Why Pinterest Pin Size Matters

Pinterest is a visual search engine — not just a social media platform. Unlike Instagram or Twitter where content appears in a linear feed, Pinterest uses a masonry grid layout where each Pin occupies space based on its dimensions. Correctly sized Pins take up more visual real estate, catch more eyes, and generate significantly higher engagement.

When your image doesn't match Pinterest's recommended dimensions, one of three things happens:

• Cropping: Pinterest automatically clips your image to fit its grid. Text overlays, product details, or branding elements at the edges get cut off — your Pin loses its message.
• Compression: Oversized images get compressed, sometimes resulting in blurry or pixelated visuals that look unprofessional.
• Squeezing: Landscape or square images occupy minimal vertical space in the feed, making them easy to scroll past. They become nearly invisible among taller Pins.

Getting dimensions right is especially critical if you're using Pinterest for business — whether you're driving traffic to an e-commerce store, a blog, or a service page. Every cropped logo, every clipped call-to-action, every blurry product image is a lost potential click.

Quick Reference Table — All Pinterest Pin Sizes at a Glance

Bookmark this table. It covers every Pin type Pinterest currently supports with recommended dimensions, aspect ratios, and minimum acceptable sizes.

Standard Pin Dimensions — The Foundation

The 2:3 ratio is Pinterest's golden standard. At 1000×1500px, your Pin looks sharp on both mobile devices and desktop screens without triggering any compression or cropping.

When to Use Standard Pins

• Blog post graphics — Create a branded vertical graphic with the post title and a compelling image
• Product photography — Showcase a single product with clean backgrounds
• Quote cards — Motivational, educational, or branded quotes
• Recipe cards — Single-image recipes with the dish name and key details
• Before/after images — Stacked vertically to show transformation

Idea Pin Dimensions — Maximum Engagement Format

Idea Pins are Pinterest's most engaging format. They take up the entire mobile screen and allow up to 20 slides of images or video. Unlike standard Pins, Idea Pins are designed to keep users ON Pinterest rather than clicking through to external links.

Best Practices for Idea Pins

• Use 1080 × 1920px for every slide — this fills the entire phone screen
• Keep text within the safe zone (avoid the top 60px and bottom 200px where Pinterest overlays UI elements)
• Use 5–10 slides for optimal completion rates — too few feels incomplete, too many causes drop-off
• Add a strong first slide with a hook — this is what appears in the feed
• Include a final slide with a clear CTA (follow, save, try this)

Video Pin Dimensions — Moving Content That Converts

Video Pins are unique on Pinterest because they support three different aspect ratios: 2:3 (vertical), 1:1 (square), and 9:16 (full portrait). However, vertical videos (2:3 or 9:16) consistently outperform square videos in engagement because they occupy more feed space.

Video Pin Technical Specs

• Format: MP4, MOV, or M4V
• Encoding: H.264 recommended
• Duration: 4 seconds minimum, 15 minutes maximum (6–30 seconds is the sweet spot)
• Cover image: Always set a custom cover image at 1000×1500px — the auto-generated thumbnail is often unflattering
• Captions: Add text overlays since most users scroll with sound off

Story Pin Dimensions — Immersive Full-Screen

Story Pins and Idea Pins share the same 9:16 dimension requirement. Pinterest has been gradually merging these formats, with Idea Pins becoming the primary multi-page format. If you're creating content today, design for Idea Pin specs (1080×1920px) and your content will work for both formats.

Story Pin vs Idea Pin — Quick Difference

• Idea Pins support richer features: music, voiceover, stickers, text overlays, and tagging
• Story Pins were the earlier format — Pinterest has rebranded most Story Pins as Idea Pins
• Dimension requirement is identical — 1080 × 1920px at 9:16 for both

Infographic Pin Dimensions — Long-Form Visual Content

Infographic Pins are the tallest format Pinterest supports without truncation. At 1:3 ratio, they're three times taller than they are wide — perfect for content that needs sequential steps or detailed information in a single image.

When Infographic Pins Work Best

• Step-by-step tutorials (cooking recipes, DIY crafts, makeup tutorials)
• Data visualizations (statistics, comparison charts, timelines)
• Listicles in visual form ("10 tips for...", "7 mistakes to avoid...")
• Educational content (study guides, grammar rules, science concepts)

Visual Aspect Ratio Comparison

Understanding aspect ratios visually helps you instantly identify whether your image will work on Pinterest. Here's how each Pin type's ratio compares:

Notice how landscape (16:9) content — common from YouTube thumbnails and desktop screenshots — appears tiny compared to vertical formats. This visual size difference directly translates to engagement differences in the Pinterest feed.

File Format & Technical Specifications

Getting dimensions right is only half the equation. File format, compression quality, and color profiles also affect how your Pin renders.

