Depending upon the option you choose, you'll then be prompted to select from a range of images. Select the photo that you would like to be your cover picture.A cover photo on a Facebook page allows users to customize their Facebook profiles with a personal image.
The process to change your cover photo on a desktop and mobile device is very simple and you can select photos from a range of channels.
Here's how to change your cover photo on Facebook.
1. Go to Facebook.com on your Mac or PC and navigate to your profile page.
2. Hover over your cover photo and select "Update Cover Photo" in the top left corner of the picture.
3. A menu will pop up that will allow you to choose between a number of options for updating or editing your cover photo.
4. Click "Select" to choose a profile picture that has already been uploaded to Facebook; or choose "Upload photo" to upload a photo from your computer. "Select artwork" will allow you to choose from stock images. "Create a collage" will allow you to choose a number of photos to piece together in a cover photo.
Select photo from various channels Stephanie Lin/Business Insider5. Depending upon the option you choose, you'll then be prompted to select from a range of images. Select the photo that you would like to be your cover picture.
6. The image will appear as your cover photo. From here, you'll be able to edit the positioning. Drag the photo around the screen so that the desired part of the image appears in the frame.
Drag to position your Facebook cover photo.
Kelly Laffey/Business Insider 7. Hit "Save" to save your cover photo.
1. Open the Facebook app on your iPhone or Android phone and navigate to your profile.
2. Select the camera icon in the bottom right corner of your cover photo.
3. Similar to on a desktop, a menu will appear with options to "View Profile Cover," "Upload Photo," "Select Photo on Facebook," "Create Collage" or "Select Artwork." Make your choice based on the type of photo you want.
4. Select the image that you want to be your cover photo.
You can select pictures from the artwork channel as your cover photo.
Kelly Laffey/Business Insider 5. A preview will appear. Use your fingers to drag the image to edit the positioning.
6. Hit "Save" to save the cover photo.
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When someone visits your Facebook page, the first thing they see is a large splash image taking up almost a quarter of the screen: your Facebook cover photo. This is your profile’s headline, a big, bold banner image that introduces your brand to potential Facebook followers.
You can feature a lot in your Facebook cover photo: images of your product or team, ads and promotions, or even something as simple as graphic that sets the right mood. A good cover photo can result in increased engagement, whether that’s more page likes or boosted traffic to your website or other social channels.
So, how do you make Facebook cover photos—and get the most out of them?
This article will go over everything you need to know about Facebook cover photos.
We’re also sharing 5 free templates created by our in-house design team to help you get started.
Let’s start with the basics: making sure your image fits the Facebook cover photo size guidelines (and their other guidelines, too).
Bonus: Download your free pack of 5 customizable Facebook cover photo templates now. Save time and easily promote your brand with a professional design.
The minimum dimensions for a Facebook cover photo (sometimes referred to as “Facebook banner size”) are 851 x 315 pixels. This is the best size to choose if you’re making a cover photo and want to know exactly how it will look before you upload it.
For the highest quality photographic experience, Facebook recommends using a PNG file. Choose this option if you want to display a high definition logo in your cover image, or if your cover image contains copy that really needs to stand out.
On mobile, it’s often better to prioritize image types that load quickly and don’t use a lot of data. In this case, Facebook recommends uploading an sRGB JPEG file that also follows these two requirements:
Remember, on desktop, Facebook cover photos are more rectangular, accounting for larger/widescreen displays.
On mobile, the cover photo is more square, allowing it to fit on a portrait-oriented screen.
While 95 percent of Facebook users access the site via mobile, that doesn’t mean you should ignore the 31 percent of users who also browse via desktop. For a Facebook cover photo that looks good on any screen, Facebook recommends an image that’s 820 pixels x 462 pixels. This also applies to the platform’s newer cover format: Facebook cover videos.
Facebook cover videos are another way to grab a user’s attention and drive user interactions on your page. On desktop, cover videos definitely look more engaging than static photos, and can really bring your page to life. However, they’re less effective on mobile, as they don’t autoplay, and instead load as a thumbnail.
Here’s Facebook’s recommended settings for cover video size and duration:
Note: Facebook cover videos can have audio, but it won’t play unless you actually click on the video.
For best results, make sure the video you upload works equally well with or without sound. This is something you should keep in mind even outside cover videos: 85 percent of Facebook users watch videos with the volume turned off.
Besides these technical requirements, there are specific rules for the kinds of content you can display in Facebook cover photos and videos. These rules are fairly standard:
For a full breakdown of these policies, check out the Facebook page guidelines.
Starting with a professionally designed template makes it easier to create your own Facebook cover photo.
Here’s how to customize our templates for your brand. You will need Adobe Photoshop to get started.
