4:5 Ratio in Pixels: A Practical Guide with Math, Examples, and Use Cases

Choosing the right 4:5 dimensions is key to clean, platform-ready visuals across social, print, and video. This guide streamlines the math, lists proven pixel sizes, and shows how to crop and export without distortion or quality loss. Use it as a concise reference to stay consistent and avoid rework.

4:5 Ratio in Pixels: A Practical Guide with Math, Examples, and Use Cases

What the 4:5 aspect ratio means (and why it’s portrait)

The 4:5 aspect ratio means your image or video is 4 units wide by 5 units tall. Because the height is greater than the width, it’s naturally portrait-oriented.

Where you’ll see it:

• Social media: Instagram portrait posts and ads, Facebook and LinkedIn feed images.
• Photography and print: 8×10 inch prints (classic portrait size), 16×20 inch enlargements, 20×25 cm prints.
• Design comps: Flyers, posters, and editorial layouts designed to fit tall frames.

Why it’s popular:

• On mobile, a 4:5 image fills more of the screen than landscape without being as tall as 9:16, which can feel overwhelming in feeds.
• For prints, 8×10 and 16×20 are widely available frames—both are 4:5.

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Common 4:5 pixel dimensions you can use right away

Pick a size based on your platform, detail needs, and file size constraints. All of the options below are 4:5 and use even numbers (good for encoders).

When to pick each:

• Social-only: 1080×1350 is the safe default.
• Mixed social + light print: 1600×2000 or 2000×2500 gives flexibility.
• Print-first: 2400×3000 (for 8×10 at 300 PPI) or higher.

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The math made simple

You only need two formulas:

• Height = (5/4) × Width
• Width = (4/5) × Height

Rounding tips:

• For web and video, use even integers to keep encoders happy (H.264/HEVC often expect mod2, and benefit from mod4/mod8 dimensions).
• Err on rounding up when you’ll compress later; it reduces over-aggressive resizing.
• For print, compute exact pixels from inches × PPI and round to the nearest even integer.

Quick examples:

• If Width = 1080, Height = 1080 × 1.25 = 1350
• If Height = 2000, Width = 2000 × 0.8 = 1600

Copy-paste helpers:

Height = round_even(Width * 1.25)
Width  = round_even(Height * 0.8)

## round_even(x) = nearest even integer (e.g., round to nearest, then adjust if odd)

def to_4x5_from_width(w):
    h = int(round(w * 1.25))
    return w if w % 2 == 0 else w+1, h if h % 2 == 0 else h+1

def to_4x5_from_height(h):
    w = int(round(h * 0.8))
    return w if w % 2 == 0 else w+1, h if h % 2 == 0 else h+1

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4:5 vs 5:4: don’t mix them up

• 4:5 is portrait (taller than wide), e.g., 8×10 inches, 1080×1350 px.
• 5:4 is landscape (wider than tall), e.g., 10×8 inches, 1920×1536 px.

Real-world examples

• An 8×10-inch photo print is 4:5 (portrait when turned tall).
• The same sheet turned sideways (10×8) is 5:4 (landscape).
• A 16×20-inch print is also 4:5.

Avoid confusion

• Write the short side first for clarity (W×H). For portrait 4:5, W < H.
• In filenames, append -4x5-p or -5x4-l to encode both ratio and orientation, e.g., portrait-headshot-4x5-p.jpg.

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Social media specs and best-fit sizes

Instagram

• Portrait posts and ads: 1080×1350 px (4:5). This is the platform’s recommended max portrait size to occupy more vertical space without being cropped to square.
• Safe area: keep essential text/logos inside a 10% margin on all sides (about 108 px left/right and 135 px top/bottom at 1080×1350).
• Carousels: maintain 4:5 across all slides for consistent paging.

Facebook

• Portrait images in the feed support 4:5. 1080×1350 or 1200×1500 works well.
• Avoid text near edges to guard against UI overlays and link previews.

LinkedIn

• The feed supports tall images and will display 4:5. 1080×1350 is a robust choice.
• Cropping in previews can vary; keep critical content centered vertically and horizontally.

General platform notes

• Don’t upload excessively large images for standard posts; platforms recompress anyway.
• Convert to sRGB and embed the profile to avoid dull colors on non-color-managed apps.
• Avoid overly crisp borders; subtle, 2–6 px strokes are less likely to show on-device scaling artifacts.

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How to crop and export in popular tools

Photoshop

• Crop tool: set Ratio to 4:5. Check “Delete Cropped Pixels” off if you want non-destructive edits.
• Export As: JPEG or PNG, Convert to sRGB checked, Quality 70–85 for web. Use “Bicubic Sharper” for downsizing.
• Canvas size: Image > Canvas Size… to pad out to 4:5 without stretching.

Lightroom Classic

• Develop > Crop Overlay (R): choose 4×5/8×10.
• Export: Resize to Fit with exact pixel dimensions (e.g., 1080 × 1350), Sharpen for Screen, sRGB, JPEG Quality 80–90.

Canva / Figma

• Set a custom canvas to 1080×1350, 1200×1500, or your target size.
• Lock the aspect ratio before scaling elements. Avoid non-uniform scaling to prevent stretching.
• Export PNG for graphics/typography; JPEG for photos to reduce size; always sRGB.

Mobile apps (Snapseed, VSCO, Lightroom Mobile)

• Look for a 4:5 or 8:10 crop preset.
• Export at maximum resolution if you’ll post across multiple platforms.

