What is 16:9?
16:9 means the picture is 16 units wide for every 9 units high, a decimal ratio of 1.78:1. It is the standard shape of HD and 4K video, television, YouTube and most computer monitors and laptop screens. Turned on its side, it is 9:16, the shape of vertical phone video.
How to calculate a 16:9 size
height = width x 9 / 16
width = height x 16 / 9A width of 1000 gives a height of 562.5, which is not a whole number. Choose a width that divides by 16, such as 960, 1280 or 1920, and the height is a whole number. Type either side above and the other updates.
Common 16:9 resolutions
| Resolution | Name |
|---|---|
| 640 x 360 | nHD |
| 854 x 480 | 480p (rounded from 853.3) |
| 1280 x 720 | HD, 720p |
| 1600 x 900 | HD+ |
| 1920 x 1080 | Full HD, 1080p |
| 2560 x 1440 | QHD, 1440p |
| 3840 x 2160 | 4K UHD, 2160p |
| 7680 x 4320 | 8K UHD, 4320p |
Where 16:9 is used
- Video: YouTube, streaming services, television and most screen recordings.
- Thumbnails: the usual YouTube thumbnail size is 1280 x 720.
- Presentations: widescreen slides.
- Wallpapers and web hero images for desktop screens.
Make your own picture 16:9
Enter the size of your picture in Make my picture 16:9. The calculator gives two ways to get there:
- Crop. The largest 16:9 area that fits inside your picture, and how much is removed. A 4:3 picture loses 25% of its height. A 3:2 picture loses about 16%.
- Add bars. The smallest 16:9 frame that holds the whole picture, and how wide the bars are. A 4:3 picture in a 16:9 frame has bars that take up a quarter of the width.
To do the crop, use the 16:9 image cropper.
Related calculators
See the aspect ratio calculator, 4:3 and 1:1, the width and height calculator and the aspect ratio guide.