Does TikTok publish a safe zone?

Not as a number for video. TikTok describes safe zones across its help pages and distributes downloadable overlay files, but no TikTok-owned page states a pixel or percentage value for video. The only numeric safe zone TikTok publishes anywhere is for the profile photo: 98 x 98 px, key element centred within 66 x 66 px.

Why does TikTok's safe zone change?

Because the interface around the video changes. TikTok's help centre says the safe zone depends on the dimension, the ad caption length and any interactive add-ons; the longer the caption, the smaller the safe zone. A fixed percentage cannot describe that, which is why TikTok ships overlay files instead of a figure.

What does TikTok's interface cover?

Bottom-left: the nickname, the ad caption and the music caption, all in white, which is why TikTok warns against white or transparent backgrounds. An action rail runs up the right edge and the feed navigation sits along the top. The overlay in the tool draws all of it over your own file.

Where do I get TikTok's official safe-zone files?

From TikTok's own help articles. The auction In-Feed, reservation In-Feed and TopView pages each link downloadable safe-zone files, differentiated by dimension (vertical, horizontal, square), by ad stage, and by reading direction (left-to-right and Arabic right-to-left). TikTok distributes these files instead of publishing a number.

Does TikTok pillarbox 9:16 video?

TikTok has never said. Nothing on crop, zoom or letterbox behaviour appears in its help centre, its Creative Center or its ad policy, for any aspect ratio. Meta documents exactly what it does on taller-than-9:16 screens; TikTok does not, so treat any claim either way as unsourced.

What size should a TikTok ad be?

TikTok's recommended format is vertical 9:16 at 540 x 960 px or larger. Square 1:1 (at least 640 x 640) and horizontal 16:9 (at least 960 x 540) are also accepted. Files: .mp4, .mov, .mpeg, .3gp or .avi, up to 500 MB, up to 10 minutes for auction In-Feed. Reservation buys differ: 5 to 60 seconds at a higher bitrate floor.

Yes, and it is 100% private: nothing is saved or uploaded, your file is read in the browser and never leaves your device. No account, no email, no watermark, and there is no paid tier of this tool.

Free tool · TikTok

TikTok safe zone: see what the app covers

There is no TikTok safe-zone percentage, because TikTok never published one. Its own reason: the zone shrinks as your caption grows. So the only reliable check is visual, and it is right below.

No numeric safe zone
Caption length moves it
Checked 5 Aug 2026

The interactive mockup needs JavaScript. Everything the overlay shows, from what the interface covers to which placements take which format, is also written out on this page.

TikTok For You placement around a 9:16 sample recruitment ad. Interface overlay on.

Sample: a recruitment ad made with RecruitmentAds.com

Your creative

Drop your MP4 or JPEG here

or choose a file

100% private. The file is read in your browser. Nothing is saved or uploaded.

Sample creative

Formatdetected 9:16

Placement7 of 11 placements take 9:16

Overlay

Your logo

Add your logo

100% private. Your logo never leaves this device. Or click the logo inside the mockup.

Call-to-action buttonTikTok For You

TikTok's published call-to-action list, 25 buttons. Five more exist, reserved for LIVE, reach-and-frequency and engagement ads.

No email. No signup. No watermark.

The interactive mockup needs JavaScript. Everything it shows is also written out on this page: the safe-zone section covers what the interface hides, and the tables carry every figure TikTok publishes.

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No watermark

Your file is read in the browser and never sent anywhere. The export is a full-resolution PNG with no signup and no watermark. There is no paid tier of this tool.

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Safe zone

What TikTok's interface covers, and where

The interface regions in this mockup, drawn to scale on a 9:16 frame. Named rather than numbered, because TikTok's zone moves.

TikTok gives no number, and says why:

“The safe zone size is determined by the dimension (vertical, horizontal or square), the ad caption length and any interactive add-on usage; the longer the caption, the smaller the safe zone will be.”

TikTok Ads Manager Help Centre, Auction In-Feed Ads · accessed 5 Aug 2026

A moving zone cannot be stated as a percentage, so TikTok hands out overlay files instead. They are downloadable from its help articles, split by dimension (vertical, horizontal, square), by ad stage, and by reading direction (left-to-right and Arabic right-to-left).

