ReelCaption
Free toolsSafe zone checker

Safe zone checker for TikTok, Reels and Shorts

This safe zone checker shows which parts of a 1080×1920 video TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts cover with buttons, captions and tabs. Text inside x 228 to 672 and y 380 to 1248 is clear on all three apps, even on the tall phones most people use. Drop in a video or an image to see it, or download the zone as a template for your editor.

How to check your safe zone

  1. 1Drop in a video or an image. It stays on your device, and the check runs in your browser.
  2. 2Keep "All three" to see the area that is safe on TikTok, Reels and Shorts at once, or pick one platform.
  3. 3Tall phones is on, to allow for 20:9 screens that cut off the sides. Turn on Ads if the clip will run as an ad.
  4. 4Play or scrub the video and check that no text, face or product sits in the red area.
  5. 5Download the PNG template to lay over the clip in your editor, or open the clip in the studio to caption it.

The area that is safe on TikTok, Reels and Shorts at once

On a 1080×1920 frame, the area no app covers runs from x 120 to 780 and y 380 to 1248: 660 by 868 px. Shorts sets the top at 380 px, Reels and Shorts set the bottom at 672 px, and TikTok’s buttons set the right edge at x 780.

On a tall phone the area narrows to x 228 to 672. In an ad with a TikTok anchor link it ends higher, at y 906.

If your clip is not 9:16, the apps fill the frame and cut off the sides or the top and bottom. Crop it first, so you choose what stays.

Convert video to vertical 9:16

TikTok safe zone

TikTok covers the top 252 px (13.1%) with its tabs and the bottom 660 px (34.4%) with your username, post text and sound name. It keeps 120 px clear on the left.

On the right it covers 120 px down to y 840, then 300 px (27.8%) below that, where the like, comment and share buttons sit. That leaves x 120 to 780 and y 252 to 1260 safe.

These numbers come from the safe zone files on TikTok’s Ads Help page for In-Feed ads, listed under Sources. The top is from the file for ads with an anchor link. The standard file gives 240 px.

Instagram Reels safe zone

Meta’s Ads Guide asks you to keep 14% at the top, 35% at the bottom and 6% at each side clear on Reels. On a 1080×1920 frame that is 269 px, 672 px and 65 px.

The like, comment and share buttons take about 230 px (21.3%) on the right, from y 1152 down, according to Hopper HQ. Above that, the right margin is 65 px. The rectangle clear of both runs from x 65 to 850 and y 269 to 1248.

YouTube Shorts safe zone

Shorts covers more of the top than the other apps: 380 px (19.8%), as AdCheckLab measured in the app in September 2026. The bottom 672 px (35%) holds your channel name, the title and the progress bar.

The buttons on the right take 201 px (18.6%) and the left margin is 60 px, so x 60 to 879 and y 380 to 1248 are safe.

The bottom comes from Google’s template for vertical video ads, on its Google Ads Help page. That template gives 288 px at the top, 48 px on the left and 192 px on the right. AdCheckLab measured more than that in the app, so the checker uses its numbers for those 3 edges.

How we worked out the margins

Each margin is the largest value any source gives, with the platform’s own help pages read first. A margin that is too large costs you a little space. One that is too small puts a word under a button.

The official numbers are written for ads, and the organic interface covers less. AdCheckLab measured about 200 px at the top and 334 px at the bottom on organic TikTok posts, and 390 px at the bottom on Shorts. Upload-Post’s checker uses the platforms’ ad numbers alone, so its Shorts top is 288 px rather than 380.

Tall phones: a 20:9 phone that fills its screen by height shows 864 of the 1080 px across, so 108 px go at each side. Meta’s Ads Guide warns about screens taller than 9:16. The 108 px is our arithmetic, not a published figure.

Ads: a TikTok ad with an anchor link and a 4-line caption covers the bottom 1014 px. A Reels ad with a disclaimer covers the bottom 768 px (40%), a figure we found only on Hopper HQ, not in Meta’s guide.

What no safe zone protects against

On TikTok, Reels and Shorts, tapping "more" under a post opens the full caption over the video. It can cover the middle of the frame, and no margin allows for it.

Keep your post caption short, so there is less to expand. Put what matters, such as a price or a name, in the first line of the post text as well as on the video.

Where to put captions in the safe zone

Put captions inside the outlined area, and keep them off the faces in your shot. A 2-line caption is about 160 px tall, so its middle can sit anywhere from 24% to 61% of the frame height and stay clear on all three apps.

In the ReelCaption studio, the Vertical (Y) slider sets where the middle of the caption sits, as a share of the height. Set it between 24% and 61%. The Mid button puts captions at 50%, which is safe on all three apps.

Captions for TikTok

How to style captions people read

Safe zone questions

What is the TikTok safe zone?
The middle of the frame. On a 1080×1920 video, TikTok leaves x 120 to 780 and y 252 to 1260 clear of its tabs, buttons and post text.
What size is the Instagram Reels safe zone?
About 785 by 979 px of a 1080×1920 frame. Meta’s margins alone leave 950 px across, and the buttons at the lower right take the rest.
Is the safe zone the same on TikTok, Reels and Shorts?
No. Shorts covers the most at the top, Reels and Shorts the most at the bottom, and TikTok the most at the sides. The area clear on all three is 660 by 868 px.
Do ads have a different safe zone?
Yes. A TikTok ad with an anchor link and a 4-line caption covers the bottom 1014 px, so the area safe on all three apps ends at y 906 instead of 1248.
Does the safe zone change on tall phones?
Yes, at the sides. A 20:9 phone cuts about 108 px off each side of a 1080 px wide video, so the area safe on all three apps narrows to x 228 to 672.
Can I use the safe zone template in CapCut or Premiere Pro?
Yes. The PNG is 1080×1920 with the safe area left clear. Put it on the top track over your clip, line your text up inside the outline, then delete it before you export.

Sources

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