Templates
Image and video size for template headers
Meta sets no fixed pixel size. Use a landscape 1200 × 628 px image (1.91:1) under 5 MB so nothing important is cropped in the chat; any size is accepted.
Last reviewed 22 October 2026
WhatsApp shows a template's media header as a wide strip at the top of the message bubble and crops anything that does not fit that shape. Meta does not publish a required pixel size, so PayPerWA accepts any dimensions. These are the sizes that look right.
| Header | Suggested | Limits (Meta) |
|---|---|---|
| Image | 1200 × 628 px, landscape 1.91:1 (1125 × 600 also works) | JPG or PNG, 8-bit RGB, up to 5 MB |
| Video | Landscape 16:9 or 1.91:1, for example 1280 × 720 | MP4 with H.264 video and AAC audio, up to 16 MB |
| Document | Any page size | PDF, up to 16 MB when uploaded in PayPerWA |
What happens with other sizes
- Square (1:1) and portrait images are accepted, but the chat preview shows only a wide slice from the middle. Recipients see the full image when they tap it.
- Very wide images lose a little on the left and right.
- Keep text, prices, faces and logos in the centre of the picture, away from the top and bottom edges.
In PayPerWA
When you pick an image or video in Templates → New template → Header, PayPerWA shows its pixel size and tells you whether it fits the wide strip. The live preview on the right crops the header exactly the way WhatsApp does, so what you see there is what customers get.
Video tips
- The first frame is the preview. Start with a clear picture, not a black fade-in.
- Export with the H.264 Main or Baseline profile. Videos encoded with the High profile and B-frames do not play on Android WhatsApp.
Source: Meta's Cloud API media documentation and template component reference (checked 22 October 2026).
Still stuck?
Chat with a person on WhatsApp or raise a ticket with a screenshot. We reply on every ticket by email.