TikTok does name what sits in the covered space: the nickname, the ad caption and the music caption, all in white, all bottom-left. That leads straight to its one design warning:

“Avoid using transparent or white background for the creative, as nicknames, ad captions, and music captions may not be visible, because the text color and UI icons on the TikTok app are white.”

TikTok Ads Manager Help Centre, Auction In-Feed Ads · accessed 5 Aug 2026

In practice: the caption and CTA block takes roughly the lower quarter of the frame, the action rail runs up the right edge, and the feed navigation sits along the top. Keep faces, text and logos out of all three, and use the overlay above to check your own file.

So any page telling you “TikTok's safe zone is X%” did not get that from TikTok. Six TikTok-owned pages carry safe-zone guidance and not one of them states a number for video (checked 5 August 2026).

Published specs

TikTok In-Feed ad specs

Check which table you need first. Auction and reservation In-Feed are the same placement bought two ways, and TikTok publishes different figures for each, so they are kept apart here.

Auction In-Feed (For You)

Field	Value	Type	Source	Accessed
Aspect ratio, vertical (recommended)	9:16, at least 540 x 960 px	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Aspect ratio, horizontal	16:9, at least 960 x 540 px	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Aspect ratio, square	1:1, at least 640 x 640 px	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
File formats	.mp4, .mov, .mpeg, .3gp, .avi	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Video duration	Up to 10 minutes	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Max file size	≤ 500 MB	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Bitrate	≥ 516 kbps	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Ad caption rendering	“Displayed in white with a uniform font that can't be customized”	Design guideline	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Ad caption restrictions	“Does not support any clickable links, symbols (@), or hashtags”	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Caption display cap	Maximum 4 lines	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Account name	Max 10 characters (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) or 20 characters in other languages	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Profile photo	98 x 98 px, 1:1, .jpg/.jpeg/.png, under 50 KB	Technical requirement	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Profile photo safe zone	Key element centred within 66 x 66 px	Design recommendation	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Video safe zone	No numeric value published Why	Not classified	Auction In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026

Spark Ads (boosted organic posts) differ again on the same page: .mp4 or .mov, no duration restriction, and captions are extracted from the organic post, capped at 4 lines.

Reservation In-Feed (Reach & Frequency)

Field	Value	Type	Source	Accessed
File formats	.mp4, .mov, .mpeg, .3gp (no .avi)	Technical requirement	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Duration	5–60 s, recommend 9–15 s	Technical requirement	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Bitrate	≥ 2,500 kbps	Technical requirement	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Max file size	≤ 500 MB	Technical requirement	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Ad caption (Spark Pull)	Max 150 characters, or blank caption	Technical requirement	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
Ad caption recommendation	“Keep the ad captions within 50 characters for CN/JP/KR or 100 characters in other languages”	Design recommendation	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026
CTA options	“25 CTAs in total”	Design guideline	Reservation In-Feed Ads	5 Aug 2026

One placement name, two sets of figures. Check how the campaign is bought before you build to either table. Which figures differ

What TikTok does not publish

TikTok gives no figure for any of these. If a spec sheet hands you one, it did not come from TikTok.

What TikTok does not publish
Not published	Pages checked	Accessed
Any numeric safe zone for video, in pixels or percentages	The six TikTok-owned pages listed in the safe-zone section	5 Aug 2026
Any statement on pillarbox, letterbox, crop or zoom behaviour	Help Centre, Creative Center, ad policy	5 Aug 2026
A canonical reference resolution against which safe zones are defined	All spec pages	5 Aug 2026
Codec requirements (only container formats and bitrate floors are given)	Auction and reservation In-Feed spec pages	5 Aug 2026
Headline and description character limits (the format has neither field, only the caption)	Auction In-Feed spec page	5 Aug 2026

Which number to use

Two TikTok figures that depend on the page you read

Both of these sit between pages the platform publishes itself. Here is the number to build to, with the sources under it.

