TikTok, Reels & Shorts safe zone checker
Upload your image or video and see live whether each platform's interface covers your text, your logo or your face. Pick the platform and download a reference screenshot.
Works best with short videos (up to ~60 seconds) and files up to ~150 MB, depending on your device's memory. The overlays are approximate: each app may tweak its interface over time.
How it works
Upload your image or video
Drag the file in or pick it from your device. It isn't uploaded to any server.
Choose the platform
TikTok, Instagram Reels or YouTube Shorts: each one covers different parts of the screen.
Adjust and download
If something important is covered, move it in your editor and download the reference screenshot.
Why the safe zone matters in vertical video
A vertical video is never seen "clean": each platform draws its own interface on top of your content. TikTok reserves a strip along the right edge for the profile, like, comment, share and sound icons; Instagram Reels places something similar but with different spacing, and adds its own caption and username block in the lower left; YouTube Shorts piles on the subscribe button, the channel title and its own action row, with proportions that don't line up pixel for pixel with the other two apps. The practical result is that a single file exported once can look perfect in the editor and end up partly covered on all three destination platforms — each one blocking a different area.
The problem isn't only cosmetic. When a logo, a hardcoded subtitle or the speaker's face lands under an interface icon, the viewer loses information they need to follow the video — a contact detail, a key word in the caption, a watermark that identifies the creator. In formats consumed mostly without sound (many people watch Reels and Shorts on mute in public spaces), a covered subtitle isn't a minor detail: it's literally half the message gone. And in branded video, a logo systematically covered on one of the three platforms means a slice of the audience never associates that content with whoever made it.
This mistake is especially common in two scenarios: when the same video is reused unchanged across platforms ("edit once, post on all three"), and when text or a logo is positioned looking only at the video editor's preview, which doesn't always replicate each app's real interface zones. Catching the problem only after publishing means editing and re-uploading, losing the early momentum a new video usually gets in its first hours.
The rectangles you see are an approximate guide based on how each app usually looks, not an official pixel-perfect measurement — platforms adjust their design from time to time. So, on top of the overlay, it's worth doing a final visual review before publishing, especially if your account has an extra feature enabled (like pins or badges) that can take up more space.
Real use cases
- A Reel with the main text in the lower third gets covered by the username and caption Instagram overlays right there — the creator only notices when a follower comments "I can't read what it says".
- A brand logo placed in the top-right corner of a Short sits under the "more options" icon YouTube adds in that spot, something that doesn't show up when previewing the video in the desktop editor.
- A video originally made for TikTok, with subtitles hugging the right edge, is reused as-is on Reels and the text ends up exactly behind that platform's icon column.
- A product thumbnail with the price written near the bottom edge gets covered by the "original sound" bar TikTok automatically adds in that strip.
Frequently asked questions
What is the safe zone on TikTok, Reels or Shorts?
It's the area of the screen that stays clear of buttons, icons, auto captions and other interface elements, so it's where you want to place text, a logo or anything important.
Are the overlays official for each platform?
They are an approximate reference based on each interface's usual layout. Apps update their design from time to time, so use them as a guide and visually review the final result before publishing.
Can I use it with a video, not just an image?
Yes. Upload the video, play it with the overlay on and switch platforms to see how it behaves on each one throughout the clip.
Is my video or image uploaded to a server?
No. All processing happens in your browser with canvas and HTML5 video. The file never leaves your device.
What exactly does the capture button download?
A 1080×1920 PNG image with your photo or the current video frame, plus the chosen platform's overlay on top, ready to save as a reference or share with your team.
Does it work for formats other than 9:16?
The tool is built for the 9:16 vertical format. If your file has a different ratio, it's automatically center-cropped to simulate how it would look inside each app's player.
Why aren't the safe zones the same across the three platforms?
Each app designs its own interface independently: the position of the interaction buttons, the caption font size and the room left for auto-captions all vary from one to another. There's no shared standard between TikTok, Instagram and YouTube, so a video that's "safe" on one may not be on the other two.
Do these zones change over time?
Yes. Platforms update their interface fairly often — they move an icon, add a new button, change the caption's font size. That's why it's worth reviewing your video before each important batch of posts, rather than trusting a check you did months ago.
Does this help if I edit directly on my phone?
Yes. The check is independent of where you edited the video: what matters is how it will look once published in each app, and that's exactly what the tool simulates.
What happens if my content doesn't respect any safe zone?
It doesn't mean the platform rejects it or automatically lowers its reach — the issue is purely about legibility for the person watching. The real risk is that part of the message (text, logo, face) isn't visible, and the viewer loses context or gets frustrated and leaves before the end.
Can I use the tool with an already-published video?
Yes. You can upload the exported file as it turned out (or the original clip) to review it before scheduling the post, or to diagnose why an already-uploaded video drew comments about covered text.
Does the tool fix the video automatically?
No — the tool shows you where the conflict is so you can decide how to solve it (move the text, shrink the logo, recompose the shot); it doesn't re-edit the file for you.
Why is the right-hand strip narrower on one platform than another?
Because each app groups a different number of icons in that column (like, comment, share, save, sound, and in some cases an extra "more" button), so the total height of that row changes depending on how many elements it includes.