Your Easy Guide to Making a YouTube Thumbnail

Generally, your YouTube thumbnail just does not cut it. You can have uploaded the most fascinating video on YouTube, however, it may not get the views it deserves when you are relying on an easy freeze-frame to tell viewers what it is about.

Thumbnails, the small, clickable snapshots that viewers see once they seek for videos on YouTube, could be just as necessary as a video’s title. They preview your video and entice viewers to click through.

Making vibrant YouTube thumbnails could also instantly grab people’s attention — the brain is programmed to respond to striking visuals — and this could help you differentiate yourself on a platform clogged with standard thumbnails all screaming for attention.

Thumbnails could have an effect on your search ranking on YouTube, too. Since your video’s click-through rate is one of the most vital ranking factors in YouTube’s search algorithm, particularly during its first hour on the platform, an eye-catching thumbnail could make an enormous difference in ranking number one for a query and not ranking at all.

In case your video has an ordinary or sub-par thumbnail, it will not persuade anybody to click through. YouTube can deem the video irrelevant and will not rank it in their search outcomes or distribute it via the “Recommended Videos” feed.

Luckily, pulling freeze frames from your YouTube videos is not the one means you could create thumbnails. There are online tools, made particularly for people who may not have a ton of design experience, that could assist you to craft custom thumbnails — all at no cost.

Under, we will guide you through a simple five-step process for creating visually appealing YouTube thumbnails which will cut through the noise, increase your video’s click-through rate, and lift your rankings.

1. Go to a free online YouTube thumbnail maker.

There are 7 free online YouTube thumbnail makers listed under, however, we featured FotoJet in this guide because it’s one of the only YouTube thumbnail makers that does not make you sign up for a free account before you could make a thumbnail. Their robust thumbnail maker allows you to customize and download your thumbnails fully without cost — no email address require.

2. Add an image or select one of the thumbnail makers’ templates.

YouTube will allow you to add any image from your laptop as your video’s thumbnail. However, when you do not have a vivid visual on your laptop or you want some inspiration, Fotojet’s got you covered. They’ve over 23 free templates that could serve as your thumbnail’s foundation.

To create striking a thumbnail in Fotojet, think about including a talking head. People are naturally drawn to human faces because it is an ingrained survival mechanism to help us rapidly gauge somebody’s emotions and decide if they are a threat or friend. Research Gate additionally found that Instagram images with faces are 38 percent more likely to get likes and 32 percent more likely to get comments.

3. Add text, clipart, or a background to your thumbnail.

When you have picked your image or template, you could make your thumbnail stand out even more by including text, clipart, or a background to it.

To further make clear your video’s subject matter, think about including your video’s title to the thumbnail. Moreover, in case your photo, graphic, or text is bright, think about placing it on top of a dark background. The color contrast will make your thumbnail pop. The same logic applies to dark objects and bright backdrops.

4. Download the finished product on your computer.

After you complete polishing your thumbnail, press the “Save” button at the top of the page.

Next, title your thumbnail and save it as a JPG or PNG. Its resolution will already match YouTube’s recommended resolution — 1280 x 720 pixels — so you do not have to worry about resizing it.

7 YouTube Thumbnail Makers

Along with Fotojet’s free online YouTube thumbnail maker, there are 7 other thumbnail makers that could assist you to customize your individual YouTube thumbnails. Before you make a thumbnail with these tools, although, you want to join a free account on their sites.

1. Canva

With over 2 million photos of their library, a whole lot of fonts, and customizable backgrounds and colors, Canva offers you more than sufficient sources to unleash your creativity.

2. Adobe Spark

Adobe Spark lets you choose from hundreds of pictures on the net and a wide range of built-out themes with their very own distinctive layouts, colours, and fonts to craft eye-catching YouTube thumbnails.

3. Crello

With Crello, you may create partaking thumbnails by mixing a mess of designs, pictures, backgrounds, textual content, and objects collectively.

4. Visme

Select from a big selection of templates, pictures, graphics, colours, and fonts to create a thumbnail in Visme.

5. Fotor

Fotor supplies templates beneath sure themes that will help you create charming thumbnails.

6. Picmaker

With over 100,000 graphics, 1,000 inventory pictures, stickers, borders, backgrounds, textual content, icons, and filters, and an automated background remover, you may create a gripping thumbnail on Picmaker in loads of methods.

7. Snappa

Snappa has over 500,000 inventory pictures, an assortment of professionally designed templates, and customizable graphics, shapes, and textual content that will help you create a YouTube thumbnail. Additionally, they have a drag and drop performance that will help you create your individual customized thumbnail template.