Recommended Aspect Ratio for Meta Ad Creative Placement

It is very likely that you are using ad art that is outside of the recommended Meta aspect ratio. You’ll be forgiven if this is the case as Meta’s process of uploading images and videos all but guarantees that this will happen.

Of course, it will take more work to achieve the goal of providing the right size images and videos in your ads. But this post will help highlight exactly what you need to do to make that happen.

I’ve recorded a short video about how Meta recommends a 4:5 aspect ratio for many areas where you might be using 1:1. But, it’s not that easy. The recommended aspect ratio often depends on whether you’re using a video or a still image.

Let’s clear up any confusion so you can use the right size art moving forward.

Aspect Ratio Grid

Let’s jump into the most important resource you’ll want to save for later.

Placements are listed in “placement groups” that are created when uploading your creative to Ads Manager (we’ll get to that in a minute). To the right are the recommended Meta ratings for videos and still images for that placement.

Those recommendations often conflict with the aspect ratios requested by Meta when assigning placement groups.

Load Confusion Created

When you create your ad, Meta tries to simplify the process of uploading art by asking you to provide three different variables:

When you do this, Meta automatically assigns that variable to different placement groups.

• 1:1 Feeds, in-stream ads for videos and reels, Search results
• 9:16 News and Reels, Apps and Sites
• 1.91:1 right column, Search results

This would be nice if these placement groups were in line with Meta’s own recommendations, but they aren’t.

Sources of Recommendation

There are a few resources I relied on when creating my grid.

1. Aspect Ratios Supported Placement in Meta Ads Manager

It was this table that got my attention in the first place. It highlights both the accepted and recommended aspect ratio for each placement. Here’s an example of what it looks like…

2. Placement Preview

Interestingly, most of the recommendations in the table above are consistent with what Meta recommends for placement previews. Here is an example of a Facebook Feed.

Meta recommends 4:5 for both images and videos in the Facebook Feed although advertisers are asked to upload a 1:1 creative for that placement during the ad creation process.

3. Best Practices for Aspect Ratios

This resource is less detailed than the table, but it helped answer some questions when I saw conflicting information.

4. Format Details and Recommendations

This tool covers a little more than the creative aspect ratio, and the recommendations are not always obvious. But this is how I came up with a 1:1 recommendation for the right hand column. While the table mentions it as an option, this resource actually recommends it.

Disputes

You’ll see this within the grid at the top of this post, but let’s summarize the conflict I found. Most of the conflicts are for videos, especially in the Meta placement group that offers 1:1.

While the aspect ratios that Meta asks you to create will still work, these are cases where they may not be so good…

Facebook feed: Meta recommends 4:5 for both videos and photos (1:1 upload requested)

Videos streamed on Facebook: Meta recommends 16:9 or 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Ads on Facebook Reels: Meta recommends 9:16 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Facebook Marketplace: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Facebook profile feed: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Facebook video feed: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Instagram feed: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Instagram Check: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Instagram Explore Home: Meta recommends 4:5 or 9:16 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Instagram profile feed: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Facebook Business Check: Meta recommends 4:5 videos (1:1 upload requested)

Facebook search results: Meta recommends 1:1 videos (1.91:1 requested upload)

Facebook Right Column: Meta recommends 1:1 for both videos and photos (1.91:1 requested upload)

How to customize it by setting

Now that you have a guide on what aspect ratio to use for each area, let’s talk about how to do it.

1. When you first upload your artwork, your approach will be different depending on whether you are using videos or photos. If videos, provide 4:5, 9:16, and 1:1 for the first placement groups. If images, provide 1:1, 9:16, and 1:1.

2. Now you will need to customize your art with placement. Let’s assume you use an image and upload a 1:1 version to one of the placement groups. That will satisfy Meta recommendations for almost all feed placements, except Facebook Feed.

Within the Media section, expand the Feeds group. Then hover over the Facebook Feed and click the “Edit” icon.

On the left, click to change the media of the selected area.

Once you have uploaded and selected a new image, an icon will appear indicating that you have customized the placement.

You will then need to repeat this for every placement where there is a conflict. You may also choose to provide a mix of images and videos for a single ad, depending on the placement. That will require a fair amount of work, but you may find it worth it if performance improvements follow.

Your turn

Everything in this post is subject to change, of course. I hope that Meta will change the initial upload process so that the requested ratings are in line with their recommendations. Until then, you will need to do manual labor.

Are there any other conflicts I missed? Let me know in the comments below!