Free tool · no account
Social media safe zone checker: Reels, Stories, TikTok and Shorts
Instagram, TikTok and YouTube draw their own buttons on top of your ad. Drop a 9:16 image or video below and see exactly where they land, in the real interface, before the campaign goes live — with the safe zones of 2026 measured in pixels. The file stays in your browser.
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 Reels · on a 1080×1920 frame
- Covered at the top
- 200 px
- Covered at the bottom
- 700 px
- Covered on the right
- 170 px
- Safe area
- 910 × 1020 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 Reels safe zones as a transparent 1080×1920 PNG, to drop into Photoshop, After Effects or Canva as a guide layer.
The safe zones in pixels (September 2026)
Every number below is measured on a real screenshot of the app and expressed in pixels of a 1080×1920 frame, which is what a 9:16 export usually is. The safe area is what is left once the app has drawn its interface.
| Placement | Top | Bottom | Right | Safe area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Instagram Reels | 200 px | 700 px | 170 px | 910 × 1020 px |
| Instagram Reels (ad) | 220 px | 520 px → 700 px with a CTA | 170 px | 910 × 1000 px |
| Instagram Story | 220 px | 400 px | — | 1080 × 1300 px |
| Instagram Story (ad) | 220 px | 400 px | — | 1080 × 1300 px |
| YouTube Shorts | 200 px | 600 px | 170 px | 910 × 1120 px |
| YouTube Shorts (ad) | 200 px | 600 px | 170 px | 910 × 1120 px |
| TikTok | 200 px | 600 px | 170 px | 910 × 1120 px |
A page per placement
The placements people ask about most have a page of their own, with the tool opened on them, what is specific to each and their own questions: Instagram Reels safe zone, Instagram Story safe zone and TikTok safe zone.
Why an ad is not the same as an organic post
A paid placement adds a Sponsored label and a call-to-action button, and it moves the caption. On Reels the button sits above the profile row, so the bottom of the frame is covered between 520 px and 700 px depending on whether the ad carries a button at all — that is the hatched band in the tool, not a solid one, because it is the “it depends” band. Stories are the most generous placement: no button column on the right, 400 px at the bottom. If a creative works on Reels it works everywhere; the reverse is not true.
How to check a creative in four steps
- 1
Drop the creative in
Click "Check my ad" and pick the 9:16 JPG, PNG, GIF or MP4 you are about to publish. It is read in your browser; nothing is sent anywhere.
- 2
Switch between the placements
The same file, seen as an organic Reel, a Reels ad, a Story, a Story ad, TikTok and YouTube Shorts. The interface is the app's real one, drawn at the same proportions.
- 3
Turn the zones on and off
With "Safe zones" on you see exactly what the app covers, including the hatched band that is only covered when the ad carries a CTA button. With it off you see what the viewer sees.
- 4
Fix the layout, not the export
Almost every problem is the same one: the headline sits in the top bar, or the price and button sit in the bottom 700 px. Move them into the safe area and re-export once.
Doing this for 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 instead: you get one link for the whole campaign, and every 9:16 file on that page carries the same “Preview as…” dropdown 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 Reels?
On an organic Reel, Instagram covers roughly the top 200 px and the bottom 700 px of a 1080×1920 frame, plus about 170 px on the right for the like, comment and share column. That leaves a safe area of about 910×1020 px. A Reels ad covers slightly less at the bottom (520 px), but the call-to-action button can push that back to 700 px.
Is the safe zone the same for Stories?
No. A Story has no button column on the right, so the full width is usable, and the bottom bar is smaller: about 220 px at the top and 400 px at the bottom. That is why a creative built for Stories often fails on Reels, and never the other way round.
Do TikTok and YouTube Shorts use the same numbers?
Close enough to share one set: about 200 px at the top, 600 px at the bottom and 170 px on the right. Both were measured on real screenshots rather than taken from a template, and both are re-checked when the apps change.
Can I check a video, not just an image?
Yes. Pick an MP4 and it plays inside the mockup with the overlay on top, so you can see whether the end card or the logo reveal lands under the interface. The file is read in your browser and never uploaded.
How do I check a whole campaign, with my client?
Upload the creatives to a free BannerPeek account and share one link. Every 9:16 file on that page gets the same "Preview as…" dropdown and safe-zone toggle, so your client can check the placements themselves and pin a comment on the exact spot — no account needed on their side.