Learn how to set custom thumbnails for your videos across different social media platforms and understand platform-specific limitations.
Instagram and TikTok videos
You can set custom thumbnails for Instagram and TikTok videos using the following steps:
Upload your video to the platform
Hover over the uploaded media
Select the "change cover image" option
Choose your preferred frame from the video as the thumbnail
YouTube videos and Shorts
Custom thumbnail selection is not available for YouTube videos, specifically YouTube Shorts. This limitation exists because YouTube's API does not allow for cover selection for Shorts.
YouTube thumbnail selection is not currently available for YouTube Shorts as they do not allow cover selection through the API.
General video thumbnail limitations
It is not possible to upload a custom image as a video thumbnail. The thumbnail can only be a frame from the video itself, not an external image file.
Platform availability summary
Instagram: Custom thumbnail selection available
TikTok: Custom thumbnail selection available
Pinterest: Custom thumbnail selection available
YouTube/YouTube Shorts: Custom thumbnail selection not available due to API limitations