Facebook Carousel Ad Specs 2026: Sizes, Cards, Aspect Ratio, and Character Limits

A Facebook carousel ad uses square images at a 1:1 aspect ratio with 1080 x 1080 pixels as Meta's stated minimum, holds 2 to 10 cards, and accepts JPG or PNG files up to 30MB each. Meta's own carousel guidance recommends 80 characters of primary text, a 20 character card headline and an 18 character description, and every card in one carousel must share the same aspect ratio. Get those five things right and the format renders cleanly across Feed, and the same square cards carry over to Instagram and LinkedIn carousels with minor differences. People search these Facebook ad carousel specs in a few different word orders, so if you also run single-image and Story ads, it helps to keep the full social media ad sizes cheat sheet handy.

One correction before the tables, because it is the single most repeated error on this topic. The 125 character primary text and 40 character headline figures that almost every carousel spec sheet publishes are the single image numbers, not the carousel ones. Meta lists carousel separately and lists it much shorter. Both sets appear below so you can see the difference, and the cross-placement reference lives on our Meta ad sizes and creative specs page.

Facebook carousel ad specs at a glance

These are the specs that matter when you build the creative. Meta occasionally adjusts limits, so confirm anything borderline in Ads Manager before a big launch, but the values below are the stable working set.

One note on resolution, because it is the spec most often quoted from stale sources. Meta states 1080 x 1080 as the minimum for carousel cards, and uploading under that can trigger a low-resolution flag even when the ad is approved and runs. Meanwhile Meta raised its recommended resolutions elsewhere in 2026: Feed single images moved to 4:5 at 1440 x 1800 and Stories to 9:16 at 1440 x 2560. Carousel did not move, but the screens did, so building square cards at 1440 x 1440 rather than the 1080 floor keeps you clear on both counts.

What is the best aspect ratio for Facebook carousel ads?

Use 1:1 square. It is the only ratio that renders natively everywhere a carousel can appear, including Facebook feed, Instagram feed, and the LinkedIn version if you reuse the set. Meta also accepts 4:5 for feed-placed carousels, which buys you more vertical space on mobile, but it narrows where the same set can run. Choose 4:5 only when the campaign is genuinely feed-only.

Meta allows roughly 3 percent tolerance on aspect ratio, so a crop that is very slightly off still runs. That tolerance is not a licence to mix ratios inside one carousel, which is a different rule entirely.

Why every card must share one aspect ratio

Meta locks the aspect ratio to the first card. If card one is square and card two is a 4:5 vertical, Facebook crops the odd cards to match, which lops off logos, prices, and faces sitting near the edge. Build all cards at the same square from the start. Keep important elements away from the outer 10 percent of each card, since different placements trim the edges by different amounts.

This is the single most common reason a carousel looks broken after upload, and it is silent: nothing is rejected, nothing warns you, the cards just get trimmed. Checking the placement preview before publishing catches it in about ten seconds.

How many cards should a Facebook carousel have?

Facebook allows 2 to 10 cards, but 3 to 5 usually performs best, because most people swipe only two or three times before they decide. Your first card doubles as the thumbnail and carries the most weight, so lead with the strongest image and hook, which is the same first-frame discipline behind scroll-stopping ad creative. Meta can also automatically optimize card order for engagement, which means each card should stand on its own rather than depending on a fixed left-to-right sequence.

Meta carousel ad character limits and word limits

The primary text sits above the carousel and gets cut behind "See more". The field accepts several hundred characters, but Meta's own carousel guidance recommends 80, and that is a much shorter target than the 125 most spec sheets quote. Each card has its own headline recommended at 20 characters, roughly three words, plus an optional 18 character description that many placements hide entirely. Write the headline to work alone, because it is the line most likely to survive across placements. Do not rely on the description to carry critical information.

There is no word limit as such, only character limits, which is worth stating plainly because the two get used interchangeably. Roughly speaking, 80 characters is about 13 to 14 English words and a 20 character headline is about three. Here is the comparison that resolves the confusion, since Meta publishes different numbers for a carousel than it does for a single image in the same Feed.

Neither set is a hard cap. Both are what Meta tells you will display cleanly, and the fields accept far more. The reason to care is that a carousel already asks the viewer to swipe, so a primary text line collapsed behind "See more" is asking for two interactions before the offer is even visible. The older reference table below shows how the technical caps compare.

The important asymmetry: Meta truncates silently rather than rejecting. Google and Snapchat hard-reject copy that runs long, so a writer moving between them needs opposite habits. The full cross-platform table is in ad copy character limits by platform.

Does the 20 percent text rule still apply to carousel ads?

Not as a rejection. Meta retired the hard 20 percent image-text limit years ago, and the current treatment on Google's side is a delivery discount rather than a block: a text-heavy image is not refused, it simply competes worse in the auction. Meta behaves similarly in practice, favoring creative with less overlaid text without formally banning it.

So the practical rule for carousel cards is not a percentage, it is legibility at feed size. A card is roughly the size of a postage stamp on a phone in a scrolling feed. If the text does not read at that size, the percentage is irrelevant. One short line per card, at a weight heavy enough to survive compression, is the working standard.

Facebook carousel video specs

Carousel cards can be video as well as image, and mixing the two inside one carousel is allowed as long as the aspect ratio stays consistent. Videos accept MP4 or MOV up to 4GB per card, at the same 1:1 square. Keep each clip short, since a carousel asks the viewer to swipe rather than watch, and a card that takes 15 seconds to make its point will lose to the swipe.

