Meta carousel ad specs, placement by placement, and when carousels win

Meta carousel ad specs: the short answer

A Meta carousel ad shows 2 to 10 cards, each with its own image or video, headline, link and call to action. Make every card 1:1 at 1080 x 1080 pixels, as JPG or PNG up to 30 MB, or MP4, MOV or GIF up to 4 GB. That one size runs on Facebook Feed and Instagram Feed whether the carousel holds images, videos or both.

Two exceptions change what you export. Instagram Feed takes 4:5 cards, but only when every card is an image. Instagram Stories takes 9:16 at 1080 x 1920 pixels and plays video cards of 15 seconds at most. On Facebook Feed, keep primary text to about 80 characters, each headline to 20 and each description to 18 so nothing truncates.

The rest of this guide gives the numbers for each placement, the text limits, what Meta does to your card order, and the briefs we use when a carousel is the right format. For every other Meta format, our Meta ad sizes guide has the full spec sheet.

Carousel specs by placement

These are the figures on Meta's Ads Guide for the three placements where carousels spend most of their budget.

The tolerance row matters more than it looks. Instagram allows only 1% either way, so a card exported at 1080 x 1100 is already off-ratio there and gets cropped or rejected. Export at exactly 1080 x 1080, 1080 x 1350 or 1080 x 1920 and you never meet the problem.

The video lengths are the limits, not targets. Stories accepts video cards of 15 seconds at most, so we cut every carousel video card to 15 seconds or less and one file works in all three placements.

The Instagram rule most spec sheets miss

Most spec sheets list one ratio for carousels. Meta's Instagram Feed page lists two: 4:5 for carousels that contain only images, and 1:1 for carousels that contain any video. Boosted posts are the exception and accept video carousels at either ratio.

That gives a simple decision.

• All images, mostly Instagram: export 4:5 at 1080 x 1350. The taller card fills more of the screen in the Instagram feed.
• All images, Facebook and Instagram together: export 1:1 at 1080 x 1080. Facebook Feed's carousel spec is square, and one square set runs cleanly in both.
• Any video card: export every card 1:1, images included, so the set matches.

Advantage+ catalogue ads built as carousels from your product catalogue can also show 4:5 product images. That depends on the images in your feed, not on files you upload, so check your catalogue's image ratios if your product cards look cropped.

Carousel text lengths that show in full

Each card has its own headline and description, and the ad has one primary text above the cards. Meta accepts more than these lengths, but the extra truncates behind "See more" or an ellipsis.

Write to the shortest column, because one carousel usually runs in all three. Twenty characters is about three words: "Linen shirt, $89" fits, "Our bestselling linen shirt" does not. Put the product name and price in the headline, and leave the description for a short qualifier such as "Free returns" or "Sizes 8 to 18".

Most people see the first card and the primary text before they decide whether to swipe. Make the primary text say why the set is worth swiping, for example "Five shirts for a 30 degree day", rather than describing the first card.

What Meta does to your card order

Meta can change which card a person sees first, and it may show your carousel in a different form.

• Highlight carousel card shows the best-performing card first. It sits in the Advantage+ creative section of the ad, it is on by default, and it works only on Facebook Feed, Instagram Feed and Instagram Stories. In other placements cards run in the order you set.
• Custom positioning on Instagram can start a carousel on the card a person is most likely to respond to. The card order stays the same; only the starting card changes.
• Slideshow video: Meta may show your carousel as a slideshow video when it expects that format to perform better.
• Instagram Stories shows one to three cards automatically before offering Expand story. If you want a fixed number of cards before that prompt, make Instagram Stories the only placement for that ad.

For a range of products, leave Highlight carousel card on and let Meta lead with the best seller. For a story, a before and after, or a numbered process, turn it off: card three makes no sense shown first. Ads Manager also offers an end card with your Page profile picture, music, and a map card for your nearest shops. Switch them off unless they help the job, so the carousel ends on your own card.

