Beat the Algorithmic Crop
Aspect ratios platforms expect
Instagram feeds favor 1:1 and 4:5; Stories and Reels want 9:16. YouTube thumbnails live at 16:9. Resize image for social media with these ratios in mind — social media resize done locally prevents surprise center-crops.
Resize cover photo and profile headers
Facebook and LinkedIn cover photos use wide aspect ratios; Twitter/X headers differ again. Resize cover photo assets to documented pixel widths before upload so faces stay in frame.
Per-channel compression wars
Networks recompress everything. Starting with resize image for facebook or resize image for pinterest at correct pixels means their algorithms work with less destructive downscaling.