Audiobook cover specs at a glance
One file built to these specs passes the cover check at most stores that take direct uploads. Treat it as a starting point and confirm each store’s current rules.
| Spec | Safe choice | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Shape | Square, 1:1 | Stores and listening apps show covers as square tiles |
| Pixel size | 3000 × 3000 (2400 × 2400 is a common minimum) | Stays sharp on large, high resolution screens |
| File type | JPG at high quality; PNG is also widely accepted | Small files, universal support |
| Color | RGB, ideally sRGB | CMYK print files can shift color or fail upload |
| Resolution | 72 dpi or higher | Has no effect on screen, but some upload forms check it |
| Text | Title and author exactly as in your metadata | Mismatches are a common reason for rejection |
| Extras | No prices, web addresses, store logos or sale badges | Most stores forbid promotional text on cover art |
Store specs change, so check each store’s current cover requirements before you upload.
Why the audiobook cover is square when the ebook is not
Audiobooks inherited their shape from music. Storefronts and players grew out of album art, so every audiobook app lays out covers as square tiles in a grid. An ebook cover is a tall rectangle, usually about 1 to 1.6, and it does not fit that tile.
Drop a portrait cover into a square slot and one of two things happens: the app crops off the top and bottom, often cutting the title in half, or it pads the sides with bars. Stores generally ask for a properly composed square file instead, and some reject covers that are obviously a portrait image with filler on each side.
The good news is that you only make the square version once. The same file works as the store cover, the image embedded in your M4B and the artwork for sharing the audiobook on social media.
Cover sizes you will meet around an audiobook launch
Different places want different shapes. Typical figures in 2026; check each platform’s own guidelines.
| Use | Typical size | Shape |
|---|---|---|
| Audiobook store cover, recommended | 3000 × 3000 px | Square |
| Audiobook store cover, common minimum | 2400 × 2400 px | Square |
| Cover embedded in an M4B or MP3 | 1400 to 3000 px | Square |
| Ebook cover | About 1600 × 2560 px | Portrait, about 1 to 1.6 |
| Podcast or audio show artwork | 1400 to 3000 px | Square |
| Video thumbnail for a YouTube upload | 1280 × 720 px | Wide, 16 by 9 |
Planning a video edition? Make an audiobook on YouTube covers rights and labels for that route.
Turning a portrait ebook cover into a square one
You can do this in any design tool that sets a canvas size, from free online editors to professional software.
- 1
Start from the source art
Use the layered design file or the original illustration at full resolution, not a downloaded thumbnail. Upscaling a small image is the fastest route to a blurry cover.
- 2
Make a 3000 × 3000 canvas
Set the document to RGB. Place the artwork so its focal point, usually a face or a central object, sits near the middle.
- 3
Fill the width, do not pad it
Extend the background to the edges, crop into the illustration, or rearrange elements side by side. Avoid plain bars or a blurred copy of the art behind it.
- 4
Rebuild the type for a square
Set the title larger and wider than on the ebook, across the top or bottom third, with the author name clearly separate. Drop taglines and review quotes.
- 5
Export and check small
Save a high quality JPG, then view it at about 150 pixels wide. If the title is still readable, the cover is ready.
Designing for the thumbnail, not the full size
Most people first see your cover in a search result or a carousel, where it is shown somewhere between 100 and 200 pixels wide. At that size, a serif subtitle disappears, a thin script font turns into a smudge and dark text on a dark painting vanishes.
Make the title the largest element and keep it to as few lines as you can. Use strong contrast between text and background, for example a light title over a darker band. Keep a margin of about five to ten percent clear of text on every side, because some apps round the corners or lay a progress bar or badge across the art.
Series covers benefit most from a template. Fix the title position, font and series mark once, and every new book in the series looks related in a grid without extra design work.
Audiobook cover requirements that trip people up
Most rejected covers fail on one of a handful of rules. These rules are common across most stores today.
Before you upload, confirm
- The image is square and at least the store’s minimum size, ideally 3000 × 3000.
- The title and author on the art match the metadata letter for letter.
- Any narrator credit on the cover matches the narrator field in your listing.
- You hold the rights to every image and font, and the license covers an audiobook edition.
Common reasons for rejection
- A portrait cover padded with bars, or a low resolution file stretched to size.
- Visible blur, pixelation or compression artifacts.
- Prices, “free”, sale stickers, web addresses or social media handles.
- The name or logo of another store or service.
- Content that breaks the store’s rules on explicit or misleading images.
Adding the cover to the audiobook file itself
Stores take the cover as a separate upload alongside the audio, so the store version is the square file you prepared above. The cover embedded in the audio file is for the listener: it is what shows in BookPlayer, Apple Books or Audiobookshelf when someone plays a file you sold or gave them directly. How to play M4B files lists the apps that display it.
When you export an M4B from the AI audiobook generator, the file carries the cover along with title and author tags and named chapter markers, all built in your browser. If you already have chapter MP3s, the free MP3 to M4B converter adds a JPG or PNG cover while joining them into one file. A square image between 1400 and 3000 pixels is plenty for embedding. The M4B audiobook maker page explains the rest of the M4B workflow.
