Free tool
Safe zone checker for TikTok, Shorts and Reels
Every short-form app draws its own buttons, username and caption over your video. Drop in a vertical video or a screenshot to see what each app covers, so your captions, faces and text stay visible.
Free, no sign-up. Your file stays on your device and is never uploaded.
Or drop a file onto the frame.
On a 1080×1920 video, TikTok covers the top 240 px, the bottom 660 px and120 px on each side, plus its buttons on the right.
A transparent 1080×1920 overlay for your video editor.
From each app’s own published safe zone, checked 11 October 2026. Apps change their layouts now and then, so treat the lines as a close guide, not an exact edge.
What to keep inside the safe zone
- Captions. Put them in the lower-middle of the safe zone: low enough to stay off faces, high enough to clear the app’s own caption and username.
- Faces. Keep eyes in the upper-middle of the frame. A face under the top bar or behind the buttons is the first thing viewers notice.
- On-screen text, logos and prices. Anything people need to read belongs well inside the dashed box, not near its edges.
- Posting to more than one app. Pick “All three” and keep everything inside that box. It works everywhere.
Our guide to adding captions to Shorts, Reels and TikToks covers caption size and style too.
Safe zone sizes at 1080×1920
| App | Top | Bottom | Left | Right |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TikTokPlus the buttons column on the right, from about the middle down. | 240 px | 660 px | 120 px | 120 px |
| YouTube Shorts | 288 px | 672 px | 48 px | 192 px |
| Instagram Reels | 269 px | 672 px | 65 px | 65 px |
| All three at oncePlus TikTok’s buttons column. | 288 px | 672 px | 120 px | 192 px |
Sources, checked 11 October 2026:TikTok Ads Help: In-Feed ads safe-zone file; Google Ads Help: vertical video safe zone; Meta Business Help: safe zone for Stories and Reels.
Questions
What is a safe zone?
The part of a vertical video that the app doesn’t cover with its own buttons, username, caption or tabs. Anything you want people to see, like captions, faces and on-screen text, should sit inside it.
Is my video uploaded anywhere?
No. The checker shows your file straight from your own device. Nothing is sent to ClipIQ or anyone else, and closing the page clears it.
Where do these numbers come from?
From each platform’s own published safe zone: TikTok’s In-Feed safe-zone file, Google’s vertical video safe zone for YouTube, and Meta’s safe zone for Reels. They were last checked on 11 October 2026.
Are the safe zones the same for normal posts and ads?
The platforms only publish safe zones for ads. Ads add a call-to-action button, so these are slightly stricter than an ordinary post needs. If your video fits them, it fits both.
Why do different phones show a little more or less?
Screens have different shapes, and the apps adjust their layout to them. Long captions also take up more room. Treat the safe zone as the area that is clear on almost every phone, not an exact line.
Have a long video to turn into Shorts?
ClipIQ finds the moments worth posting, cuts them, reframes them to 9:16 around the speaker and adds captions. Free plan, no credit card.