The YouTube thumbnail downloader is a thumbnail grabber that runs in your browser. It loads a video’s cover image from YouTube’s image server in every size YouTube keeps, from 120x90 up to 1280x720, and marks the sizes that don’t exist. Paste a link or a video ID, then save the original JPEG.
How to download a YouTube thumbnail
- Under the video on YouTube, select Share, then Copy. In the YouTube app, tap Share, then Copy link.
- Paste the link into the box above and select Download thumbnails.
- Select Download next to the size you want. The largest is 1280x720.
The file keeps YouTube’s original image and is named after the video ID and the size, such as Ab3_xY9-kQz-maxresdefault.jpg. To save every size at once, select Download all as ZIP. On a phone, it goes wherever your browser saves downloads.
YouTube thumbnail sizes
YouTube’s Data API lists five thumbnail sizes, from the 120x90 default image to the 1280x720 maxres one. Every video has the three smaller sizes. The 640x480 and 1280x720 images exist for some videos only, so many older uploads stop at 480x360.
| Size | File name | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| 1280x720 | maxresdefault.jpg |
16:9 |
| 640x480 | sddefault.jpg |
4:3, with black bars on widescreen videos |
| 480x360 | hqdefault.jpg |
4:3, with black bars on widescreen videos |
| 320x180 | mqdefault.jpg |
16:9 |
| 120x90 | default.jpg |
4:3, with black bars on widescreen videos |
YouTube fits a widescreen video into the 4:3 sizes without cropping it, which adds black bars above and below the picture. For a clean 16:9 image, take 1280x720. When a video has no 1280x720 image, crop the bars off the 640x480 one to get 640x360.
Why there’s no 4K or 1080p thumbnail
YouTube asks creators to upload custom thumbnails at 3840x2160 for videos and 2160x3840 for Shorts. The largest size in YouTube’s own list is the 1280x720 maxres image, and in our tests, recent uploads from large channels topped out there too. A site that offers a 1080p or 4K thumbnail has enlarged the 1280x720 image, which adds pixels but no detail.
Why some sizes are missing
YouTube makes the 640x480 and 1280x720 images for some videos only, and many older uploads have neither. In our tests, YouTube answers a size that doesn’t exist with a small grey placeholder, so the downloader marks that size Not available for this video and offers no download for it.
If every size is missing, YouTube has no video at that link. Check it for a typo. The video may also have been removed.
Downloading Shorts thumbnails
In the Shorts we tested, each of the five wide sizes shows the vertical frame between blurred copies of itself. When YouTube also keeps the full vertical image, the downloader shows it first. In those Shorts, it was 1080x1920, the 9:16 shape YouTube asks Shorts thumbnails to use. Regular videos have no vertical image.
Links you can paste
- Watch links:
youtube.com/watch?v=…, includingm.youtube.comlinks copied on a phone. - Share links:
youtu.be/…, as YouTube’s Share button copies them. - Shorts and live streams:
youtube.com/shorts/…andyoutube.com/live/…. - Embed links:
youtube.com/embed/…andyoutube-nocookie.com/embed/…. - A video ID: the 11 characters after
v=in a watch link.
After you save a thumbnail
A thumbnail belongs to the creator who uploaded it. YouTube’s Terms of Service let creators keep ownership of their content and ask for permission from YouTube and the rights holder before anyone downloads or reuses it. Ask the creator before you publish their thumbnail anywhere. YouTube’s fair use guide explains when the law allows reuse without permission.
To watch the video without the recommendations sidebar or the comments, open it in the cookie-free YouTube watcher. To put the video itself on your page, with a start time or a responsive size, get its code from the YouTube embed code generator. To check its estimated dislikes first, paste the link into the YouTube dislike viewer. For the channels you learn from, Retube, our free browser extension, groups your subscriptions into topic feeds inside YouTube, such as Cooking, Science, or Learning. Read how to organize YouTube subscriptions to set that up.