Image file size: Max 15mb on twitter.com and 3mb on ads.twitter.com.
File types: PNG, JPEG, or GIF are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.
Desktop
Tweet copy: 280 characters are available when composing Tweets using www.twitter.com and our native applications. In ads.twitter.com, 280 characters are available in the creatives dropdown and via the blue compose button in the upper right hand corner of your ads dashboard.
Image width/height: We recommend a minimum width of 600 pixels, although larger images (for example 1200 pixel images) will be better optimized for when users click to expand images. Any height is acceptable, although if the height exceeds the width, we will crop to 1:1 (see aspect ratio details).
Aspect ratio: Any aspect between 2:1 and 1:1 is acceptable. For example, 1200 X 600 (2:1), 1200 X 800 (3:2) or 1200 X 1200 (1:1). After 1:1 aspect ratio (for example, 1200 X 1400) we’ll crop to a 1:1 aspect ratio.
Image file size: Max 15mb on twitter.com & 3mb on ads.twitter.com.
File types: PNG, JPEG, or GIF are recommended. We do not accept BMP or TIFF files.

Promoted video

Tweet copy: Media Studio and Ads Manager allow the full 280 characters when tweeting.
Title (under video): 70 characters.
Description (under video): 200 characters.
File type: MP4 or MOV.
File size: 1GB Max
Max time: 2 minutes and 20 seconds (Select advertisers are eligible to request an increase up to 10 minutes. Please contact your Twitter Account Manager for more information.)
Video codec recommendation: H264, Baseline, Main, or High profile with a 4:2:0 color space.
Frame rate recommendation: 29.97FPS or 30FPS. Higher is acceptable. If the available video has a lower frame rate don’t try to “upsample” it.
Video bitrate recommendation: 6,000 – 10,000k (recommended 6,000k) for 1080p. 5,000k – 8,000k (recommended 5,000k) for 720p).
Audio codec recommendation: AAC LC (low complexity).
Recommended aspect ratio: 16:9 or 1:1

Thumbnail

Supported file types: PNG or JPEG.
Recommended aspect ratio: 16:9 or 1:1
Minimum size: 640 pixels by 360 pixels.
Max size: 5mb

Lead card

Tweet copy: Tweet copy: 256 characters are available (24 characters are used for the Conversational Card)
Hashtag: 21 characters.
Pre-populated user Tweet: 116 characters.
Headline: 23 characters.
Thank you text: 23 characters.
Thank you URL (optional): 23 characters.
Video (if used): Same specifications mentioned in the “Promoted video” section.
Image Specs (if used): File size: 3 MB, Aspect ratio: 5:2, Image width / height: 800 X 320PX, File formats: JPEG, PNG, non-animated GIFs.

Important: SSL capability is now required. LinkedIn requires that ads, creative assets, landing pages and tracking elements are requested using a secure connection (https). LinkedIn pages will be loaded over a secure connection. Secure connections (https) are achieved using SSL (Secure Sockets Layer), which is the standard security technology. To avoid warning messages in the user’s browser, we require that ads, creative assets, and tracking elements are requested using a secure connection. Additionally, all subsequent requests to media assets or tracking URLs must also use a secure connection (https://). The only part of an ad permitted to be non-SSL compliant is the click URL (target landing page).

Regions Global
Dimensions 300×250
IAB name Big box
File types HTML5 – must be third party served GIF, JPG, PNG
Size limit HTML5: 200kb Other: 40kb
Border 1px (border required only with white and transparent backgrounds)
Rich Media Options Yes
Animation Limit 15 sec for video quality autoplay, 30 seconds otherwise (30 seconds is the total maximum length of all animation, including all loop)
Video/Audio On user click
3rd Party Tracking Yes
Sound/audio
  1. Sound must be user click-initiated with clear icon or appropriate text.
  2. All sound must be muted/paused at start of animation.
Rich media
  1. Full-motion video must be user-initiated.
  2. Auto-play video should be 15 seconds max in length.
  3. All sound must be user-initiated.
  4. Roll-over ads must have a roll-over hotspot of up to 1/8 size of the ad. Entire ad cannot be roll-over.
  5. Must include clear CLOSE X button in at least 10 pt type (single “X” not acceptable).
  6. Mouse-over creative assets must retract on mouse-off.
  7. Mouse-over expansion should include language specifying functionality (e.g. Roll-over to learn more).
  8. Video ads must be third-party served.

All creatives should have the following elements:

Headline Maximum of 55 characters, minimum of 15 characters, including spaces
Body Maximum of 120 characters, minimum of 25 characters, including spaces
Image The image for native ads should not contain any text overlay. We accept 1000×750, 1200×1200, 1200×627, 1200×800, 310×310, 600×500, 600×600 and 712×400 pixel images in the following formats: JPG, PNG, GIF. Optimal file size is 750kb. The creative must be high resolution (300 pixels per inch and above)
Destination URL
Brand logo On a white background

Video ad specs requirements

All creatives should have the following elements:

