Spotify Canvas size and specs
Last updated 2026-10-20
Spotify's Canvas guidelines ask for a vertical 9:16 MP4 or JPG, 3 to 8 seconds long and between 720 and 1080 pixels tall, for example 576 by 1024. It loops in the Now Playing view in place of your cover art. Woven Video, a Mac editor, can build the loop on a 1080 by 1920 canvas, but its 9:16 export is at least 1920 pixels tall, so scale the file down before you upload.
Spotify Canvas specs at a glance
Spotify lists the same four requirements on its Canvas guidelines page and on its page about upload errors. The upload error page adds a warning: if the length or size is even slightly off, the upload can fail.
Note the height. A 1080 by 1920 frame has the right 9:16 shape, but it is 1920 pixels tall, and Spotify's pages say 720 to 1080. A 9:16 frame in that range is 405 to about 608 pixels wide. Two exact 9:16 sizes with even sides are 576 by 1024 and 594 by 1056.
| Spec | Value | Where Spotify says it |
|---|---|---|
| Aspect ratio | 9:16, vertical | Canvas guidelines; upload error page |
| Height | 720 to 1080 pixels | Canvas guidelines; upload error page |
| Width | Not stated; 9:16 at that height gives 405 to about 608 pixels | Worked out from the two specs above |
| Length | 3 to 8 seconds | Canvas guidelines; Adding a Canvas |
| File types | MP4 or JPG | Canvas guidelines; upload error page |
| File size | Not stated on Spotify's Canvas pages | None |
| Where it plays | Now Playing, in the Spotify mobile app on iOS 12 or later and Android 6.0 or later | Adding a Canvas; Canvas not showing in the Spotify app |
How long a Spotify Canvas can be
A Canvas runs 3 to 8 seconds and repeats for as long as the song plays. Spotify's guidelines suggest telling a whole story inside those 8 seconds rather than cutting down a music video.
Aim for the middle of the range, such as 6 seconds. A file that lands a frame outside 3 to 8 seconds is the kind of slightly off file Spotify says can fail to upload, so check the exported length before you upload.
Make the Canvas loop cleanly
Spotify's guidelines name three kinds of loop. Pick one before you film or edit, because the last frame runs straight into the first.
- Continuous loop. The motion ends exactly where it started, so the loop point is invisible. A gentle pulse, sway or float that completes its cycle works.
- Hard cut. The loop point is a visible edit. Spotify says the cut can be artfully disguised. One way is to end on a frame that looks like the opening one.
- Rebound. The clip plays forwards, then backwards. Spotify calls this an easy way to get a smooth loop.
- Avoid one-way moves. A slow zoom or pan that runs once across the clip ends somewhere other than where it began, so it jumps back every few seconds.
What a Canvas should and shouldn't show
Spotify's guidelines give creative advice. Its content policy sets the rules, and a Canvas that breaks Spotify's Platform Rules is removed.
- No lip sync. Skip footage of talking, singing or rapping. The clip is only 3 to 8 seconds, so it won't match the lyrics.
- No strobing. Avoid rapid cuts and intense flashing graphics, which Spotify says may overwhelm the viewer.
- Keep clear of the edges. Some phones cut off the edges, so keep the subject near the middle. Consider leaving out the song and artist name, because Now Playing already shows them.
- No promotion. No links, URLs or ticket vendors, and no asks for follows or likes. Text must relate to the track and must not promote other songs, unrelated albums, social accounts, brands or Spotify's logo, products, discounts, fan experiences or contests.
- Mark explicit content. Spotify asks you to mark a Canvas explicit if it shows profanity, violence or abuse, drugs, sexual behavior or sensitive topics.
Who can upload a Canvas and where it shows
Spotify says Canvas is available to all artists. In Spotify for Artists, the first main artist on a track can add one, and so can the main artist on both the track and the release, or a team member with the Admin or Editor role. You can add a Canvas to any track, including an upcoming release, and replace it whenever you like.
On the web, open the Music tab, select the track and click Add Canvas. In the Spotify for Artists app, tap Music, select the track, tap Canvas, shown with an edit icon.
