16:9 aspect ratio
1.7778:1 · 1280×720 px · also called widescreen, 1.78:1, HD ratio, landscape video
16:9 is the ratio behind almost every screen you own. Divide 16 by 9 and you get 1.7778, so a 1920 px wide frame is 1080 px tall. It is the native ratio for YouTube in-stream ads, landscape Meta video, connected TV and desktop displays.
What 16:9 means
A 16:9 frame is 1.7778 times wider than it is tall. To find the missing side, multiply the width by 9/16 (0.5625) to get the height, or multiply the height by 16/9 (1.7778) to get the width. The ratio is resolution-independent: 1280×720, 1920×1080 and 3840×2160 are all exactly 16:9, which is why you can master once at 4K and downscale without re-framing.
Where it is used
YouTube in-stream and bumper ads, YouTube masthead, Meta and LinkedIn landscape video, Google Display responsive video, connected TV, and every desktop hero. It is the worst ratio for mobile feeds, where it occupies roughly a fifth of the screen — cut a 4:5 or 9:16 version for those placements instead of letterboxing.
16:9 in pixels
Every row below is exactly 16:9. Divide the width by 1.7778 to get the height for any size not listed.
| Width (px) | Height (px) | Total pixels |
|---|---|---|
| 640 | 360 | 0.23 MP |
| 854 | 480 | 0.41 MP |
| 1280 | 720 | 0.92 MP |
| 1600 | 900 | 1.44 MP |
| 1920 | 1080 | 2.07 MP |
| 2560 | 1440 | 3.69 MP |
| 3840 | 2160 | 8.29 MP |
16:9 in mm and inches
Physical equivalents at common print widths, with the pixel size needed for 300 DPI print.
| Width (mm) | Height (mm) | Inches | Pixels @ 300 DPI |
|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 28.1 | 1.97″ × 1.11″ | 591×332 |
| 100 | 56.3 | 3.94″ × 2.22″ | 1181×665 |
| 150 | 84.4 | 5.91″ × 3.32″ | 1772×997 |
| 210 | 118.1 | 8.27″ × 4.65″ | 2480×1395 |
| 297 | 167.1 | 11.69″ × 6.58″ | 3508×1974 |
Ad placements that use 16:9
Working with 16:9
- 01Master at 1920×1080 minimum; 3840×2160 if you plan to crop into 9:16 later without softening the image.
- 02Keep captions and logos inside the middle 80% — broadcast and CTV players still overscan the edges.
- 03Never letterbox a 16:9 video into a 9:16 slot: the black bars count as creative area and depress view-through rates.
- 04For YouTube thumbnails use the same 16:9 frame at 1280×720 so the still matches the first frame of the ad.
16:9 questions, answered
What is 16:9 in pixels?
1920×1080 px is the standard 16:9 resolution. Other exact 16:9 sizes are 1280×720, 1600×900, 2560×1440 and 3840×2160.
Is 16:9 the same as 1080p?
1080p is a specific 16:9 resolution (1920×1080). 16:9 is the shape; 1080p is one size with that shape.
What is 16:9 in mm?
Any width works as long as the height is 0.5625× the width — 160×90 mm, 200×112.5 mm and 297×167 mm are all 16:9.
Free tools for 16:9
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