Video file 16:9 aspect ratio Max. duration of 5 minutes (for native outstream) Max. file size of 150 mb Preferred formats MP4 and WebM VAST 2.0 and VAST 3.0 accepted
Destination URL
Big box Rectangle Wide skyscraper Leaderboard
Initial dimensions: (WxH in pixels) 300×250 180×150 160×600 728×90
Maxiumum expanded dimensions: (WxH in pixels) Expansion not allowed for this unit Expansion not allowed for this unit Expansion not allowed for this unit Expansion not allowed for this unit
Max initial file load size: 200 KB 80 KB 200 KB 200 KB
Host-initiated subload: Not allowed for this unit Not allowed for this unit Not allowed for this unit Not allowed for this unit
Animation/video guidelines: 15 sec max animation length Video not allowed for this unit 15 sec max animation length Video not allowed for this unit 15 sec max animation length Video not allowed for this unit 15 sec max animation length Video not allowed for this unit
Z-index range: 0 – 4,999 0 – 4,999 0 – 4,999 0 – 4,999

Other display specs:

Half page ad unit 300 x 600
Mobile leaderboard 320 x 50
Full banner 468 x 60
Skyscraper 120 x 600
Large rectangle 336 x 280
Small square 200 x 200
Rectangle 180 x 150
Square 250 x 250
Square button 125 x 125
Half banner 234 x 60
Top banner 930 x 180
Panorama 980 x 120
Super leaderboard 970 x 90
Vertical rectangle 240 x 400

HTML5 Setup

Packaging the assets

The following packaging options are available for HTML5 creatives:

  • A single HTML file
  • A single root/main HTML file with supporting images
  • A single root/main HTML file with supporting images and additional supporting JS and CSS files.

When packaging HTML5 creatives, zip the assets, not the folder containing the assets.

Single HTML file

All information for serving the creative (with the exception of commonly used JavaScript and CSS libraries) should be included in the HTML file. The maximum HTML file size is 200 kilobytes.

Zip compressed file

  • All files for displaying the creative (with the exception of commonly used JavaScript and CSS libraries) should be included in the Zip file.
  • The primary HTML file should be located in the root of the zip file.
  • Zip files must contain no more than 100 files, including at least one HTML file for use as the initiating file for display. (We suggest keeping the file count low to minimize browser performance impact.)
  • The maximum size of any automatically started video should be less than 1.1 megabytes
  • The maximum size of any individual file is 2.2 megabytes.
  • The maximum size of the primary HTML file should be 100 kilobytes.
  • The Zip file should be smaller than 10 megabytes compressed and the contents should be smaller than 12 megabytes uncompressed.
  • Only file types of HTML, JS, CSS, JPG, JPEG, GIF, PNG, and SVG may be included in the Zip file.

ClickTAG Parameters (Important)

You can use single quotes (‘) or double quotes (“) in your code, but you cannot mix them. Use either all single quote or all double quotes. To correctly call the clickthrough page through the backup ad image, you must supply a clickthrough parameter for that purpose. If you wish to also use that clickthrough URL in your HTML5 creative, you can configure the creative to use the Backup Clickthrough URL as the Default Clickthrough URL.

Retrieving the Click-Tag Parameter

The Click Tag URL can be retrieved using the following code: function getParameterByName(name) {
name = name.replace(/[\[]/, "\\[").replace(/[\]]/, "\\]");
var regex = new RegExp("[\\?&]" + name + "=([^&#]*)"),
results = regex.exec(location.search);
return results === null ? "" :
decodeURIComponent(results[1].replace(/\+/g, " "));
}
var clickTag = getParameterByName(<Your Parameter Name>);
**Insert the click tag immediately before the </head> tag

Assets overview

Required/Optional TrueView Auction
Where ads appear N/A YouTube videos Video partner sites and apps on the Display Network
YouTube video URL Required The video must be uploaded to YouTube (if YouTube is specified as a preferred ad host)
Companion Optional, YouTube or GDN
  • 300×60 JPG, static GIF, or PNG
  • See the full specs.
  • 300×250 video wall will show on YouTube if no companion ad is provided.
  • 150 KB (50KB max for non-skippable video)
Display URL Required Required by AdWords UI. The domain will show on the live video.
Final URL Required The destination can be your website or YouTube video or channel.

YouTube video settings

Video requirements:
  • Must be uploaded to YouTube (send video URL)
  • Must allow embedding
  • Must be public or unlisted
  • True streaming is not allowed.
Minimum video length: 12 seconds recommended (in order for public viewcounts to be incremented)
Maximum video length: Less than 3 minutes recommended

First-Party Hosted Video Specifications

The Trade Desk supports first-party video creatives that meet these specifications:

File Types MP4, FLV, WEBM, MOV, MPG, MPEG
File Size (Recommended Max) 200 MB
Length Greater than or equal to 5 seconds Less than or equal to 300 seconds (i.e., 5 minutes)*Bid requests usually fall into standard buckets (5 seconds, 15 seconds, 30 seconds, 60 seconds, etc.) of max duration (min duration may also be received), and it’s possible for any video length to be sent to fulfill the request, as long as it falls below that max duration (and above the min duration, if provided). In other words, a 25-second ad could be sent to fulfill a request with a max duration of 30 seconds, or a 6-second ad could be sent for 15 seconds. The player will adapt to a shorter video length than the max duration, so there will be no dead space between the end of the ad and the beginning of the publisher’s video content.*These same restrictions apply to third-party creatives.
Ad Formats
Aspect Ratio Recommended Size Minimum Size
16:9 (recommended) 1920×1080 640×360
4:3 640×480 480×360
Bitrate (Recommended) >= 2500 kbps Lower quality than 2500 kbps supported, but not advised due to limited demand.
Companion Banners
File Types Ad Formats
JPG, GIF, PNG Listed in order of popularity

  • 300×250
  • 728×90
  • 320×50
  • 160×600
  • 300×600
  • 300×50
  • 320×480
  • 468×60
  • 970×250