Bonus: Download your free pack of 5 customizable Facebook cover photo templates now. Save time and easily promote your brand with a professional design.
1. After you’ve downloaded the templates, you’ll notice that the fonts and image files are separate. Double click on the font file of your selected theme to upload the font to your computer. Click install font.
2. Double click the image file to open it in Photoshop.
3. Select the Facebook cover photo template that you’d like to work with first.
4. To edit text: double click the text you would like to edit. You can change fonts and colors in the menu on the left-hand side.
5. To edit a color block or background: double click the color block you would like to edit. Change the size or use the menu on the left-hand side to change the color.
6. To edit a photo or image: double click the photo you would like to edit and click insert new image. Resize image as necessary.
7. To save the template: Select the template you would like to use and go to Save>Export As>Artboard to Files. Make sure to save as a .jpg or .png.
8. Upload your Facebook cover photo following the steps below.
Once you’re finished making your Facebook cover photo, uploading it is easy.
If you don’t like how your Facebook cover photo is positioned after you’ve published it, you can click Update Cover and then Reposition, which will return you to step 4.
As you upload more cover photos, you’ll build up a library. If you ever want to replace your current cover photo with an older one, click Select Photo instead of Upload Cover Photo in step 3, and you’ll be able to choose from previously uploaded images.
Finally, the Select Artwork button contains a number of premade background images for your cover photo space. These look fine in a pinch, but I’d recommend creating branded images for your business page that showcase your organization’s personality, products, or services.
Uploading a Facebook cover video is almost the same as uploading a cover photo, with a couple of extra steps.
Now that you know the basics of creating and uploading cover photos, it’s time to look at some powerful examples, and the strategies behind them.
The whole point of your profile banner is to grab attention and elicit curiosity so people take action on your page. Use memorable imagery with colors that reflect your brand, and don’t be afraid to make use of negative space, particularly if you’re including copy: it’ll help your words stand out.
Bonus: Download your free pack of 5 customizable Facebook cover photo templates now. Save time and easily promote your brand with a professional design.
Get the templates now!
This playful cover photo from Zendesk uses bright colors and negative space to make their copy pop.
A Facebook cover photo that matches with the profile picture always looks professional and put-together. It might sound limiting, but it’s also a good opportunity to get creative.
Target’s eye-catching Facebook cover photo makes clever use of their bullseye logo. The optical illusion caught me off-guard, earning this cover photo my full attention.
When you’re choosing an image for your Facebook cover photo, think about how it’s going to look on the screens of Facebook’s 1.15 billion smartphone users. If there’s tiny text, will it be readable? How will the finer details look on a smaller screen? What’s being cut off when your cover photo is panned-and-scanned to mobile format?
I was surprised to find that many companies (big companies!) don’t actually bother to optimize for this, making it an easy way to provide a better page experience than your competitors.
Duolingo has smartly chosen an image that doesn’t change too much between desktop and mobile. Nothing is lost in translation, providing both audiences with an equally good browsing experience.
As an added bonus, the brand name in the banner leaves the profile picture open for Lingo (their company mascot) to greet visitors to the page.
Centered images work well on cover photos, but aligning your image content to the right is aesthetically pleasing and has strategic value. Facebook’s call-to-action buttons appear on the right side of your profile; ideally, your images should draw the eye to that section of the page. If possible, include elements that draw attention to your CTA.
Here, YouTube star and cake-decorating sensation Yolanda Gampp uses the cover photo to advertise her new cookbook, How to Cake It. This banner effectively leads the eye, starting with the copy, then to the book cover, which is placed right over the Watch Video CTA.
It’s a direct route to her YouTube channel—and an invitation join her 3.6 million subscribers!
Your Facebook cover photo is the ideal place to announce what’s new at your company. Keep this space updated with fresh content, whether you’re promoting a new product or service, or referencing current events in relation to your brand.
Here, KFC uses their cover video to advertise the Canadian launch of the latest twist on the infamous Double-Down. This profile video works well because the animation is on a short loop so it’s not too distracting. It really creates a mood!
Including a link within the cover photo page itself is a good way to drive traffic to your other pages via Facebook. Use a link shortener like ow.ly to create a customized URL format that’s unique to your brand. It makes links more manageable, and conceals the UTM code you should be using to track your traffic sources.
Here, Threadless uses an all-too-relatable drawing of a cat to drive traffic to their website. When you click the cover photo, you find a link directing you to purchase the T-shirt. The link contains a UTM code, allowing Threadless to track page views from their Facebook cover photo.
Although they haven’t done it here, another strategy is to have this URL direct to the same page as the CTA on your main profile, offering another chance for conversion. This also lets you experiment with other CTAs on your Facebook page (Facebook currently has seven to choose from).
