YouTube generates several thumbnail images for every video, at different resolutions. Knowing which one to grab saves you time and keeps your graphics crisp.

The YouTube thumbnail sizes

  • Max Resolution (maxresdefault) — 1280×720. The full HD thumbnail. Not every video has one.
  • Standard Definition (sddefault) — 640×480.
  • High Quality (hqdefault) — 480×360. Always available.
  • Medium Quality (mqdefault) — 320×180.
  • Normal (default) — 120×90.

How to download a YouTube thumbnail

  1. Copy the video URL from your browser or the Share button.
  2. Paste it into the box on our home page.
  3. Pick the size you need and click Download.

That's it — the image saves straight to your device. We fetch it live from YouTube and never store it.

Why the HD thumbnail is sometimes missing

The 1280×720 maxresdefault image only exists if the uploader had a high-resolution thumbnail. When it's missing, use the next size down — it still looks great in most places.