Instagram Reel Size: Dimensions & Free Reels Resizer
You finish a product Reel, upload it and discover Instagram has cropped off the bottle cap. Apparently, even your shampoo needed a haircut.
Then the subtitles disappear behind a button. Excellent. Your subtitles are playing hide-and-seek.
I'd rather you spend your time making something worth watching than guessing what 1080 means. Here's how to choose the right dimensions, resize an existing video and export it without squashing your product.
Quick answer: For a full-screen Instagram Reel, use a 1080 × 1920-pixel vertical canvas with a 9:16 aspect ratio. An MP4 export using H.264 is a practical starting point. Check the framing, sound and upload preview before publishing.
Instagram Reel size at a glance
1080 is the width. 1920 is the height. The 9:16 ratio describes that shape; it isn't the file size in megabytes.
| Setting | What to use or check | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Full-screen canvas | 1080 × 1920 pixels | Recommended working size |
| Full-screen aspect ratio | 9:16, vertical | Recommended composition |
| Accepted aspect ratios | 1.91:1 through 9:16 | Instagram's published range |
| Minimum resolution | 720 pixels | Instagram's published minimum |
| Minimum frame rate | 30 frames per second | Instagram's published minimum |
The minimums and accepted range come from Instagram's Reel specifications. They are different from our recommended full-screen canvas.
Set your project in pixels, not centimetres, inches or print DPI. Your phone isn't measuring the video with a ruler.
Which aspect ratio should you use?
9:16 for a full-screen vertical Reel
Start at 9:16 when creating a product demonstration, presenter video or vertical tutorial. Compose the shot for that shape before filming or generating footage.
The bottle deserves a full screen, not a tiny cupboard.
A 1080 × 1920 canvas gives you the target dimensions. It doesn't guarantee sharp footage, readable captions or more reach. Those depend on what you put inside it and how you process it.
What happens with 4:5, 1:1 and landscape footage?
These shapes can fall within Instagram's accepted range, but they won't all fill a 9:16 frame without changes.
You can preserve the whole image with unused space around it, or crop away some edges. Decide deliberately. Black bars are not a free cinema upgrade.
For an app demonstration, preserving readable controls may matter more than filling every pixel. For a centred bottle close-up, cropping may be perfectly sensible.
How to resize a video to 1080 × 1920
Choose crop, fit or stretch
The illustration below uses the same horizontal scene three times. Watch what happens to the bottle, box and instructions.
Original illustration: the target shape stays the same; the treatment of the source changes.
- Crop: fills the target and removes edges. Your second product may get fired from the picture.
- Fit: preserves the complete image, leaving space above and below this horizontal source.
- Stretch: changes proportions. Nobody ordered the extra-skinny shampoo.
Keep the product, face or app interface readable
Check the entire clip, especially when the subject moves. A good opening frame doesn't prove the product stays visible.
For software footage, show one relevant part of the interface or use a designed vertical layout. Customers shouldn't need a magnifying glass to find “Buy”.
Cropping also reduces your available source detail. A 9:16 crop preserving the full height of a 1920 × 1080 landscape video retains roughly 608 × 1080 source pixels. Exporting that crop at 1080 × 1920 enlarges it.
That's geometry, not a quality test. A bigger blurry bottle is still blurry. Congratulations, it's closer.
Resize and download your Reel
Use Reloop's free video resizer:
- Add your video.
- Select Meta → Reels / Stories, labelled 1080 × 1920.
- Choose Crop, Fit or Stretch using the trade-offs above.
- Resize, download and inspect the resulting file.
The tool runs in your browser and doesn't require an account. One less account to create. Your inbox can relax.
Open the resizer below to work inside this article.
Drop your video here or click to upload
MP4, MOV or WebM · up to 200 MB · your file never leaves your device
How should it fit?
Fill the frame, crop the edges. Best for most social posts.
Free Video Resizer
Resize video for every platform — free, private, right in your browser.
Best export settings for Instagram Reels
A practical export preset
Use this as a starting configuration, rather than a list of Instagram's only accepted settings.
| Setting | Practical starting point |
|---|---|
| Canvas | 1080 × 1920, 9:16 |
| File and video codec | MP4 with H.264 |
| Frame rate | 30 fps for a 30 fps project; preserve suitable higher-rate footage when useful |
| Audio | AAC stereo; check dialogue and music balance |
| Compression | A high-quality export preset, checked against your original |
MP4 is the container; H.264 describes the video encoding. MDN's media-format guide explains the distinction and compatibility considerations.
Keep the source, edit once and export your delivery copy. Don't send a file through five apps like it's collecting airport stamps.
Listen to the downloaded file. The music shouldn't sound like it's being played inside a biscuit tin.
Check upload quality without repeatedly recompressing the file
In Instagram, look under Media quality for Upload at highest quality. Menu labels can vary; Instagram documents the setting.
Compare your original, exported file and posted version to identify where softness appears. Video compression involves trade-offs, so increasing file size alone isn't a fix. A giant file is not a trophy.
Reel video size, cover size and preview crops
Your video canvas, cover image and displayed preview are different things.
Instagram's help page lists 420 × 654 pixels as its recommended cover size. That doesn't change your video's 1080 × 1920 working canvas or establish one universal preview crop.
Choose the cover, then check its positioning in the publishing preview. Keep important text comfortably inside the visible area. Keep the price away from the edge. It isn't trying to escape.
For interface overlays and caption placement, use our 
Instagram Reel safe-zone guidance.
Why your Reel looks cropped, stretched or blurry
Start with the symptom, then change the relevant setting.
| What you see | What to check | Next action |
|---|---|---|
| Black bars | Source ratio versus target ratio | Choose intentional cropping or a designed background |
| Unexpected zoom | How much Crop removes | Reposition the shot or use Fit |
| Distorted product | Whether Stretch is selected | Preserve the original proportions |
| Soft footage | Original detail, crop and export history | Return to the best source and reduce unnecessary enlargement |
| Hidden captions | Instagram's interface overlays | Reposition text using the safe-zone guide |
| Wrong cover preview | Cover framing | Adjust the cover separately |
Stretch is a setting, not a skincare benefit.
Check moving products and subtitles throughout the video. Your CTA shouldn't need a rescue team.
Your pre-upload Reel checklist
Check the actual file. “final_FINAL_really_final” is not a quality certificate.
Create and prepare your next Reel with Reloop
Use the resizer when you already have footage. When you need the content itself, Reloop helps small teams research creative ideas and create social content, product demos, explainers and ads.
Turn the idea into an editable video with scripts, visuals, voiceover and captions through the AI Agent, then refine it in the video editor.
Your next Reel can be a marketing video, not a geometry exam.