Avoid stretching

• Never scale width and height independently to “force” 4:5; instead, crop or add background padding.
• Use a solid or blurred background when padding to 4:5 to maintain aesthetic cohesion.

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Video in 4:5: resolutions, bitrate, and codecs

Recommended 4:5 video resolutions

• 864×1080
• 1080×1350
• 1200×1500

Codec and bitrate guidelines

• Codec: H.264 (AVC) is the safest for broad compatibility; HEVC (H.265) offers smaller files but may reduce compatibility on older devices.
• Bitrate targets (H.264, progressive):
• 864×1080: 4–6 Mbps
• 1080×1350: 6–10 Mbps
• 1200×1500: 8–12 Mbps
• Audio: AAC, 128–192 kbps, 48 kHz.

Prevent pillarboxing/letterboxing

• Edit in a 4:5 sequence/timeline. If source is 16:9, scale and crop to fill 4:5 thoughtfully.
• Don’t upload 16:9 with black sidebars; platforms will compress the bars and waste bitrate.

FFmpeg quick start

## Scale and center-crop 16:9 source to 1080x1350 (4:5) without black bars

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "scale=-2:1350, crop=1080:1350" -c:v libx264 -preset slow -crf 20 -pix_fmt yuv420p -c:a aac -b:a 160k output_1080x1350.mp4

## Or pad (if you prefer background instead of cropping)

ffmpeg -i input.mp4 -vf "scale=1080:-2, pad=1080:1350:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2:black" -c:v libx264 -crf 20 -c:a aac output_padded_4x5.mp4

Tip: Use even dimensions. If you customize sizes, stick to mod2 (even) or mod8 dimensions.

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DPI/PPI clarity for print

Pixels and inches are linked by PPI (pixels per inch):

• Pixels = Inches × PPI
• For high-quality photo prints, 300 PPI is the standard target.

Common 4:5 print mappings at 300 PPI:

• 8×10 in → 2400×3000 px
• 16×20 in → 4800×6000 px
• 4×5 in → 1200×1500 px
• 20×25 cm (~7.87×9.84 in) at 300 PPI → ≈ 2361×2952 px

Bleed and margins

• Typical bleed: 0.125 in (3 mm) on all sides; add this to your canvas (e.g., 8×10 with bleed → 8.25×10.25 in).
• Keep text and faces inside a 0.25–0.5 in safe margin.

When to upscale

• If you’re close to the target size (e.g., 2200×2750 for 8×10), use a high-quality resampler (Photoshop’s Preserve Details 2.0 or modern AI upscalers).
• Don’t upsize more than 2× unless necessary; inspect for halos and noise.

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Troubleshooting and pro tips

Composition and headroom

• For portraits, leave headroom at the top; 4:5 is fairly tight vertically versus 3:2.
• Center critical text/logos; keep at least 10% padding from edges for social feeds.

Batch processing and naming

• Use consistent filenames: image-name-1080x1350-4x5.jpg or image-name-4x5-p.jpg.
• Automate in Lightroom (Export Presets) or Photoshop (Actions + Image Processor).
• Command-line option with ImageMagick:

## Crop to centered 4:5 and resize for web

magick input.jpg -gravity center -crop 4:5 +repage -resize 1080x1350 -strip -quality 82 -colorspace sRGB output_1080x1350_4x5.jpg

Color profile pitfalls

• Always convert to and embed sRGB for web and social to avoid desaturation on non-color-managed apps.
• For print, use the printer’s ICC profile if provided. If not, leave in sRGB or Adobe RGB and let the lab manage color; avoid blind CMYK conversions.

Compression artifacts

• Avoid multiple re-exports. Keep a lossless master (TIFF/PSD) and export once to JPEG/WebP.
• For JPEG, Quality 75–90 is the sweet spot; check edges of text and gradients for banding.
• Consider WebP for web graphics with soft gradients; use PNG only when transparency or pixel-perfect graphics are needed.

Encoder-friendly dimensions

• Prefer even numbers (mod2) for width and height; many hardware decoders require it.
• For smoother compression, mod8 or mod16 can help, but don’t force awkward sizes if platforms expect 1080×1350.

Accessibility and legibility

• Use high contrast for overlaid text.
• Minimum text size: roughly 40–48 px for mobile at 1080-wide canvases, with generous line spacing.

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Quick reference formulas and checks

• Are my dimensions 4:5? Check: Height/Width ≈ 1.25 (within a tiny rounding tolerance).
• Convert width to height: Height = round_even(Width × 1.25)
• Convert height to width: Width = round_even(Height × 0.8)
• Print pixels: Pixels = round(Inches × PPI)

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Wrap-up

The 4:5 ratio in pixels is straightforward: it’s portrait-oriented, mobile-friendly, and print-ready for classic sizes like 8×10 and 16×20. Use 1080×1350 for social, 2400×3000 for 8×10 prints, and scale up as needed. Lock the ratio in your editor, stay in sRGB for web, keep even dimensions for video, and leave safe margins for UI overlays. With these formulas, presets, and export tips, you’ll avoid common pitfalls and produce crisp, platform-ready 4:5 visuals every time.

Summary

• 4:5 is a tall, versatile aspect ratio ideal for social feeds and standard portrait prints.
• Use the quick formulas, even-numbered dimensions, and sRGB exports to maintain quality and consistency across platforms.