9:16, 1:1 or 16:9? Aspect ratios explained
Aspect ratio decides how much of the screen your video owns. Here's when each one wins.
Reelane team
9:16 — full-screen vertical
The default for TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, Snapchat Spotlight and Threads. It fills a phone screen, so it earns the most attention per view. Use it for anything shot on a phone or anything built around a face.
1:1 — square
Square video takes up more feed space than horizontal on desktop and mobile, which makes it a safe choice for LinkedIn and Facebook. It's also the easiest crop to take from both vertical and horizontal footage.
16:9 — horizontal
Best for YouTube's main feed, X, embedded players and anything people watch on a laptop or TV. Screen recordings, gameplay and interviews often read better wide.
Reframing without losing the subject
When you crop from 16:9 to 9:16 you keep roughly a third of the width. Before you crop, check where the action sits. If it moves across the frame, split the clip and crop each part separately rather than using one fixed crop.