Measured from the platform's own overlay, or labeled as a guide
YouTube Shorts safe zone
Short answer
Google publishes a vertical safe-zone overlay for YouTube video ads. Koldflux measured the transparent rectangle on that PNG: x 48 to 887 and y 288 to 1247 on a 1080 x 1920 frame, which is 288 px top, 672 px bottom, 48 px left and 192 px right.
Key takeaways
- These are measured pixels, not percentages: 288 / 672 / 48 / 192 px on the 1080 x 1920 frame Google's overlay is drawn at.
- The left margin is 48 px and the right is 192 px, which is not symmetric. A centered design wastes 144 px on the right.
- The right margin is four times the left because of the channel icon and action column.
- Google's page text states no numbers; they come from the overlay image it links.
The overlay
One surface, and the numbers on it are measured pixels rather than converted percentages. The overlay is drawn at the frame Google used.
Official overlay, measured by Koldflux · About video ad specs: vertical Safe Zone overlay (Google Ads Help) · Last checked 2026-10-03
On a 1080×1920 frame, leave the top 288 px, the bottom 672 px, the left 48 px and the right 192 px free of text and faces.
Published for YouTube vertical video ads; organic Shorts can differ.
Surfaces on this platform
One surface, verified. The channel art safe area is a different asset for a different frame and is on the banner page, not here.
Short
VERIFIED · About video ad specs: vertical Safe Zone overlay (Google Ads Help) publishes these figures, and Koldflux checked them on 2026-10-03. The download carries the same numbers.
- Top
- 15% · 288 px
- Bottom
- 35% · 672 px
- Left
- 4.444% · 48 px
- Right
- 17.778% · 192 px
Source: About video ad specs: vertical Safe Zone overlay (Google Ads Help). Checked 2026-10-03.
Google published an image, not a sentence
The Google Ads help page on vertical safe zones links a transparent PNG called "YouTube | Vertical Video Ads Safe Zone Overlay". The page body carries no numbers at all. Koldflux measured the image instead: one transparent rectangle at x 48 to 887 and y 288 to 1247 on its 1080 x 1920 canvas.
That gives 288 px above the rectangle and 1920 - 1247 = 673 px below it; the published row records 672 px, within the 1 px a rectangle edge can sit against a pixel boundary. Left is 48 px and right is 1080 - 887 = 193 px, recorded as 192 px for the same reason.
The asymmetry is the finding worth carrying: a design centered in the frame is 144 px further from the right-hand action column than it needs to be.
Why the right margin is four times the left
YouTube Shorts puts the channel icon, the like and comment counts in a column down the right edge of the player. The left edge carries nothing in the default layout, so Google's overlay reserves 48 px there and 192 px on the right.
The practical consequence is that key content should sit slightly left of center, not on the center line.
Channel art, a different surface
The 1235 x 338 px safe area that appears on the channel art page is a different figure for a different asset. It is YouTube's banner safe area, given on the channel branding page at the 2048 x 1152 minimum, not a Shorts overlay.
The two are easy to confuse because both are published by Google and both concern a 9:16 or 4:1 vertical frame. This page is about the Shorts player overlay only.
Downloads
Short
These are the pixels measured from Google's own vertical overlay PNG, which is the frame Google publishes for this surface. The download is labeled with the source and the date it was checked.
Frequently asked questions
What is the YouTube Shorts safe zone?
Measured from Google's own vertical ads overlay PNG: 288 px from the top, 672 px from the bottom, 48 px from the left and 192 px from the right, on a 1080 x 1920 frame.
Why is the YouTube Shorts safe zone not centered?
Because the right margin is 192 px and the left is 48 px. YouTube Shorts carries a channel icon and action column down the right edge of the player, so key content should sit slightly left of center.
Is the YouTube Shorts safe zone the same as the channel banner safe area?
No. The 1235 x 338 px figure is the channel art safe area at the 2048 x 1152 minimum. The Shorts figures on this page come from the vertical video ads overlay and are unrelated.
Does Google publish the YouTube Shorts safe zone as text?
Not on that page. The Google Ads help page on vertical safe zones links a transparent overlay PNG and states no numbers in the body, so Koldflux measured the image rather than quoting it.
Sources
- Google Ads Help: About video ad specs, vertical Safe Zone overlay (checked 2026-10-03)
Google's help page states no numbers and links an image, so every figure here comes from measuring that image. Where the page body has nothing, this page says so rather than filling the gap.