When carousels win, and when they don't

A carousel earns its place when the reader gains something from swiping. These are the briefs where we choose one:

• A range: one product per card, each linking to its own product page. This is the strongest ecommerce use, because the swipe is shopping.
• One product, several reasons: the product, then one card per feature, fit detail or use, ending on the offer.
• A process: how it works in three to five steps, for services and anything with a set-up.
• A comparison: options side by side, such as sizes, bundles or before and after.
• A panorama: one wide image split across cards, which Meta supports as a single long image.

We use a single image or video instead when the ad has one message, one hero product, or a hook that depends on motion and sound in the first seconds. Short-form video in Reels and Stories carries those jobs better.

Treat the format as a test like any other creative variable. Our guide to how many ad creatives to test covers how many ads a budget can judge fairly, and our weekly paid creative system shows where carousels fit in a steady production rhythm.

Where each card should link

Every card can carry its own link, and the link matters as much as the image. Meta's advice is a good default: a store with a large range sends each card to that product's page, and a smaller store can send each card to the collection page for that kind of product.

We go one step further and match the link to the card's promise. A card that sells one shirt goes to that shirt with the size selector visible. A card that sells "linen for summer" goes to the linen collection, filtered. A process card goes to the page that explains the service, not the homepage. If you are deciding between a product page, a collection and a purpose-built page, our guide to product, collection or landing page sets out when each one converts best.

Build, preview and read the results

1. Export every card at the same ratio: 1080 x 1080, or 1080 x 1350 for an image-only Instagram set, and 1080 x 1920 for a Stories version.
2. Check the vertical cards against Meta's Stories safe zones: keep about 14% at the top, 35% at the bottom and 6% on each side clear of text and logos. Our Meta safe zone checker overlays those zones on your file.
3. Preview the cards as they will appear in each placement with our Meta ads preview tool before you build the ad, so you catch cropped headlines and truncated text early.
4. Build it in Ads Manager: choose Carousel as the format in Ad setup, add the cards, and set Highlight carousel card in the Advantage+ creative section.
5. Read it by card once it has spent: in Ads Manager, open Columns and choose Carousel engagement, then open Breakdown, By action, Carousel card. Replace the card with the weakest click-through rate first, and move the strongest card to the front if Highlight carousel card is off.

If you would rather hand the build and the weekly testing to someone, this is the work our Meta ads team does for Australian brands every week.

Questions we get about Meta carousel ads

What size should Meta carousel ad images be?

Use 1:1 at 1080 x 1080 pixels for a carousel that runs on Facebook and Instagram together, or 4:5 at 1080 x 1350 pixels for an image-only carousel aimed at Instagram Feed. Instagram Stories cards are 9:16 at 1080 x 1920 pixels.

How many cards can a Meta carousel ad have?

Between 2 and 10 cards. If you build the carousel from a catalogue product set and fewer than two items are available, Meta turns it into a single image ad or stops it running.

How long can a carousel video card be?

Up to 240 minutes on Facebook Feed, 2 minutes on Instagram Feed and 15 seconds on Instagram Stories. A carousel that runs in all three should keep each video card to 15 seconds or less.

Can I use 4:5 in a Meta carousel?

Yes on Instagram Feed when every card is an image, and in Advantage+ catalogue carousels using catalogue images. Carousels with any video card use 1:1 there, and Facebook Feed's carousel spec is 1:1.

Why is Meta showing my carousel cards in a different order?

Highlight carousel card is on by default and shows the best-performing card first on Facebook Feed, Instagram Feed and Instagram Stories. Turn it off in the Advantage+ creative section of the ad to keep your own order.

How do I see which carousel card performed best?

In Ads Manager, choose Carousel engagement from the Columns menu, then use Breakdown, By action, Carousel card to see results for each card.

Sources

• Meta Ads Guide: Carousel specs on Facebook Feed
• Meta Ads Guide: Carousel specs on Instagram Feed
• Meta Ads Guide: Carousel specs on Instagram Stories
• Meta Business Help Centre: About carousel ads
• Meta Business Help Centre: Best practices for carousel ads
• Meta Business Help Centre: Show the best-performing cards in a carousel ad
• Meta Business Help Centre: View metrics for carousel ads