What is a safe zone?

Definition: A safe zone is the part of an image or video frame that stays visible after the app overlays its buttons, captions and profile details.

Updated October 10, 2026

Why it matters

On vertical video, the right edge holds the like, comment and share buttons and the bottom holds the caption and username. Text or faces placed there get hidden. Keeping key content in the centre protects it on every app.

Rule of thumb for 1080 × 1920

Keep text and faces out of roughly the top 250 pixels, the bottom 400 pixels and the right 150 pixels. The exact overlay differs by app, so check with an overlay before publishing.

Example

A TikTok with a headline at the very bottom loses it under the caption. Moving the headline to the upper third keeps it readable.

Related terms

  • Aspect ratio

    Aspect ratio is the proportional relationship between an image or video’s width and height, written as width:height (for example 4:5 or 16:9).

  • Carousel post

    A carousel post is a single post containing several images or videos that people swipe through, one slide at a time.

Frequently asked questions

Plan, publish and measure in one place

Write once, tailor each version yourself or with optional AI, and schedule to 6 networks from one calendar.