What size is a TikTok photo carousel?

1080 x 1920 - the same full-screen 9:16 shape as a video. Build every slide at that size so nothing is letterboxed or cropped on the swipe.

How many photos should a TikTok carousel have?

Enough to make the point and stop. Emaki Studio builds up to 5 slides free and up to 20 on Pro, which is well past the length most photo posts hold attention for.

Can I turn the same slides into a video?

Yes. Set a length and a transition per slide in the Motion panel and export an MP4. The encoding happens on your device, and there is no watermark on any tier.

All formats

TikTok photo carousel maker

A TikTok photo post is a set of full-screen stills people swipe through, and it is judged in the first second like any other TikTok. That makes it a different design problem from a feed carousel: the frame is taller, the platform paints its own interface over your slide, and the first image has to work as a cover.

Slide size: 1080 x 1920 (9:16, full screen)
Keep clear: Roughly 250 px at the top and 350 px at the bottom, where the interface sits
First slide: Works as the cover - it is what appears in the feed
Export: One image per slide, in swipe order

What makes it work

Design full-bleed, then pull the text in Photos and colour should run edge to edge - a 9:16 slide with margins looks like a feed post someone uploaded to the wrong place. The text is what respects the safe area, not the artwork.
Treat slide one as a cover It carries the hook and it is the frame the feed shows. If it needs a second read to make sense, the swipe never starts.
Big type, few words A full-screen slide is read at arm's length in a scroll. Headline sizes that look excessive on your monitor are usually right on the phone.
Keep the caption zone empty The username, caption, sound and buttons sit over the bottom of the frame and the top strip. Anything you place there is covered on the device even though it looks fine in the editor.
The same slides make a video Once the set is built you can give each slide a duration and a transition and export it as an MP4 instead, which is the same content posted as a video. Video export is free and carries no watermark.

Templates that fit: Photo story, Story photo stack

Open the carousel editor · Browse the how-to guides

What size is a TikTok photo carousel?: 1080 x 1920 - the same full-screen 9:16 shape as a video. Build every slide at that size so nothing is letterboxed or cropped on the swipe.
How many photos should a TikTok carousel have?: Enough to make the point and stop. Emaki Studio builds up to 5 slides free and up to 20 on Pro, which is well past the length most photo posts hold attention for.
Can I turn the same slides into a video?: Yes. Set a length and a transition per slide in the Motion panel and export an MP4. The encoding happens on your device, and there is no watermark on any tier.