- Hi, I'm Nick from Design School.
Are you wondering how to make
professional-looking YouTube channel art?
Well, channel art, or a banner,
is one of the most important elements
when branding your channel.
It's like a digital billboard, and it's a chance
for you to catch people's attention
and show them why they should subscribe.
In this video, we'll show you how to design
your own YouTube channel art fast and easy using Canva,
and how to make sure it looks great
across different devices, from desktop to mobile phone.
(upbeat music)
The dimensions for YouTube channel art
for desktop are 2,560 by 1,440 pixels.
It's important that the critical content,
like your logo and text,
is placed within the central safe area
of 1,546 by 423 pixels.
To make things easier,
all our templates are set up with the correct dimensions.
When using templates, it's worth checking
your most important information is within the safe area.
Starting in Canva, search for YouTube channel art.
We'll start inspired with a template,
and then show you how to create your own channel art
from a blank design.
Canva has thousands of different templates
to give you ideas for designs, messaging, and branding.
You can customize these templates
or simply browse them for ideas and inspiration.
Browse templates and find a design that aligns
with your branding and channel content.
Remember, templates are a starting point,
so it just needs to be close to what you're looking for
rather than perfect.
You can customize every element of a template.
Let's start by changing the text to your channel name.
While we're editing text, let's customize the font.
If you don't have a font that you regularly use,
you can search for a style and scroll through the list
until you find something that you like.
Consistent use of fonts will help strengthen your brand
and make your designs more cohesive.
Staying with the text, let's change the channel tagline.
If you don't already have a tagline,
simply tell people what to expect from your content.
This text should answer the question,
"Why should I subscribe to your channel?"
Stuck for ideas?
Check out other YouTube channel art templates
for inspiration.
Next, change the background image.
You can upload your own photo,
or if you don't like the look of a photo,
change the background color to match your brand.
Finally, let's add a logo and balance to the design.
Make sure it's clearly visible
to help make your channel art more memorable.
If you appear frequently in your videos,
you can use a headshot instead of a logo
to create the same visual recognition for your channel.
If you are posting videos regularly,
it's a good idea to tell people how often you'll post.
This helps set expectations around your content
and can help retain subscribers.
Now your design is finished.
It's time to download it so you can upload it
to your YouTube profile.
Click share, then download, save as a PNG,
and you're ready to upload it to your YouTube profile.
Next, we'll show you how to create
your own YouTube channel art starting with a blank design.
To keep things simple, we'll create a banner for desktop.
We'll start by creating a rectangle showing the safe area.
Go to elements, then shapes, and a rectangle,
or hit R on your keyboard.
Adjust the size so it's 423 pixels high
and 1,546 pixels wide.
Drag the rectangle until it's centered
horizontally and vertically.
Then I'll adjust the transparency to 50%
and lock it, so now I can use it as a guide
and also see elements through it.
Start by adding a background photo or a color.
You can upload your own or browse our library of photos.
Next, let's jump right into the most important elements:
your logo, channel, name, and tagline.
Make sure they're all placed in the safe area.
This will ensure that people can see them
no matter what device they're using to browse YouTube.
Your channel name is the single most important element
you want people to remember.
Help your channel name stand out with large, bold text.
This will make it easier to read on smaller screens.
Tell people exactly what to expect from your channel.
A tagline is a great way to capture people's attention
and convince them to subscribe.
If you don't have a tagline, add a short description
of why people would be interested in your channel.
Are you stuck for ideas?
Take another look at the YouTube channel art templates
for inspiration.
Make your tagline smaller than your channel name
so it doesn't compete.
If you don't have a logo, you can use a photo of yourself
or a host if they speak to the camera,
or you could use a photo related to your content.
For example, if your channel is about cooking,
you could include pictures of tasty food.
Once you've checked the most important elements
are still within the safe area,
you're ready to finalize your design and download it.
Click share, then download, save as a PNG,
and you're ready to upload it to your YouTube profile.
Hey, did you learn something?
Why don't you hit subscribe, maybe even a like.
Thanks for watching and I'll see you in the next one.