# Gaming channel art: YouTube, Twitch and Discord in one look

[Canonical HTML page](https://gradiently.design/guide/gaming-channel-art)

Your viewers meet you on YouTube, follow you on Twitch and hang out in your Discord. Here is how to make three very different banners feel like one channel.

## The short version

- YouTube channel art is 2560×1440 pixels, and YouTube recommends keeping text and logos inside the central 1546×423 area, which is visible on every device.
- The Twitch profile banner is 1200×480 pixels and the Discord server banner is 960×540 pixels.
- The three banners have very different shapes, so design one background and type style and lay it out fresh for each, rather than cropping one image.
- Gaming channel art works best with one clear message: the channel name, plus a schedule or a single line about what you play.
- A background with a recognisable colour world ties banners, thumbnails, overlays and panels together better than a collage of game screenshots.

Good **gaming channel art** gives your YouTube, Twitch and Discord the same look, laid out for three very different shapes. YouTube channel art is 2560×1440 pixels, but only a central strip of about 1546×423 is visible everywhere. The Twitch profile banner is a wide 1200×480. The Discord server banner is 960×540. Design one background, one type style and one short message, then arrange it for each frame. Cropping a single image to fit all three is how names end up cut in half on phones.

## Gaming channel art sizes at a glance

| Platform | Graphic | Size | Keep words in |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| YouTube | Channel art | 2560×1440 | Central 1546×423 |
| YouTube | Thumbnail | 1280×720 | Away from the bottom right timestamp |
| Twitch | Profile banner | 1200×480 | The centre, away from the edges |
| Twitch | Offline screen | 1920×1080 | Anywhere central |
| Twitch | Panel | 640×320 | The whole panel, large type |
| Discord | Server banner | 960×540 | The centre, with a calm top edge |
| Discord | Profile banner | 680×240 | The right side, clear of your avatar |

Every graphic a gaming channel usually needs. Avatars and interface elements cover parts of most banners, so the third column matters as much as the size.

- YouTube channel art 2560×1440: 2560 × 1440
- Twitch banner 1200×480: 1200 × 480
- Discord server banner 960×540: 960 × 540
- YouTube thumbnail 1280×720: 1280 × 720

Four of those frames to scale. The YouTube canvas is huge, but most viewers only ever see a thin strip of it.

## YouTube channel art and its safe area

YouTube shows the full 2560×1440 image only on TVs. On a desktop you see a wide strip, and on a phone even less. YouTube's own guidance is to keep anything important inside the central 1546×423 area. Treat everything outside it as atmosphere: background colour, texture, light, never your name or schedule. [YouTube banner size](https://gradiently.design/guide/youtube-banner-size) has the full breakdown by device.

A YouTube channel art banner for PIXELWREN with cosy games and a Sunday upload schedule centred on a soft gradient

Name, one line about the channel, one line of schedule. Everything sits in the central strip; the rest of the canvas is background.

> **Check it on a phone** Upload, then open your channel on a phone and on a laptop. YouTube's preview while uploading helps, but seeing the real thing is the only way to be sure nothing is cut.

## Twitch banner size, offline screen and panels

On Twitch, the 1200×480 profile banner runs across the top of your channel page and is cropped differently on phones and desktops, so keep your name and any words in the centre two thirds. The offline screen is the graphic most viewers actually see when they drop by between streams, which makes it the best place for your schedule. Panels sit under the stream and work as small signposts: about, schedule, rules, setup, sponsors.

A wide Twitch profile banner for PIXELWREN with the name and tagline centred on a soft gradient

The Twitch banner: just the name and a line, centred so neither edge crop can reach them.

A Twitch offline screen reading Back on Tuesday with a schedule of Tuesday and Thursday 8pm and Sunday 2pm GMT

The offline screen does real work: when you are back and when you stream.

Always give your time zone, because your viewers are spread across many. [Twitch offline screen](https://gradiently.design/guide/twitch-offline-screen) and [Twitch panel size](https://gradiently.design/guide/twitch-panel-size) cover both in more depth.

