Be honest: read every line of text given to you in the Facebook newsfeed accommodates? We neither. Pictures, on the other hand, are a completely different matter – which is exactly why the Facebook profile picture should be absolutely perfect. You can find out how to optimally match profile picture and Facebook cover photo, what size the profile picture should be and other basics here!

To use Facebook’s words to describe the proportions of profile and cover photos: It’s complicated.

But if you stick to the right values, the profile picture still comes into its own.

So let’s start from scratch: What size should the profile picture be and is there a way to bypass the cropped format?

Dimensions and format of the profile photo: That’s how it works

Well, how big should the profile picture be? If you have already done a bit of Google research, you will have noticed that the information on this varies greatly. We would therefore recommend following the official Facebook guidelines for profile picture dimensions. The following information can currently be found there:

• Images in PNG format are displayed in better quality.
• The desktop will be 170 x 170 pixels
• For the display on the smartphone, it should be 128 x 128 pixels

However, these values ​​change from time to time. It is therefore best to check the help area from time to time to ensure that your profile picture is still up to date. Incidentally, different information applies to the cover photo of the Facebook company page. Because the subject of Facebook cover photo is quite detailed, we have summarized all tips on format, size etc. in a separate article.

Where and how to resize profile picture?

Since you cannot adjust the profile picture directly on Facebook when uploading, this step should be done beforehand. You can use professional tools like Photoshop for this, and free programs like Pixlr or the good old Paint also serve the same purpose. If you want to be absolutely on the safe side, you can also crop the image squarely before uploading it, for example with the image reducer.

Facebook profile_picture without crop: can you keep full size?

Facebook automatically crops profile pictures to square format when they are uploaded, always without exception. So there are no tricks or detours here – it doesn’t have to be a disadvantage that the profile picture is cropped!

Because a square profile picture automatically means that you don’t have to think too long about which picture layout works best. In other words: The most important content should be placed in the middle of the image. This way the profile photo looks symmetrical and the round ad as it appears in the news feed does not become a problem. The angular format is only visible to those who click on your profile photo and call it up in large format.

Switching from the old to the new profile picture is done with a few clicks, as long as you already have the perfect photo ready to upload. You can find the step-by-step instructions in the Facebook Help Center. And how about the extras, keyword temporary profile picture? And why is the title picture emphasized everywhere in connection with the profile picture at the same time? Let’s start with the details!

Change cover photo plus profile photo – yes or no?

If you change your profile and cover photo at the same time and it’s just about simple, reserved motifs or to better enforce your corporate color – no problem. However, if the two picture elements are very strongly dependent on each other for the right effect, this cannot work out well in the long run and tends to look unprofessional.

How do temporary profile pictures work?

In the case of temporary profile pictures, the name says it all: after a specific time that you define, your original Facebook profile picture will be displayed again. Alternatively, you can specify that the temporary picture should never switch back to the old profile photo.

The advantage of such a temporary profile picture: It will be displayed in the newsfeed that you have set a temporary profile picture. Plus, you can refer to current affairs with the different designs to choose from. The design then appears in the form of a frame around the profile picture (more on that later).

Of course, anyone who uploads a new Facebook profile picture does not automatically have to delete the previous one. However, if it’s a new logo, for example, it’s wiser not to keep the old photo in the gallery any longer. Everything else feels inconsistent and suggests they just don’t take much care of the Facebook page.

The deletion itself is very simple: click on the image in question and select “Options” at the bottom of the image. Now you can use “Delete this photo” to remove the old profile picture.

With a private profile, you now have the option of uploading a profile video instead of a static photo. The clips can be up to 7 seconds long, but the upload works only via the smartphone app. Just like the profile picture, such videos can be used either temporarily or permanently. By the way: The GIF format is also supported!

The only downer is that the profile video option is not yet available for Facebook pages. However, it is at least possible to upload a cover video in the banner of the fan page.

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Basically, when designing Facebook profile pictures, restraint is required: the more there is going on in such a photo, the greater the risk that the relatively small newsfeed view something gets lost and a bad first impression is made.