# Podcast cover size: 3000×3000 for Apple Podcasts and Spotify [Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/apple-podcasts-cover-size) One square file follows your show into every listening app, car dashboard and smart speaker screen. Get its size and format right once and you never have to think about it again. ## The short version - The standard podcast cover size is 3000×3000 pixels, a 1:1 square. - Apple Podcasts asks for square artwork between 1400×1400 and 3000×3000 pixels, saved as JPEG or PNG in the RGB colour space. - Spotify and other listening apps also use a square cover, so a 3000×3000 file meets their requirements as well. - Your podcast cover reaches most apps through the image link in your RSS feed, which your hosting service fills in when you upload the artwork. - A podcast cover is mostly seen as a small square, so the title should be a few words set large with strong contrast. The **podcast cover size** to use is 3000×3000 pixels: a square JPEG or PNG in RGB colour. Apple Podcasts accepts square artwork from 1400×1400 up to 3000×3000 pixels, and Spotify and the other apps take a square too, so one 3000 pixel file covers every directory. Upload it to your podcast host, which puts it in your RSS feed. Then design for the size people actually see, a small square in a list, by keeping the title short, large and high in contrast. ## Podcast cover requirements by platform | Platform | Shape | Size | Format | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Apple Podcasts | Square | 1400×1400 to 3000×3000 px | JPEG or PNG, RGB | | Spotify | Square | A 3000×3000 px file works | JPEG or PNG | | Most other apps | Square | Read from your RSS feed | Whatever your feed links to | | Episode artwork | Square | Same as the show cover | JPEG or PNG, RGB | Apple's numbers are from Apple Podcasts for Creators. Spotify and others publish their own guidance in their creator help pages; a 3000×3000 JPEG in RGB satisfies all of them. Specs change, so check each platform's help before a relaunch. Artwork is usually turned away for one of three reasons: the file isn't perfectly square, it was exported in CMYK from a print workflow, or it is under 1400 pixels. Check all three before you upload. Apple also rejects artwork that misuses its own logos or imitates its badges, so leave those off the cover. - Recommended 3000×3000: 3000 × 3000 - Apple minimum 1400×1400: 1400 × 1400 - Video thumbnail 1280×720: 1280 × 720 The two Apple limits drawn to scale, and the video thumbnail you'll need if the show is also on YouTube. ## Why 3000×3000 and not smaller Your cover is shown on phones, but also full screen on tablets, televisions and car displays. Starting from 3000 pixels gives every app enough detail to scale down cleanly, and there is no benefit in going larger, because Apple's limit stops at 3000. Design and export at exactly that size. Use JPEG for photographs and PNG for flat colour, gradients and lettering. If a JPEG of a gradient shows stepped bands, export at a higher quality or add a fine grain, as [gradient banding](https://gradiently.design/guide/gradient-banding) explains. Keep the file in RGB: a CMYK cover can be rejected outright or shift colour. ## How the cover gets to every app You don't upload your cover to each app. You upload it once to your hosting service, which publishes the image link inside your RSS feed. Apple, Spotify and the rest read the feed and fetch the image. If you change the cover, it can take a while for each app to pick up the new one. ```html Slow Mornings https://example.com/podcast/cover-3000.jpg Slow Mornings https://example.com/podcast ``` The two image tags a podcast feed usually carries. Your host writes these for you; if you see an old file name here, the apps will keep showing the old cover. > **Rename when you replace** Some apps cache artwork by its address. Uploading the new cover with a new file name, such as cover-2027.jpg, helps every app notice the change sooner. ## Keep the podcast title legible at small sizes At 3000 pixels everything looks fine. In a search result or a list of subscriptions, the same cover is a small square among others. Design at full size, but judge it at the size of a fingertip. [Podcast cover art](https://gradiently.design/guide/podcast-cover-art) covers the creative side in depth; the rules that matter most for size are these. A square podcast cover titled Slow Mornings with a long subtitle over a busy part of the gradient Title and a long subtitle over a background that runs straight through the words. At thumbnail size the subtitle is noise. The same square podcast cover with only the title, on a calmer area of the gradient Title only, with a calm area of the background behind it. It reads at full size and in a list. ### Avoid - A tagline under the title - Host names in small type - Thin or script type for the title - A detailed photo behind the words - Episode numbers on the show cover ### Do - Two to four words of title - Capitals at least 300 px tall in the 3000 design - A heavy, simple typeface - One strong colour field or a single subject - Episode details on episode artwork instead For type that holds at tiny sizes, see [thumbnail text](https://gradiently.design/guide/typography-for-thumbnails). The squint test works here too: shrink the cover until it is the size of a postage stamp on your screen. If the title still reads, so will everyone's phone. ## Make your podcast cover step by step 1. **Start a 3000×3000 RGB canvas** Use a square artboard in RGB from the start, so nothing needs converting later. 2. **Set the title large** Two to four words in a heavy face, with a margin of at least 200 pixels on every side. 3. **Choose one background** A strong colour field or one simple image. It is what listeners recognise before they read. 4. **Export JPEG or PNG** Exactly 3000×3000, RGB. Check the file's dimensions in its info panel before uploading. 5. **Upload to your host** Replace the show artwork in your hosting dashboard and let the feed carry it to every app. Gradiently includes the Apple Podcasts cover as a built-in 3000×3000 size, and the Designer can lay out the cover in your Mark, then make the episode Stories, a [YouTube thumbnail](https://gradiently.design/guide/youtube-thumbnail-size) and posts from it. Free exports are 720p, below Apple's minimum, so a cover ready for your feed needs Pro, which exports up to 4K without a watermark. For the promotion side, [podcast social media](https://gradiently.design/guide/podcast-social-media) has formats and ideas. ## FAQ ### What size should a podcast cover be? 3000×3000 pixels, square, as a JPEG or PNG in RGB. It meets Apple Podcasts' limit and suits Spotify and other apps. ### What is the minimum podcast cover size for Apple Podcasts? 1400×1400 pixels. Apple accepts square artwork from 1400×1400 to 3000×3000. ### Is the Spotify podcast cover size different from Apple's? No. Spotify also uses a square cover, and a 3000×3000 file works on both. ### Why was my podcast artwork rejected? Usually the image isn't exactly square, is under 1400 pixels, is saved in CMYK, or carries Apple logos or badges. Fix those and upload again. ### Why hasn't my new podcast cover updated? Apps read your cover from the RSS feed and may cache the old image. Upload it with a new file name and give each app time to refresh.