## Discord server banner size and layout

A Discord server banner is a 960×540 image at the top of your channel sidebar. It is shown small, with the server name and a menu arrow laid over its top edge, so keep the top calm and put a short welcome, large, in the centre. Server banners unlock at Server Boost level 2, so check your server's level first. Many creators swap the banner for events, such as a community game night. [Discord banner size](https://gradiently.design/guide/discord-banner-size) shows the crop.

## Gaming banner ideas: colours that fit what you play

Your banners will be seen next to dozens of other channels playing the same games. A screenshot of the game makes you look like all of them. A colour world that matches the mood of your channel, used on every banner and thumbnail, makes you recognisable in the sidebar, the search results and the recommended column.

- Cosy: butter, rose, lilac: `linear-gradient(160deg, #fde68a 0%, #f9a8d4 50%, #a78bfa 100%)`
- Horror: dried red into black: `radial-gradient(circle at 70% 30%, #7f1d1d 0%, #1c0a0a 55%, #050505 100%)`
- Shooter: steel to cyan: `linear-gradient(135deg, #0f172a 0%, #0e7490 55%, #22d3ee 100%)`
- Retro: indigo, magenta, sunset: `linear-gradient(180deg, #1e1b4b 0%, #9d174d 55%, #f97316 100%)`
- Survival: forest to clearing: `linear-gradient(150deg, #14532d 0%, #65a30d 50%, #fef9c3 100%)`
- Strategy: indigo on night: `radial-gradient(circle at 30% 70%, #6366f1 0%, #312e81 45%, #0b0a1f 90%)`

Six colour worlds matched to common gaming genres. Pick one that fits your channel's mood and use it everywhere.

Retro and neon styles are popular for good reason; [synthwave colours](https://gradiently.design/guide/synthwave-colors) has palettes that avoid the cheapest versions. Whatever you choose, keep text on a calm part of the background, not on a bright streak.

## How to keep one look across every platform

1. **Choose one background** A gradient or textured colour world, not a game screenshot. It is the part viewers recognise first.
2. **Pick one display typeface** Heavy and clear at small sizes, so your name reads in a sidebar. Use it for every banner and thumbnail.
3. **Write one line about the channel** "Cosy games, slow runs" says more than a list of every game you have played.
4. **Lay it out for each frame** Place the words inside each platform's safe area rather than cropping one master image.
5. **Carry it into thumbnails and overlays** The same background behind your camera frame and in thumbnails makes the whole channel feel like one place. [YouTube thumbnail design](https://gradiently.design/guide/youtube-thumbnail-design) shows how.

Gradiently fits this job well. You design once with a Mark, a living background with its own colours, texture and motion, and render it at every size from channel art to panel, with the words placed for each frame (resizing to every size in one step is a Pro feature). It keeps your name readable wherever it lands, and once you claim the Mark, only you can export with it. The process is in [one look, every size](https://gradiently.design/guide/one-look-every-size).

### Avoid

- Game screenshots as the whole banner
- Your name near the edge of channel art
- Six social icons crammed into the banner
- A schedule with no time zone
- Different colours on every platform

### Do

- A colour world that fits your mood
- Name inside the 1546×423 safe area
- Links in the YouTube About section
- Times with the zone, on the offline screen
- One background on every banner and thumbnail

## FAQ

### What size is YouTube gaming channel art?

2560×1440 pixels, with text and logos kept inside the central 1546×423 area so they show on every device.

### What size is a Twitch banner?

The Twitch profile banner is 1200×480 pixels. The offline screen is 1920×1080 and panels are 640×320.

### What size is a Discord server banner?

960×540 pixels, available at Server Boost level 2. Keep the top edge calm for the server name Discord lays over it, and put any words large in the centre.

### Can I use the same image for my YouTube, Twitch and Discord banners?

Use the same background and type, but lay each one out for its own frame. The shapes are too different for one crop to work everywhere.

### What should I put on my gaming banner?

Your channel name, one line about what you play and, where there is room, your schedule with a time zone.