Guide to WordPress Image Sizes

September 29. 2022

Are you curious to learn more about WordPress image sizes? Obviously, image quality is a priority but your website’s speed shouldn’t suffer because of the images either. Therefore, it can be challenging to get the dimensions right. We at WP Full Care fully appreciate how important it is to get the image sizes right and that’s why we’ve prepared this thorough guide. Now let’s get to work!

What are image sizes?

The width and height of an image in pixels are the most common measurements used to describe its size. For instance, an image with the dimensions 1600×900 pixels would have a width of 1600 pixels and a height of 900 pixels. In other words, these numbers are the image’s dimensions.

The size of an image file, in bytes, is the amount of storage space it requires on a computer. Example: 100 KB (kilobytes). Naturally, a larger image has more pixels, hence a larger file size is expected. This means that larger image files take longer to download for visitors, which can slow down your site. Therefore, make sure to keep the image file size as small as possible while yet preserving the correct proportions.

Compression approaches for storing images are known as image file formats. In general, JPEG and PNG are the most popular ones for use online. JPEG is a more efficient format for compressing photos and other images with a lot of colors. However, PNG is ideal for illustrations and other images with fewer color details. It all depends on the way you want to optimize your WordPress images.

Now, let’s have a look at what picture sizes work best in WordPress for various purposes.

What are the best image sizes to use on your WordPress website?

All images stored on your WordPress website will have specific places where they’ll be displayed. You will require photos for many different purposes, including blog articles, thumbnails, page headers, cover images, and more.

By default, WordPress takes care of a variety of picture file sizes. For each image you upload, WordPress will generate many smaller and larger versions. However, when you go to the Settings » Media page in your WordPress admin area, you’ll be able to see and change the preset picture sizes.

There are three different sizes available, labeled Medium, Thumbnail, and Large. But your WordPress theme may generate its own additional image sizes and use those for various purposes. The only way to access these sizes is through the File Manager on your WordPress hosting account, as they will not appear on the Media screen. Simply select a year folder under /wp-content/uploads/ and continue browsing.

That being said, let’s examine several parts of your website and the optimal image sizes for them. In this article, we’ll cover ideal WordPress image sizes for your:

• blogs
• featured images
• social media
• website logo

What WordPress image sizes to use on blogs?

Depending on your WordPress theme, you’ll need to select an appropriate image size for your blog entries. Some WordPress themes, for instance, may just have one column, allowing you to display far more expansive photos while others might employ multi-column layouts (content + sidebar), necessitating that you tailor the picture width properly.

Standard blog image dimensions are as follows:

• For a single-column layout, it’s usually 1200×675.
• The multi-column layout usually requires 680 x 382.

You may have noticed that many of the most visited WordPress sites include photos within articles that are all the same width. But this isn’t an ironclad regulation either. For the ‘Media and Text’ block, for instance, the image size can be modified as needed.

What WordPress image sizes to use for featured images?

Post thumbnails and featured images are two different names for the same WordPress functionality. Therefore, the theme you use will dictate the maximum image size allowed on your site. For featured images, the default for several WordPress themes is a common 16:9 ratio (e.g., 680×382 pixels). The featured image can also be used as a larger header image in some WordPress themes. They could need higher-resolution photos (about 1200 x 675 pixels) for this purpose.

Featured photos are essential since your WordPress theme may pull from them in several ways. Since they are generally the first thing that guests see, it’s important to present a positive image. In order to ensure that your photographs appear great whether they are viewed at 100% size or 100% scaled down, it is best to use larger versions of them.

If your WordPress theme’s featured picture is a square, we suggest utilizing a minimum of 600×600 pixels. On the other hand, images featured in rectangular themes should be 1200×687 pixels. The featured photos on your WordPress theme’s homepage, blog page, and archive pages will all be generated in varying sizes.

What WordPress image sizes to use for social media?

You can utilize the featured photos that are included in your WordPress theme as social media images for Twitter and Facebook if the theme has a 16:9 aspect ratio. However, to ensure that the desired image appears whenever a user shares a piece from your website, you’ll need to provide specific instructions to each sharing platform.

To do this, you’ll need All in One SEO plugin for WordPress. It will help you improve your website’s performance in search engines and on social media. Once you install and activate this plugin, head over to the All in One SEO » Social Networks page and click the Facebook button. Here you can change the “Featured Image” option to be the default image source for Open Graph. When you’re through making adjustments, make sure to click the Save Changes button.

Now, if the photos utilized by your WordPress theme are a different size, social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter might not be able to display them correctly. In that situation, you can upload a special photo to share on social media. Simply select the “Social” menu at the top and then look for the Image source area. Pick “Custom image” from the menu’s drop-down and then add your Facebook profile picture. You can do the same thing in the Twitter tab.

What WordPress image sizes to use for your website logo?

Most WordPress templates will specify the ideal logo size for your site. Take a closer look and the chances are you’ll notice your theme is suggesting a specific size when uploading your logo. However, logo image size advice may not be provided if you are using a modern WordPress theme that allows for complete site modification. For that reason, you should try uploading various sizes and styles to find the one that works best for your brand. The recommended minimum resolution for a logo is 300×200 pixels.

The bottom line

We hope our guide to WordPress image sizes helped you understand how to add images to WordPress in the most efficient and aesthetically pleasing way. Of course, you can always decide to take the easier way and hire pros to make sure your WordPress website is running smoothly. So wait no more and give your website the expert care it deserves!