Vertical, square, wide: choosing the right shape for each platform

A video that fills the screen on TikTok can become a thin strip with black bars on another platform, and a wide video can shrink to postage-stamp size on a phone. Shape, or aspect ratio, decides how much of the screen your ad gets. On phones, screen space is attention.

The three shapes you need

• Vertical (9:16): tall and narrow. Fills a phone held upright.
• Square (1:1): equal width and height. Works well in feeds.
• Wide (16:9): the shape of a TV. Best for screens, presentations and YouTube.

Which shape where

• TikTok: vertical
• Instagram Reels and Stories: vertical
• Instagram and Facebook feeds: square or vertical; vertical takes more space on phones
• Facebook Stories and Reels: vertical
• WhatsApp Status: vertical
• YouTube: wide for normal videos, vertical for Shorts
• Waiting-room screens, TVs, presentations: wide

If most of your audience is on phones, as it is in Kenya, vertical is the safest default. Kenya's video-first screen.

Plan for the shape before you make the ad

Changing the shape after the fact often cuts off important parts of the picture: a face, a price, a logo. It is better to decide the shape first and make the ad for it.

In Tari Studio, you can say the shape in your request ("vertical, 10 seconds") or change it on the quote before generating. If you need the same ad on several platforms, make a version in each shape. How the Studio works.

Keep important things in the middle

Platforms put buttons, captions and profile pictures over the edges of vertical videos. Keep faces, products, prices and text away from the top and bottom edges, and away from the right side on TikTok and Reels, where the like and share buttons sit.

Text that fits

Text on screen must be readable on a small phone. Keep it short and large: a headline, a price, a contact. For images with a lot of text, such as posters, pick Ideogram 4 (clear text) on the quote for sharp lettering. Why AI gets text wrong, and how we fix it.

One campaign, several shapes

For a campaign across platforms:

1. Make the vertical version first; it reaches the most people on phones.
2. Make a square version for feeds if you advertise there.
3. Make a wide version only if you need it for YouTube, screens or presentations.

When you publish from the Studio to Facebook, Instagram or TikTok, choose the right version for each account. Publishing.

Images have shapes too

The same rules apply to image ads. Square images suit feeds; vertical images fill WhatsApp Status and Stories; wide images suit banners, websites and cover photos. Decide the shape on the quote before you make the image, and keep the headline and price away from the edges so nothing is cropped.

Make your first vertical clip.