Product Hunt gallery sizes and launch assets

These specs come from Product Hunt's own launch preparation guide and how to post a product article, both read on 31 October 2026. Many third-party lists disagree with each other, usually on things Product Hunt doesn't publish, so this page separates what's stated from what isn't.

Every spec Product Hunt publishes

Video has two more conditions. It can't be set to private, and you need the full URL: "Shortened links (e.g. bit.ly) and track links (e.g. Google UTMs) are not accepted."

What Product Hunt doesn't say

These are the gaps that third-party guides fill with guesses. We couldn't find a Product Hunt source for any of them on its pages above:

• A gallery file size limit. The "under 3MB" sentence sits in the thumbnail section. It may apply to the gallery as well ("All images"), or it may not. Under 3 MB is the safe target for every image.
• Accepted image formats. Neither page lists them. PNG and JPG are the ordinary choice, and GIF is named.
• A maximum number of gallery images.
• How images of another shape are shown. Neither page says whether a different ratio is cropped or letterboxed, so test it in the draft post.
• Video length.
• Header image specs. We only saw these in a community post, not in Product Hunt's guides.

Two conflicts are worth knowing about. A Product Hunt story from March 2022 gives 2 MB as the limit for an animated thumbnail, while the current guides say 3 MB. Those guides are the likely current figure, but if a thumbnail GIF is that close to the line, aim under 2 MB and you won't need to find out. The description limit also differs: the launch guide says 500 characters and the help article says up to 260. Write to 260 and both are met.

1270 × 760 isn't 16:9

This catches most people. 1270 × 760 is about 1.67:1, close to 5:3. A 16:9 capture is 1.78:1, so it doesn't fit.

If you have 16:9 images already, you don't need to crop them. Place each on a 1270 × 760 canvas with a background colour that matches your brand, and the bars look deliberate. Cropping the edges of an interface usually removes the navigation that makes it recognisable.

To capture at the right shape directly, use device mode in Chrome DevTools: set the viewport to 1270 by 760, set the device pixel ratio, and choose "Capture screenshot" from More options. A ratio of 1 gives 1270 × 760; a ratio of 2 gives 2540 × 1520, the same shape with sharper detail. Product Hunt doesn't say how it treats oversized images, so if you upload at 2×, look at the result in your draft and keep each file under 3 MB.

The Programmable Capture extension has 1270 × 760 in its Page size menu too, which sets the page area in your window. Click a capture in the tray and press Download to save a PNG, then check its size, because a high-density display can double the pixels.

A gallery that tells a story

Unlike AppSumo, Product Hunt doesn't ban text on images, so designed slides are welcome. Each slide should make one point that a visitor can read at a glance. Here's a sample sequence for a fictional scheduling tool:

If you state a number like "two minutes", make sure it's true for a new user. Write the headlines before you make the slides. If they read as a short pitch in order, the gallery works. If they don't, more design won't fix it.

Rules of thumb that hold up:

• Lead with the product, not your logo. Visitors can see your name in the post already.
• Keep to one idea a slide, and keep headlines to about eight words.
• Keep interface details readable. If a label can't be read, crop in or remove the slide.
• Use the same background and type on every slide so the set feels like one piece.
• Avoid customer data. Our guide to hiding it in screenshots covers that.

Don't skip the thumbnail

The thumbnail is the one asset people see in the feed, usually at a small size, so it has to work as a small square. A logo or mark on a solid tile is the usual answer. Start from your largest square icon, not a wide logo.

An animated thumbnail is allowed, but the first frame must work on its own: Product Hunt says to "ensure that the first frame is what you would like to appear as the thumbnail." It also warns that "GIFs with strobing effects, quick cuts, unreadable text, etc. are not recommended and may be edited by the Product Hunt team." Keep any animation slow and simple.

Video and animated gallery items

For video, upload to YouTube first, then paste the full URL. Set the video to public or unlisted well before launch day, and open the link in a private window to check it plays. Check whether it makes sense with the sound off.

An animated GIF can go in the gallery, but a GIF of a real interface gets heavy quickly. Use a short clip, cut the frame rate, reduce the colours and check the file. If it can't get to a reasonable size, use a still slide and let the YouTube video do the moving.

Where Programmable fits

Programmable can help with the moving parts of this list. A product demo made from your screenshots can export as an MP4 for YouTube; choosing YouTube as the platform gives a 16:9 film at 1920 × 1080, up to 60 seconds. A GIF export runs at 8 fps for up to 12 seconds, and keeps the film's design size (960 × 600 for the landscape shape) rather than scaling up. That's 1.6:1, so treat it like the 16:10 row in the table above, and check its file size before you upload.

For stills, Graphics draws one idea across many formats, but it has no 1270 × 760 format today. If you want exact slides, a design tool such as Figma or Canva with a 1270 × 760 canvas is the direct route. If all you need is two good screenshots, you don't need any of this.

What to prepare before launch day

Product Hunt's guide also covers the first comment, and says "70% of products that achieved Product of the Day, Week, or Month included a first comment by the maker." It doesn't date that figure, and it's a correlation, but a first comment takes minutes to write. It also says to "Ask for feedback (NOT upvotes)", and that co-makers need accounts well before launch day.

1. Thumbnail: square, under 3 MB, clear at small size.
2. Gallery: at least two images at 1270 × 760, each under 3 MB.
3. Video, if you have one: YouTube, not private, full URL.
4. Tagline of 60 characters or fewer, and description of 260 or fewer.
5. First comment drafted.
6. Co-makers' Product Hunt usernames collected.
7. Every asset seen in the draft post, at phone and desktop width.

Launching on AppSumo too? Those rules are nearly the opposite, so read the AppSumo image rules before you reuse anything. For share images and everything else, see our list of launch image sizes by platform.

Common questions