Check out this post if you want to more about how to write an irresistible call to action.
Remember, the goal of a headline is to get you to read the article below, and Facebook cover photos are no different. Pin your most important current content to the top of your Facebook page.
When people are drawn in by your cover photo, they’ll see the most relevant information as soon as they scroll down.
Hootsuite is currently promoting an upcoming webinar series on Demystifying Social ROI. In addition to a cover video highlighting the event, we’ve pinned it as the first post on our page so people remember to sign up.
Manage your brand’s Facebook presence and your new Facebook cover photo with Hootsuite. Engage followers, track results, and schedule new posts from a single dashboard. Try it free today.
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With files from Shannon Tien.
A good cover is needed for both a personal Facebook account and a corporate Facebook hub - it will definitely help create the right first impression. Come to VistaCreate and make a cover in a couple of minutes!
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Imagine how much brighter your Facebook cover would look if it had a video instead of a photo! Make video covers for Facebook in VistaCreate.
A sea of templates for a quick start!
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VistaCreate is a simple and intuitive editor. Create amazing Facebook covers quickly - even without design skills.
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The coolest FB covers - with video and animation. Keep up - create! We give templates, and you use them to implement your ideas. Even more drive in each cover!
Create a facebook cover
Your Facebook cover is your mirror. Let it be the perfect reflection of your character and style. With the VistaCreate editor, create vibrant visuals from your photos, videos, and graphics.
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You can edit your Facebook cover the way you want - change captions, use different fonts, change the background and images.
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Want to use your Facebook cover as a banner on your website or blog? No problem! With VistaCreate you can change the cover size to any other standard or custom size (up to 3000 x 3000 pixels) with one click.
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Your FB covers can be even more interesting - let them have even more rhythm and energy with animations, illustrations, icons, shapes, stickers and frames.
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Explore VistaCreate's creative library and choose from over 70 million free photos, videos and vectors to make your designs even better.
VistaCreate has a huge library of short videos that are easy to use in animated designs.
So many languages, so many fonts... Choose from 680 font styles or add your own. VistaCreate supports 25 languages so you can create the best designs in your own language.
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To get started, go to the "Facebook cover" format.
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Browse through our 70,000+ templates or search by keyword to find exactly the template that suits you.
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Download the cover art or post it to Facebook directly from the VistaCreate interface.
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The resolution of the Facebook cover format is 851×315 pixels. Use images with the highest possible resolution to ensure the quality of the design.
VistaCreate has hundreds of Facebook covers in every style and theme.
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Browse our collection of the best templates and you're sure to find exactly what you're looking for.
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Your Facebook cover photo is the first thing people will notice when they see your page. When you're looking to create the best first impression, everything matters: size, content, text, mobile readability, etc.
In this guide, we'll look at Facebook photo and video size rules, templates, and examples. Let's talk about what to do and not to do, and much more, which will help you create the most effective and impressive cover photo and video.
In order for everyone to be on the same wavelength and understand what will be discussed, it is necessary to go through the basic terminology that will be used in this article. You won't find a lot of technical information, but there are some terms you still need to know. So:
A pixel (px) is a constituent element of a digital image, as well as the smallest unit of information. For example, an image might be 640px wide by 512px high, which is easy to see when you zoom in.
PNG (portable network graphics or “portable network graphics format”) is one of the most commonly used formats in which image compression is lossless.
Facebook cover photo is a large high resolution image. But with such a huge number of rules and sizes (covers, avatars, links to photo publications, etc.), it's hard not to get confused. Here are some specifications:
For desktop users, your cover photo is displayed at 820px wide by 312px high. For those using the mobile version, the photo will be limited to 640px wide and 360px high. If the photo does not fit within the designated frames, it will be automatically resized to fit.
Luckily for Facebook users, all photos are scaled to fit the cover space. Depending on the original dimensions of the image, it will be stretched or cropped. Automatic correction does not distort the image. However, the image may become slightly blurry if it is small and has a low resolution.
The cover photo is the largest image on your page. It can make a good impression of you when you first visit the page, but it can also destroy it.
If the selected image does not meet the requirements, then you may experience some difficulties. For example, an image can be "pixelated" as discussed earlier. Also, part of the text may be “cut off” during correction, or the entire layout may look awkward.
As shown in the image below, both the mobile and desktop versions cut off significant portions of the original image. Therefore, it is best to position the main part of the image and text closer to the center. Then you will avoid the risk of losing important information.
Some users are annoyed by the inability to upload different images for mobile and desktop versions. To avoid this problem, you need to choose an image that will fit both formats. The generally accepted size is 820 x 360 px. In the images below, you can see how Facebook automatically resizes the same image that was already created with this fact in mind.
”
There are more reasons to make your pages mobile friendly.