Captions matter more here than in a standalone video ad. Carousel cards autoplay muted in most placements, and unlike a full-width video ad there is less visual room for on-screen text, so burn in a short caption rather than relying on the sound.

Carousel ads vs collection ads: which to use

They look similar in the feed and solve different problems. A carousel is a set of 2 to 10 cards you build and order yourself, each with its own headline and link, and it works for any advertiser regardless of whether you have a product catalog. A collection ad pairs one hero image or video with a grid of catalog products underneath and opens into a full-screen Instant Experience, which requires a connected catalog.

If you sell services, run a small product range, or want to walk through a process, carousel is the right call. If you have a catalog of hundreds of items and want the platform to pick which ones to show, collection does that better.

How to create a Facebook carousel ad

The build itself is short once the creative exists.

1. In Ads Manager, create your campaign and at the ad level choose the Carousel format.
2. Upload each card at the same aspect ratio, 1440 x 1440 square being the safest current build.
3. Write the primary text once, front-loading the offer inside the 80 characters Meta recommends for carousel.
4. Add a headline per card, around 20 characters, which is about three words.
5. Set the destination URL, either one per card or one for the whole set.
6. Decide whether to let Meta optimize card order, which it will do by default.
7. Check the placement previews, especially Instagram feed and Stories, before publishing.

Step seven is the one people skip and the one that catches cropping problems. If you run carousels inside an Advantage+ campaign, previewing matters more still, because those campaigns cannot exclude placements and Meta may generate its own descriptions for carousel cards through the description_automation enhancement.

Why a carousel gets rejected or looks wrong

Outright rejections are usually policy rather than spec: prohibited content, a landing page that does not match the ad, or restricted category rules. Spec problems tend to produce a bad-looking ad rather than a rejection. The usual four are mixed aspect ratios across cards, artwork under 1080 pixels wide triggering a low-resolution flag, key elements sitting in the outer 10 percent where placements trim, and text too small to read at feed size.

How Instagram and LinkedIn carousels differ

The good news is that a square card set travels well. Instagram feed carousels use the same 1:1 1080 x 1080 cards and the same 2 to 10 range, though Instagram leans more visual, so text-heavy cards underperform there. LinkedIn carousel ads also run 1080 x 1080 squares with 2 to 10 cards, but the audience is professional, so the copy and design should read business-first. Here is the quick comparison.

What makes a carousel worth the extra work

A carousel is more production than a single image, so it should earn the format. Use it when you have a genuine multi-frame story: a product range, a step-by-step process, a before-and-after, or several features that each deserve a frame. If your message fits one image, a single-image ad is cheaper to test first, and the Facebook ad sizes reference lists the Feed and Story dimensions you would build instead. When the multi-card story is the right call, a carousel ad maker renders every card to one consistent square spec so nothing gets cropped at upload. When the story does need multiple frames, build every card to one square spec, lead with your strongest, and keep each card able to stand alone. The clicks that land afterward still have to convert, and a page that answers a shopper's questions the moment they arrive, whether through clear copy or an assistant that responds to product questions instantly, is what turns a swipe into a sale.

Ready to build every card, the copy, and each crop in one pass instead of lining them up by hand? Start with the carousel ad maker and generate a full set that stays consistent across Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Frequently asked questions

What size is a Facebook carousel ad?

Build square cards at 1:1. Meta states 1080 x 1080 pixels as the minimum for carousel, so treat that as the floor rather than the target and build at 1440 x 1440 where your source allows. Anything under 1080 pixels wide can trigger a low-resolution flag even when the ad is approved. Note that carousel stayed square while Feed single images moved to 4:5 at 1440 x 1800, so the two formats no longer share a ratio.

How many cards can a Facebook carousel ad have?

Between 2 and 10. Most advertisers get their best results with 3 to 5, because the majority of people swipe only two or three times before deciding. The first card doubles as the thumbnail and carries the most weight, so lead with your strongest image and hook.

What is the character limit for Meta carousel ads?

Meta's carousel guidance is 80 characters of primary text, a 20 character card headline and an 18 character description, and the description is hidden entirely in several placements. Those figures are shorter than the 125 and 40 usually published, because the widely quoted pair are the single image numbers rather than the carousel ones. The fields accept more than they display, so treat these as display targets.

Can carousel cards have different aspect ratios?

No. Meta locks the ratio to the first card and crops the rest to match, which silently trims logos, prices, and faces near the edges. Nothing is rejected and no warning appears, so build every card at the same ratio and check the placement previews before publishing.

Can you mix images and videos in one Facebook carousel?

Yes. Cards can be image or video within the same carousel as long as the aspect ratio stays consistent. Videos accept MP4 or MOV up to 4GB per card. Keep clips short and burn in captions, since carousel cards autoplay muted and the format asks people to swipe rather than watch.

Does the 20 percent text rule still apply?

Not as a rejection. Meta retired the hard limit, and heavy image text now works as a delivery disadvantage rather than a block. The practical constraint is legibility at feed size, where a card is about the size of a postage stamp, so one short line at a heavy enough weight beats any percentage calculation.

What is the difference between a carousel ad and a collection ad?

A carousel is 2 to 10 cards you build and order yourself, each with its own headline and link, and it needs no product catalog. A collection ad pairs one hero asset with a catalog-driven product grid and opens into a full-screen Instant Experience, which does require a connected catalog. Service businesses and small ranges suit carousel; large ecommerce catalogs suit collection.