With over 2.4 billion users, YouTube is the world's largest video platform. Viewers are four times more likely to turn to YouTube than other platforms when searching for information about a brand, product, or service, making it a great choice for advertisers. 

However, even if you create an outstanding video ad, ignoring YouTube's recommended ad specs will hamper its effectiveness. Poor resolution and aspect ratio or truncated edges and headlines will appear unprofessional, leading to a negative perception of your brand, reduced viewer retention, and lower ad performance overall.

In this blog, you'll learn about YouTube ad specs for different types of video ads so you can make the most of your YouTube marketing efforts. Before we start, it's important to note that to run an ad on YouTube, you need to upload the video on the platform and set it as public or unlisted. 

TL;DR:

• Following YouTube's recommended ad specs is crucial for ad effectiveness and brand perception.
• Different YouTube ad types have specific ad specs to optimize video marketing campaigns.
• Ad specs include resolution, aspect ratio, file format, file size, length, and headline/description requirements.

Types of YouTube Ads

While there is a lot of commonality and standardization in YouTube video ad specs for different types of YouTube ads, following YouTube's specific recommendations is vital for creating a video advertisement optimized for the platform. 

To do this, you must understand different types of YouTube video ads: 

• Skippable in-stream ads
• Non-skippable in-stream ads
• Bumper ads
• In-feed video ads
• Masthead ads

We discuss each type in the sections that follow. 

Skippable and non-skippable in-stream ads

Skippable in-stream ads

These ads run before, during, or after a YouTube video, and you can skip them after five seconds by clicking the "Skip" button. Skippable in-stream ads appear on desktops, TV screens, and mobile devices. YouTube dynamically adjusts the video to fit each device type.

One great advantage of skippable ads is that advertisers only pay when the viewer interacts with your video or watches it for 30 seconds or more; you also have to pay if your video is shorter than 30 seconds and the viewer watches all of it. 

Non-skippable in-stream ads

Like skippable in-stream ads, these run before, during, or after a YouTube video, but as the name suggests, the viewer cannot skip them. Non-skippable in-stream ads can be 15 seconds long and are great for video advertising campaigns where you want the viewer to watch the entire video duration. 

The ad specifications for skippable and non-skippable in-stream ads are the same, except for the maximum length of the video you can use as an ad. We cover these in detail in the next section.

Ad specs for in-stream ads

Here are YouTube’s recommended ad specs for skippable and non-skippable in-stream ads:

Resolution

• Recommended: Full HD (1080p) with specific pixel dimensions for horizontal (1920x1080), vertical (1080x1920), and square (1080x1080) formats.
• Standard HD (720p) is acceptable, with minimum pixel requirements for each orientation: horizontal (1280 x 720), vertical (720 x 1280), and square (480 x 480) formats. 
•  While SD is supported, YouTube doesn’t recommend it for optimal quality.

Aspect ratio

• Use 16:9 for horizontal, 9:16 for vertical, and 1:1 for square videos.
• SD formats (4:3 horizontal, 2:3 vertical) are supported but not recommended for best quality.

File format

• The preferred format is .MPG (MPEG-2 or MPEG-4)
• Various other formats are accepted, including .MOV, .MPEG-1, .AVI, .MPEGPS, .MP4, .WMV, .FLV, WebM, 3GPP, DNxHR, CineForm, HEVC (h265), ProRes
• Audio-only files (e.g., MP3, WAV, PCM) are not accepted on YouTube

File size

The maximum file size allowed for a YouTube in-stream ad is 256 GB.

Length

For skippable in-stream ads 

There's no minimum or maximum length, but YouTube recommends ideal ad duration for different marketing objectives.  

• For awareness and action goals, 15-20 seconds is recommended
• For consideration, 2-3 minutes is suggested, with ads between 60 seconds and 3 minutes having a higher likelihood of a viewer considering your product
• Videos shorter than 10 seconds won't count towards YouTube view counts

For non-skippable in-stream ads 

• Recommended: 15 seconds (20 seconds in some markets)
• Accepted: Less than 15 seconds, while ads shorter than 20 seconds are acceptable in some markets
• Ads shorter than six seconds will run as a Bumper ad. 

Headline/Description

• Keep headlines and descriptions to 15 characters or less.
• If including a call-to-action (CTA), limit it to 10 characters or less.

Bumper ads

Bumper ads are non-skippable, six-second video ads that play before, during, or after another video. They are designed for quick, memorable messages to boost brand awareness with minimal viewer disruption.

Ad specs for YouTube bumper ads: Bumper ads have the same ad specs as non-skippable in-stream ads (shared above) except for the maximum video length; bumper ads must be six seconds or shorter.

Companion banner for a YouTube ad

A companion banner is an image that appears alongside your video ad on YouTube's desktop version. It's available for skippable in-stream, non-skippable in-stream, and bumper ads. You can upload a custom 300x60 image or let Google Ads generate one from your YouTube channel banner. When clicked, it directs viewers to your specified URL. 

