AI image aspect ratios: square, landscape or portrait?

Start with the intended use

Try 1:1 for square cards and product images, 4:3 or 3:2 for landscape subjects, and 16:9 for presentation slides or wide covers. Portrait layouts can use 3:4, 2:3 or 9:16. The 21:9 and 9:21 options provide extra-wide or extra-tall canvases.

These are composition suggestions, not universal platform requirements. Check your destination's current dimensions, safe areas and cropping behavior before publishing. Your prompt can also specify subject placement and where to leave empty space.

Presets and custom dimensions

The studio offers the nine presets below. For a custom size, both dimensions must be multiples of 16, neither edge may exceed 3840 pixels, the ratio must fall between 1:3 and 3:1, and the total must be between 655,360 and 8,294,400 pixels.

For example, 1536 × 864 is a supported 16:9 size. A height of 1080 is not a multiple of 16, so 1920 × 1080 cannot be submitted directly. Generate at a supported size, then prepare the output for its final destination.

Resolution and generation time

Above 3,686,400 pixels, the studio labels the size as experimental high resolution. Generation may take longer and cost more. For a first draft, a preset is a practical way to evaluate composition.

Changing the canvas can rearrange the scene rather than simply crop the same image. To continue an existing visual direction, use a reference image and describe which parts you want to preserve.

Work backwards from the final layout

Choose where the image will go before choosing its shape. For a wide presentation cover, start with 16:9 at 1536 × 864; for a centered object card, try 1024 × 1024. A narrow 9:21 canvas suits a deliberately tall composition. It is not a general substitute for a portrait image just because one dimension is larger.

Aspect ratio defines shape, while pixel dimensions determine the available detail. Both 1536 × 864 and 2048 × 1152 are 16:9, but the latter has more pixels. If you need a final 1920 × 1080 file, generate the supported 2048 × 1152 size and resize it proportionally in an image editor. The studio does not currently perform that export-resizing step.

Check custom dimensions before submitting

For 1536 × 864, dividing the sides by 16 gives 96 and 54. The total is 1,327,104 pixels and the width-to-height ratio is approximately 1.78. These values pass this site's multiple, edge, pixel-count and ratio checks. Although 1920 × 1080 is a common display size, 1080 is not divisible by 16 and cannot be submitted directly.

Divisibility is only one check. Both sides of 512 × 512 are multiples of 16, but its 262,144 pixels fall below the site's minimum. A 3840 × 3840 square exceeds the maximum total pixel count. Follow the validation message and adjust the dimensions rather than repeatedly submitting the same invalid size.

Cropping and regenerating solve different problems. Cropping a 1024 × 1024 square to 16:9 leaves 1024 × 576, removing 448 rows of pixels. A subject near the top or bottom may be cut off. Generating again at 16:9 can arrange a wider scene, but it may also change object details. Use a reference when preserving an existing subject matters, inspect the result, then decide between cropping and recomposing.