For example, 71% of website visitors are mobile users. Thus, it is very useful to make your content available to all users.
All these rules and sizing requirements make the process of creating a Facebook cover photo very intimidating. To make your task easier, we have collected practical recommendations and the most important tips. There's plenty of room for creativity - all you need to do is make sure that your cover image follows three basic principles:
Text – A concise slogan can play an important role in getting attention. Small text serves as an additional way to interact with users and allows you to effectively promote your brand message.
Emotions - if you get an emotional response from visitors, they are more likely to remember the content they viewed. For example, creating a connection between a brand and feelings of friendliness, inspiration, warmth, and happiness has a positive effect on users' purchasing decisions.
Relevance – Your cover photo should be relevant to your audience as well as your brand message. Find a balance between making the cover useful for searchers and reinforcing your company's interests.
Once you've mastered these basic principles, you can move on to the rest of the helpful tips. Let's explore practical tips on how to create relevant and visually memorable Facebook covers:
You can use colors. Color schemes can affect how an audience perceives a picture and creates an impression in different ways. Play with different color combinations to change the tone of your work - they can be bold, sophisticated or romantic, depending on what you're aiming for. 
If you periodically change the covers, this will keep the audience interested in the content on your page. 
In addition, you can insert a link to your offer so that visitors have direct access to it. 
Therefore, it should be not only attractive, but also competitive. Of course, you should not write the template "Buy me!" or "Offer ends today!", you can subtly lead to what you want to sell. For example, add a general hashtag, organize a challenge, or something similar. As long as you're free to put any image on your Facebook cover, some decisions can have a detrimental effect on your page's performance. Here are some common mistakes and reasons why you should avoid them:
Also, try to avoid stretching the text all over the picture. 
This mistake is another way to make your page less memorable. The custom colors and brand logo contribute to the level of brand awareness. Make sure everything is subtle but unambiguous because users don't really like head-on content. Many brands are already following the above guidelines. Here are some examples of great Facebook covers you can use.
The first is a graphic design tool that uses its cover image to encourage users to create posts with their hashtag. It combines mutually beneficial colors, elegant design and a clear brand logo. Active buttons with text attract the attention of visitors, but do not put pressure on them with an excess of information.
Next is a TV network that is promoting one of their most popular shows right now. This poster adds relevance to the page and can be used in other social media posts. networks to complement the entire marketing campaign. The colors are very bright and prominent, and there is no detail around the edges, which helps users concentrate better.
Finally, here is an example of how to arrange an image so that it displays correctly on all devices. The cover is right-aligned, which emphasizes the avatar on the left and balances the overall picture. The company specializes in retro style accessories, and the photo suits the concept and atmosphere of the brand.
Suppose you have an image that you want to crop according to Facebook's requirements. Here's what you need to do.
Step 1. Open the free online editor pixlr.com .
Step 2. Load the image into the workspace.
Step 3. Change the "Borders" box to "Output Size" and set the width and height to 820 and 360 respectively (this is the optimal image size for both desktop and mobile versions). Drag the cropping tool according to how you want to crop the image and hit enter.
Step 4. Go to "File" - "Save As.
.." and change the format to PNG. Save the image to your computer.
Step 5. Go to your Facebook page. Click "Add Cover" or "Change Cover" in the top left corner and select "Upload Photo".
Step 6. Click on the desired image and save the new cover. Ready!
Instead of a cover photo, Facebook business pages now have the ability to upload a video cover. The main purpose of this feature is to increase the number of interactions with users. The video format opens up a lot of possibilities for what a brand can share: provide useful information, showcase your product/services, show you behind the scenes, etc.
The Facebook cover video needs to be at least 820 x 312 px, but the recommended dimensions are 820 x 462 px. The resolution can be up to 1080p and the file size must be no larger than 1.75 GB in .mp4 or .mov format. Video length must be between 20 and 90 seconds.
Keep in mind that all videos play in a loop, which means that the video will play continuously until the user leaves the page.
Thus, you need to make sure that it starts and ends with a smooth loop, that is, the moment of merging the end of the video with its beginning passes naturally.
The video should not contain anything annoying or too bright, so as not to cause discomfort during repeated viewing. This can create the exact opposite effect of what you would like your cover to achieve. Instead, try to create balanced and engaging content without being too intrusive. Just like with images, brands can present and promote their products, add clickable buttons, add some text, and share their messages with the audience.
Since the ability to add a cover video is a recent addition to Facebook, there aren't too many examples. Nevertheless, we have collected some of the most interesting ones that demonstrate the possibilities of this format.
This monthly magazine uses a cover format to draw attention to its upcoming issue. The video zooms in smoothly enough so that the text remains legible and all the colors used are pronounced.