Listeners see a Canvas in Now Playing, in the visual feeds on Home, in playlists and behind a track shared to Instagram Stories from the Spotify app. It plays only in the Spotify mobile app and only in Spotify's listed markets. It may not load with Data Saver on.
Listeners can switch it off. On a phone or tablet, tap your profile picture, then Settings and privacy, then Content and display, and use the Canvas toggle under Videos and Canvas. The setting applies to every device on the account.
Make a Spotify Canvas in Woven
Woven, the AI video editor for Mac, has no Canvas template and doesn't upload to Spotify. You build the loop on a vertical canvas, export an H.264 MP4 and upload it in Spotify for Artists yourself. Woven's 9:16 export is 1080 by 1920 at 1080p or 1440 by 2560 at 1440p, both taller than the 1080 pixels Spotify lists, and Woven can't export a smaller frame. So before you upload, resize the file to a 9:16 size in Spotify's range, such as 576 by 1024, with another app.
Ask in chat
- Make a 6-second vertical loop from my cover art with a gentle pulse that ends where it starts.
- Trim this clip to exactly 6 seconds, starting at 1:12.
- Generate a short vertical clip of rain on a window for my Spotify Canvas.
- Export this at 1080p.
Or do it by hand
- 1Set the canvas. Open Format in the toolbar and choose Vertical 1080x1920. The button then reads 9:16.
- 2Add the picture. Drag in your footage, or choose Add, then Image, for cover art. A photo arrives small, so in its Crop tab set Aspect to 9:16, switch Fit to Fill, and raise Scale a little past the point where it covers the frame, so loop motion never shows the canvas edge. A clip you generate by chat lands in the workspace's generated folder, and you drag it onto the timeline.
- 3Pick motion that loops. On an image's Animation tab, set In and Out to None, then choose Pulse, Float or Wiggle under Loop and leave Speed at 1. At that speed each one completes a cycle every second, so a clip of whole seconds ends in the pose it started in. Avoid Slow Zoom and Slow Spin, which move once across the clip and jump when Spotify loops it. Video clips have no loop presets, so use footage that loops on its own or plan a hard cut.
- 4Trim to length. A Woven reel ends where its last item ends. Drag a photo's right edge out to the length you want, such as 6 seconds. For footage, drag the clip's edges in, or use Split, then delete, until the reel is 3 to 8 seconds. Any audio or text that runs past the end makes the reel longer, so trim those too.
- 5Export. Click Export and choose 1080p. Woven saves an H.264 MP4 of 1080 by 1920 in the workspace's exports folder.
- 6Resize and upload. Scale the file to a 9:16 size between 720 and 1080 pixels tall, check that it runs 3 to 8 seconds, then add it in Spotify for Artists under Music, your track, Add Canvas.
Common questions
Spotify's Canvas guidelines say 9:16 vertical and 720 to 1080 pixels tall, as an MP4 or JPG. That works out to about 405 to 608 pixels wide, for example 576 by 1024.
3 to 8 seconds. Spotify warns that a file even slightly outside its specs can fail to upload, so a length such as 6 seconds is a safe target.
Not by Spotify's own pages. 1080 by 1920 has the right 9:16 shape, but it is 1920 pixels tall, and Spotify lists 720 to 1080 pixels tall. Scale it down to a 9:16 size in that range before you upload.
MP4 for a moving Canvas or JPG for a still one. Spotify's Canvas pages don't state a file size limit.
In Spotify for Artists, the first main artist on the track or the main artist on both the track and the release, plus team members with the Admin or Editor role.
Text must relate to the track and stay secondary to the image. Spotify's content policy rules out links, URLs, ticket vendors, asks for follows or likes, and promotion of other songs, unrelated albums, brands, products or contests.
In the Spotify app, tap your profile picture, then Settings and privacy, then Content and display, and switch off Canvas under Videos and Canvas. The change applies to every device on your account.
Sources
- Spotify for Artists Support: Canvas guidelines, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify for Artists Support: Fix a Spotify Canvas upload error, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify for Artists Support: Canvas content policy, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify for Artists Support: Adding a Canvas to Spotify, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify for Artists Support: Canvas not showing in the Spotify app, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify Support: Video settings, checked October 27, 2026
- Spotify for Artists: Canvas, checked October 27, 2026
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