Best Aspect Ratio for Instagram Reels: 9:16 Settings That Actually Work
Instagram Reels needs 9:16 at 1080x1920. Here is where the aspect ratio setting lives on VdoBloom, which models ignore it, and what vertical clips cost in real credits.
The best aspect ratio for Instagram Reels is 9:16 — a 1080 × 1920 pixel vertical frame — and on VdoBloom you must select it deliberately, because the video creator opens on 16:9 by default. Every other decision (which model, which resolution tier, how long the clip runs) follows from that one setting, and getting it wrong is the single most common reason an AI-generated clip looks letterboxed, cropped or soft once Instagram re-encodes it.
Why 9:16 and nothing else
Instagram Reels plays full-screen on a phone held upright. A 9:16 frame fills that screen edge to edge. Anything wider gets one of two treatments: Instagram pads it with black bars, or the viewer sees a centre crop that quietly amputates whatever you put near the left and right edges. Neither looks intentional, and both cost you the first-second retention that decides whether a Reel travels.
A 1:1 square is a compromise from the old feed era. It still uploads, but it wastes roughly 44 percent of the vertical screen. A 4:5 frame is the correct ratio for a feed post, not a Reel — and the two get confused constantly because the profile grid displays a Reel cover in a tall-ish crop. Shoot the video 9:16 and let the cover crop happen; do not author the video at 4:5 to please the grid.
Where the aspect ratio setting actually lives on VdoBloom
In the video creator, aspect ratio is a per-generation setting that sits next to duration and quality. The three options offered across the platform are Landscape (16:9), Portrait (9:16) and Square (1:1). The default state of a fresh session is 16:9, so the first thing to do on a Reels job is switch it.
There is one important exception that trips people up. Several image-to-video models do not expose an aspect ratio control at all — WAN 2.7 Image-to-Video and WAN 2.7 Reference-to-Video are the clearest examples. For those, the output frame inherits the shape of the photo you upload. If you feed a landscape photo into an image-to-video model, you get a landscape video and no setting will rescue it. Crop your source image to 9:16 before you upload it. That single habit fixes most of the “why is my clip still wide” confusion on the image-to-video tab.
Text-to-video is the opposite: there is no source image to inherit from, so the aspect ratio picker is authoritative. On the text-to-video tab, pick 9:16 and the model is asked for a vertical frame directly.
Model-by-model: what 9:16 costs
Credits convert at a flat rate. The Lite plan is $15 per month for 300 credits, so one credit is $0.05. These are the real per-generation numbers for vertical clips, read from the pricing table rather than estimated.
| Model | Resolution | Duration | Credits | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PixVerse v5 | 720p | 5s | 25 | $1.25 |
| PixVerse v5 | 1080p | 5s | 32 | $1.60 |
| PixVerse v5 | 1080p | 8s | 50 | $2.50 |
| WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video | 720p | 5s | 32 | $1.60 |
| WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video | 1080p | 5s | 48 | $2.40 |
| WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video | 1080p | 10s | 95 | $4.75 |
| Kling 2.5 Turbo | native | 5s | 40 | $2.00 |
| Hailuo 02 | 1080p | 6s | 45 | $2.25 |
| Veo 3.1 Fast | native | fixed | 40 | $2.00 |
| Seedance 2 Fast | 720p | 5s | 50 | $2.50 |
Two notes on that table. Veo 3.1 supports only 16:9 and 9:16 — the square option is filtered out of the picker for it entirely, which is a hint that Google built it for exactly these two surfaces. Seedance 2 Fast is unusually generous with shapes, accepting 16:9, 4:3, 1:1, 3:4, 9:16 and 21:9, so it is the safe pick when you want one model to cover both a Reel and a wide cut of the same idea. Full specs for each live on its page, for example WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video.
Resolution: 720p or 1080p for a Reel?
Instagram re-encodes everything you upload, aggressively. A 1080 Ă— 1920 master gives the encoder more to work with and survives that pass better, especially on footage with motion blur, fabric texture or fine hair detail. A 720 Ă— 1280 master is roughly 30 to 50 percent cheaper in credits depending on the model and is genuinely fine for talking-head style content, text-heavy clips and anything a viewer watches at thumb speed.
The practical rule: draft at 720p while you are iterating on the prompt, then re-run the winner at 1080p. On WAN 2.7 that is 32 credits per draft and 48 credits for the final — you can burn four drafts and a final for under $4.
Composing for the Reels interface
The full 9:16 frame is yours, but Instagram draws its own furniture on top of it. The caption, the audio attribution and the action rail all sit over the lower third and right edge. Treat roughly the bottom 20 percent and the right 12 percent as decoration only. If your prompt asks for on-screen text or a logo, tell the model to place it in the upper-middle third.
This matters more with AI video than with filmed video, because models compose for the centre of the frame by default. Prompt for it explicitly: describe a subject framed waist-up, centred, with headroom, and say the word vertical in the prompt as well as setting the ratio. The two together produce noticeably better vertical compositions than the setting alone.
A worked example
Say you want a 5-second vertical product hook. Open text-to-video, set aspect ratio to Portrait (9:16), quality to 720p, duration to 5 seconds, and pick WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video. Prompt: a vertical close-up of a ceramic coffee cup on a pale oak table, steam rising, morning window light from the left, slow push-in, subject centred with headroom, shallow depth of field. That is 32 credits. Review it, adjust the light direction or the camera move, and re-run the version you like at 1080p for 48 credits.
If you are building the same thing around a real person’s photo, use the UGC Ad Creator, which already defaults to a 9:16 frame. You must have that person’s consent before you animate a photo of them.
Watermarks and downloads
Free generations carry a watermark. Any paid plan downloads clean and with commercial rights, which is what you want before anything goes to a business account — see watermark-free downloads and the current tiers on the pricing page. New accounts start with 10 free credits and no card, which is enough to test a vertical composition on one of the cheaper models before you commit.
Frequently asked questions
What exact resolution should I export a Reel at?
1080 Ă— 1920 pixels. That is 9:16 at full Instagram-supported height. 720 Ă— 1280 is the same ratio at a lower cost and is acceptable for most content.
Why is my image-to-video clip still landscape when I chose 9:16?
Because several image-to-video models — WAN 2.7 Image-to-Video and Reference-to-Video among them — do not expose an aspect ratio control. The output follows your uploaded photo. Crop the photo to 9:16 first.
Is 4:5 ever right for a Reel?
No. 4:5 is a feed-post ratio. Author Reels at 9:16 and let Instagram derive the grid cover crop.
Does 9:16 cost more credits than 16:9?
No. Credit cost is driven by model, resolution tier and duration. The aspect ratio itself is free.
Which model should I default to for Reels?
PixVerse v5 at 720p for cheap iteration, WAN 2.7 Text-to-Video at 1080p for the final, and Veo 3.1 Fast when you want a single 40-credit flat-rate shot with strong prompt adherence.
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