Free tool · no account
Instagram Story safe zone, checked on your own creative
running shoes
Headline in the top bar, price and button at the very bottom: on Reels and TikTok the client never sees them.
Placement
Instagram Story · on a 1080×1920 frame
- Covered at the top
- 220 px
- Covered at the bottom
- 400 px
- Covered on the right
- nothing
- Safe area
- 1080 × 1300 px
Measured on real screenshots in September 2026. Platforms move their buttons; the numbers here are re-checked when they do.
Your creative
JPG, PNG, GIF or MP4. The file stays in your browser — nothing is uploaded, no account needed.
Instagram Story safe zones as a transparent 1080×1920 PNG, to drop into Photoshop, After Effects or Canva as a guide layer.
What is covered, in pixels
Measured on real screenshots in September 2026, in pixels of a 1080×1920 frame. The safe area is what is left once the app has drawn its own interface over your creative.
| Placement | Top | Bottom | Right | Safe area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram Story | 220 px | 400 px | — | 1080 × 1300 px |
| Instagram Story (ad) | 220 px | 400 px | — | 1080 × 1300 px |
The same zones as a transparent 1080×1920 PNG: use “Download the overlay” in the tool above, then drop the file over your artboard or comp as a guide layer.
What is specific to this placement
The top 220 px belong to the progress bar
The bottom 400 px are for replying or tapping
The sides are free, unlike Reels
Design once for both placements
Checking a whole campaign, with the client watching
The tool above checks one file at a time, on your machine. When the campaign has six creatives and a client who has to sign them off, upload them to BannerPeek: one link for the whole campaign, and every 9:16 file on that page carries the same placement switch and safe-zone toggle.
- HTML5 zips, images, GIFs and video on one page, at their real size
- The client switches placements and safe zones themselves — no account needed
- Comments pinned to the spot, and on video to the exact second of the animation
- Approval recorded with name and timestamp; new versions on the same link
Questions
What is the safe zone for Instagram Stories?
On a 1080×1920 Story, keep about 220 px clear at the top and 400 px at the bottom. The top holds the progress bar, the profile picture and name and the close button; the bottom holds the reply bar, or the call-to-action on an ad. The sides are free, so the safe area is roughly 1080×1300 px in the middle.
Is the safe zone different for Story ads?
The covered areas are about the same size, but what covers them changes. An ad shows a Sponsored label next to the account name at the top and replaces the reply bar with the call-to-action at the bottom. The call-to-action is the part people tap, so anything you place under it is both hidden and competing with the button.
What size should an Instagram Story be?
1080×1920 pixels, a 9:16 ratio. Instagram accepts other ratios and fills the rest of the screen with a blurred or coloured background, which is rarely what you want for an ad.
How is a Story different from a Reel?
Reels are much stricter. A Reel covers about 700 px at the bottom and a 170 px column on the right for the like, comment and share buttons. A Story covers only 400 px at the bottom and nothing on the sides. A creative that is safe for Reels is safe for Stories, but not the other way round.
Can I download a safe zone template?
Yes. The tool exports the Story safe zones as a transparent 1080×1920 PNG. Drop it on top of your artboard in Photoshop, Figma or After Effects as a guide layer and switch it off before you export.