Ad specs for YouTube companion banner

Google recommends automatically creating a companion banner from your channel banner instead of using a custom image. However, if you still want to create a custom image, keep the following companion banner ad specs in mind:

• File types: JPEG, GIF, or PNG
• Resolution: 300px x 60px
• GIF frame rate: Less than five frames per second
• Maximum size: 150 KB

In-feed video ads

In-feed video ads promote your content in YouTube's search results, next to related videos, and on the mobile homepage. They consist of a thumbnail, headline, and brief text, inviting clicks to watch the full video. When someone clicks or watches an autoplay for 10+ seconds, Google charges the advertiser. These ads help target your audience alongside relevant YouTube content.

Ad specs for in-feed video ads

Here are YouTube’s recommended ad specs for in-feed video ads: 

Resolution

• Recommended: Full HD (1080p) with specific pixel dimensions for horizontal (1920x1080), vertical (1080x1920), and square (1080x1080) formats.
• Standard HD (720p) is acceptable, with minimum pixel requirements for each orientation: horizontal (1280 x 720), vertical (720 x 1280), and square (480 x 480) formats. 
•  While SD is supported, YouTube doesn’t recommend it for optimal quality.

Aspect Ratio

• Use 16:9 for horizontal and 1:1 for square videos.
• 9:16 for vertical
• SD formats (4:3 horizontal, 2:3 vertical) are supported but not recommended for best quality.

File format

• The preferred format is .MPG (MPEG-2 or MPEG-4)
• Various other formats are accepted, including .MOV, .MPEG-1, .AVI, .MPEGPS, .MP4, .WMV, .FLV, WebM, 3GPP, DNxHR, CineForm, HEVC (h265), ProRes
• Audio-only files are not accepted on YouTube.

File size

The maximum file size allowed for a YouTube in-stream ad is 256 GB.

Length

There is no minimum or maximum length for in-feed video ads, but YouTube recommends the ideal duration for different marketing objectives.  

• For marketing goals related to brand awareness, 15–20 seconds is recommended, while 2–3 minutes is best for consideration-related objectives.
• Videos shorter than 10 seconds won't count toward YouTube view counts.

Headline

• Recommended: up to two lines, with a maximum of 40 characters per line
• Headlines exceeding 25 characters might be shortened on certain devices
• Headlines are not displayed on desktop and TV watch pages and may not appear on mobile devices

Description

• Recommended: up to two lines, with a maximum of 35 characters per line
• Descriptions don’t appear on desktop watch pages or TV

YouTube Masthead

YouTube Masthead ads appear at the top of the YouTube homepage for 24 hours, featuring a 30-second video, a call-to-action, or a companion banner. These premium ads require working with a Google sales representative. They are ideal for quickly building brand awareness and reaching a massive audience across all devices: desktop, mobile, TV screens, and tablet. 

Ad specs for YouTube Masthead: For maximum performance, the video you use for the masthead should have an aspect ratio of 16:9 and a resolution of 1920 x 1080 or higher. We recommend using the YouTube Masthead Preview tool to optimize fields across devices, such as headlines, CTA buttons, descriptions, etc.

Make professional and engaging video ads with Descript in seconds

Following the right YouTube ad specs is the bare minimum required to derive value from your YouTube advertising campaigns. Your competitors know the recommended YouTube video ad specs just like you do. 

So, how do you stand out?

Creating attention-grabbing, high-quality video ads that engage your target audience and effectively promote your product or service. But it's easier said than done. 

That’s where AI-powered video creation and editing tools like Descript (that’s us) could help. Use our video ad maker to craft video ad scripts with help from an AI copywriter and create scroll-stopping video ads with animated captions and AI voiceovers. Then, use our text-based video editing tool to edit your videos quickly—while maintaining stellar production quality.

More than six million creators and teams at companies like HubSpot and Vice use Descript. Take a free tour today to find out why. 

YouTube ad specs FAQ
What is YouTube's ad format?

YouTube offers various ad formats to advertisers to reach their target audience effectively. The main ad formats on YouTube include:

• Skippable video ads: Viewers can skip these ads after five seconds.
• Non-skippable video ads: Viewers must watch these ads in their entirety before viewing the video content.
• Bumper ads: Short, non-skippable ads of up to 6 seconds.
• In-feed video ads: Promotes your content in search results, next to related videos, and on the mobile homepage, charging you only when viewers click or watch for 10+ seconds.

Advertisers can choose the ad format that best suits their campaign goals and target audience.

What are the requirements for a YouTube ad?

The requirements for YouTube ads depend on the type of video ad you're running, but first, to run an ad on YouTube, you must upload the video to the platform and set it as public or unlisted. 

The maximum file size allowed for a YouTube ad is 256 GB.

What is the size of a YouTube ad?

For most ad categories, YouTube says the video resolution should be Full HD (1080p) with specific pixel dimensions for horizontal (1920x1080), vertical (1080x1920), and square (1080x1080) formats.

Video length: While skippable video ads have no strict length requirements, YouTube recommends keeping video ads to 3 minutes or less for optimal performance.

What are the specs for YouTube In-feed ads?

The recommended dimensions for creating in-feed ads on YouTube to ensure optimal display and performance are:

• Horizontal: 1920 x 1080 pixels
• Vertical: 1080 x 1920 pixels
• Square: 1080 x 1080 pixels