Pinterest publishes no board cover dimensions, because the cover is chosen from pins already saved to the board rather than uploaded as its own file. Pinterest describes it as the largest image shown when the board is viewed from your profile.
Where it shows
- The boards grid on your Pinterest profile
- Board tiles under Saved in the Pinterest app
- Board previews a visitor sees on your profile page
The safe zone
The cover is a crop of a pin that already exists, taken in the plus icon editor rather than against a fixed template, so the safe area is whatever survives that crop. Keep the subject of any pin you intend to use as a cover near the middle of the 2:3 frame, since the top and bottom of a tall pin are the first parts to fall outside the visible cover. Board names print below the cover rather than over it, so nothing in the artwork is hidden by the interface itself.
Quirks worth knowing
- There is no upload field for a board cover. You open the plus icon and choose from pins already on the board, so a designed cover has to be pinned to the board first.
- Pinterest states that you can only update your board cover on iOS or desktop, so an Android only workflow cannot change it at all.
- No pixel size and no crop shape are published for the cover, which is why every measurement in this record is empty rather than guessed.
- The ratio here is 2:3 because the cover is a crop of a standard pin, not because Pinterest publishes a cover ratio of its own.
- A cover pin is still a live pin, so a design that works as a shelf label on your profile also has to survive being met alone in someone's feed.
Common mistakes
- Designing a set of square covers, then discovering there is nowhere to upload them.
- Making cover art that is a single word on a color field, which then sits in the home feed as a pin with nothing to act on.
- Trying to set covers from an Android phone and concluding the feature is broken.
- Deleting the pin that a cover points at, which takes the cover down with it.
What we recommend
- Pin the cover design to the board at 1000 x 1500 px first, then select it as the cover from desktop or iOS.
- Use one layout across every board and change only the photo and the word, so the profile grid reads as a set.
- Check the profile grid after setting a cover, since the visible crop is decided in that editor and not by your export.
- Keep cover pins on the board permanently, even after you stop promoting them, so the covers stay put.
Common questions
What size should a Pinterest board cover be?
Pinterest does not publish one. The cover is selected from pins already saved to the board, so the source file follows the pin recommendation of 1000 x 1500 px. The visible crop is chosen inside the cover editor when you pick the image.
Why can't I change my Pinterest board cover?
Pinterest states that board covers can only be updated on iOS or desktop. On Android the option does not appear. Open the board on a computer, use the plus icon, and pick the pin you want as the cover.
Can I upload a custom board cover image?
Not directly. You save the design to the board as a normal pin and then choose it as the cover. That means every custom cover is also a public pin that can show up in feeds and search.
What happens to my board cover if I delete the pin?
The cover goes with it, because the cover points at a pin instead of storing a separate copy. The board falls back to a default preview of its contents. Keep cover pins in place if you want the profile grid to stay consistent.
More answers on thumbnail, carousel and cover questions are on the FAQ.