TikTok In-Feed specs differ by buying type.
Match the table to how you buy. Auction In-Feed allows up to 10 minutes at a 516 kbps floor and accepts .avi; reservation requires 5 to 60 seconds at 2,500 kbps and drops .avi.
The sources, side by side
Meta publishes two bottom reserves for Facebook Stories.
Follow 35%. It is the figure Meta uses on every other vertical placement page.
The sources, side by side

The sources behind each one

Source conflict

TikTok In-Feed specs differ by buying type

Auction and reservation are different products behind the same placement name. One spec table cannot describe both.

Source	Value	Type	Accessed
TikTok Ads Manager Help Centre · TikTok Auction In-Feed Ads	Up to 10 minutes · ≥ 516 kbps · .mp4, .mov, .mpeg, .3gp, .avi	Technical requirement	5 Aug 2026
TikTok Ads Manager Help Centre · TikTok Reservation In-Feed Ads (Reach & Frequency)	5–60 s, recommend 9–15 s · ≥ 2,500 kbps · .mp4, .mov, .mpeg, .3gp	Technical requirement	5 Aug 2026

What to use

Match the table to how you buy. Auction In-Feed allows up to 10 minutes at a 516 kbps floor and accepts .avi; reservation requires 5 to 60 seconds at 2,500 kbps and drops .avi.

Last checked 5 Aug 2026

Source conflict

Meta publishes two bottom reserves for Facebook Stories

Same guide, adjacent pages, same placement.

Source	Value	Type	Accessed
Meta Ads Guide · Facebook Stories, video	20% (340 px)	Design recommendation	5 Aug 2026
Meta Ads Guide · Facebook Stories, image	35%	Design recommendation	5 Aug 2026

What to use

Follow 35%. It is the figure Meta uses on every other vertical placement page. Confirmed on the www. and en-gb. hosts, so it is not a locale artefact.

Last checked 5 Aug 2026

Facebook has the widest spread of any platform here. See the Facebook page · All platforms on the hub

Every source on this page

Each figure above carries its source inline. The full list, all accessed 5 August 2026:

Last verified 5 August 2026. Volatile figures (safe zones, character limits, TikTok's safe-zone files) are re-checked quarterly; stable ones (aspect ratios, file caps, containers) annually.

Other platforms

Safe zones and specs for the other placements

Each page carries that platform's published specs and its safe zone, sourced and dated. Instagram is the natural next stop: its safe zone does have numbers.

Instagram

Reels · Story · Feed

3 placements in the tool

Safe zone published

Facebook

Story · Reels · Feed

3 placements in the tool

Two safe-zone readings published

Feed

1 placement in the tool

No safe zone published

YouTube

In-Stream

1 placement in the tool

Safe zone published in pixels

Snapchat

1 placement in the tool

Figures on two pages disagree

X

Feed

1 placement in the tool

No published figure

FAQ

TikTok safe-zone questions

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Instagram, Facebook and Meta are trademarks of Meta Platforms, Inc. TikTok is a trademark of ByteDance Ltd. LinkedIn is a trademark of LinkedIn Corporation. YouTube is a trademark of Google LLC. Snapchat is a trademark of Snap Inc. X is a trademark of X Corp. RecruitmentAds.com is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by any of these companies. The placement previews on this page are illustrative recreations built from published specifications. They are not screenshots of the apps and may differ from the current product. Specification figures are quoted from each platform’s own documentation with the date they were read.

TikTok safe zone: see what the app covers

What TikTok's interface covers, and where

Measurements of this mockup

See the six pages, and what each publishes

TikTok In-Feed ad specs

Auction In-Feed (For You)

Reservation In-Feed (Reach & Frequency)

What TikTok does not publish

Two TikTok figures that depend on the page you read

The sources behind each one

TikTok In-Feed specs differ by buying type

Meta publishes two bottom reserves for Facebook Stories

Verbatim wording from the pages

Every source on this page

Safe zones and specs for the other placements

Instagram

Facebook

LinkedIn

YouTube

Snapchat

X

TikTok safe-zone questions

Does TikTok publish a safe zone?

Why does TikTok's safe zone change?

What does TikTok's interface cover?

Where do I get TikTok's official safe-zone files?

Does TikTok pillarbox 9:16 video?

What size should a TikTok ad be?

Is this tool free?

Paste a vacancy link. Get the finished ad set back.