Format Selection Guide

• Use PNG when your Pin has text overlays, logos, flat graphics, or illustrations — PNG preserves sharp edges and text clarity
• Use JPEG when your Pin is primarily photographic content — JPEG offers smaller file sizes with minimal quality loss for photos
• Avoid GIF for animated content — use Video Pins instead for better quality and algorithmic support
• WebP is supported and offers the best compression-to-quality ratio, but JPEG/PNG remain safer universal choices

5 Common Pinterest Sizing Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

Mistake 1: Using Landscape Images

Many creators repurpose their YouTube thumbnails (1280×720px, 16:9 ratio) or website banners as Pinterest Pins. These landscape images appear tiny in Pinterest's vertical feed — occupying perhaps 30% of the space a properly sized vertical Pin would. Fix: Always create separate vertical versions of your graphics for Pinterest.

Mistake 2: Ignoring the Safe Zone on Idea Pins

Pinterest overlays its UI elements (profile icon, title, buttons) on the top and bottom of Idea Pins. If you place important text or visuals in these areas, they get hidden behind Pinterest's interface. Fix: Keep critical content within the middle 70% of the slide. Leave ~60px from the top and ~200px from the bottom clear.

Mistake 3: Creating Extremely Tall Pins

Some creators make Pins at 1000×6000px or taller, hoping to dominate the feed. Pinterest now truncates Pins taller than approximately 1:3.5 ratio and may even penalize excessively tall Pins in distribution. Fix: Cap your tallest Pins at 1000×3000px (1:3 ratio). For longer content, use Idea Pins with multiple slides instead.

Mistake 4: Low Resolution Images

Uploading images at 600×900px technically meets Pinterest's minimum requirements, but these images look soft and pixelated on modern high-DPI phone screens (which most Indian users have). Fix: Always design at the full recommended resolution — 1000×1500px for Standard Pins and 1080×1920px for Idea Pins.

Mistake 5: Not Setting a Custom Video Cover Image

When you upload a Video Pin without a custom cover image, Pinterest auto-selects a random frame from the video — often an unflattering mid-transition shot. Fix: Always create a separate 1000×1500px cover image with a clear title and compelling visual, then set it as the Pin's cover.

Tips for Indian Creators & Sellers

Pinterest's user base in India has grown significantly, especially among audiences searching for fashion, home decor, recipes, and wedding planning. Here are India-specific tips for getting your Pin sizes right:

E-Commerce Sellers (Amazon, Meesho, Flipkart)

If you sell products online, create Standard Pins at 1000×1500px showcasing your products with clean white backgrounds. Include the product name, price in ₹, and a brief feature callout directly on the image. Pinterest users in India frequently search for product ideas — having correctly sized, text-rich Pins helps yours stand out.

Food & Recipe Bloggers

Indian recipe content performs exceptionally well on Pinterest. For individual recipes, use Standard Pins (1000×1500px) with a beautiful food photograph and the recipe name. For detailed step-by-step recipes (like biryani or dosa preparation), use Infographic Pins (1000×3000px) that show each step visually.

Wedding & Fashion Content

Wedding planning is one of the top search categories for Indian Pinterest users. Idea Pins (1080×1920px) work brilliantly for showcasing lehenga collections, mehndi designs, or wedding decoration ideas — use 8–12 slides to create an immersive lookbook experience.

Bloggers Targeting International Audiences

If you're an Indian blogger writing in English for a global audience (travel, tech, finance), create your Pins with text overlays in English and use internationally relevant imagery. The same size rules apply — 1000×1500px for Standard, 1080×1920px for Idea Pins.

Pin Optimization Checklist

Before uploading any Pin to Pinterest, run through this checklist:

• Image dimensions match your selected Pin type (see quick reference table above)
• Aspect ratio is 2:3 (Standard/Video) or 9:16 (Idea/Story) — NOT landscape
• Image width is at least 1000px (600px absolute minimum)
• File size is under 5MB for fast loading (under 20MB maximum)
• File format is PNG (for text/graphics) or JPEG (for photos)
• Color profile is sRGB (not CMYK)
• Text is readable at mobile size — minimum 24pt font on the final image
• Important content is NOT in the top 60px or bottom 200px (Idea/Story Pins)
• Custom cover image set for Video Pins
• Alt text / Pin description includes relevant keywords
• Brand logo or website URL is visible but not dominant
• Image has been compressed without visible quality loss

Final Thoughts

Pinterest Pin sizing isn't complicated once you internalize two numbers: 1000×1500px for Standard Pins and 1080×1920px for Idea/Story Pins. These two dimensions cover 90% of what you'll ever create for Pinterest.

The remaining 10% — Video Pins and Infographic Pins — follow the same vertical-first principle. Vertical content dominates Pinterest's feed, earns more impressions, and generates more clicks. Every minute spent ensuring correct dimensions pays back in engagement.

Use the quick reference table in this guide as your go-to resource, and run your images through our free Pin Size Checker before every upload. Consistent, correctly sized Pins build a professional-looking Pinterest presence that drives real traffic to your website or store.