The three shapes
Size on a phone is about shape more than pixels. A feed shows images the full width of the screen, so what changes is how tall they are. Meta's own ad guides recommend a 4 by 5 shape for the Instagram feed and 9 by 16 for stories. Their recommended ad sizes are 1440 pixels wide; at 1080 the shapes are identical and the files are half the size, which matters when a volunteer is posting from a phone on a pitch side.
| Shape | Pixels | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| 1 by 1, square | 1080 by 1080 | Feed posts, club websites, group chats |
| 4 by 5, portrait | 1080 by 1350 | The tallest feed post: the season image |
| 9 by 16, full screen | 1080 by 1920 | Stories and status updates |
What gets cropped
A story fills the screen, but the app draws the account name over the top and a reply box over the bottom, so the top and bottom 250 or so pixels of a 1920 pixel story are partly covered. A square posted to a grid is shown whole, while a 4 by 5 image appears cropped to a narrower preview in some profile grids. So the date, the time and the opponent belong in the middle of the image, and the team name and colours can run to the edges.
A worked example
For an away game on Saturday 26 September at 11:00 against Kingsmead Wanderers, Fixturefold makes a square with “Next match”, the date, the kick-off, your badge, the opponent in large capitals, an A box with the word Away and the ground. The story puts the same blocks in a single centred column, with more space above and below so the app's own buttons fall on empty background. Both are saved as PNG, named by date, so a folder of them sorts in fixture order: 2026-09-26-1100-kingsmead-wanderers-1080x1080.png.
Common mistakes
- Putting the kick-off time in a corner, where the story's top bar hides it.
- Saving as JPG with small text: the compression blurs edges. PNG keeps lettering sharp.
- White text on a pale team colour. Text on a colour needs a contrast of at least 4.5 to 1; for pale colours that means black text.
- Posting a graphic for a game whose time has since changed. Make it again from the updated list.
Printing a graphic
A 1080 pixel square prints well up to about 9 cm across at 300 pixels per inch, fine for a newsletter. For a wall, print the poster PDF instead: its text is drawn as type, so it stays sharp at any size.
Sources
- Instagram Feed image ad specifications, Meta Business Help. Recommends a 4 by 5 ratio, at 1440 by 1800 pixels for ads. Last reviewed 19 October 2026.
- Instagram Stories image ad specifications, Meta Business Help. Recommends a 9 by 16 ratio, at 1440 by 2560 pixels for ads. Last reviewed 19 October 2026.
Fixturefold is not affiliated with any league, club, governing body or graphics vendor.