YouTube Thumbnail Downloader
Paste any YouTube link to pull its thumbnail in every resolution YouTube generated — including 1280x720 HD. Works with Shorts.
Every YouTube video has a fixed set of thumbnail images sitting at predictable addresses on YouTube's image servers. Paste a video URL and this resolves all of them, from the 120 x 90 placeholder up to the 1280 x 720 maximum resolution version.
No YouTube API call is involved, which is why there is no rate limit and no account: working out the addresses is string manipulation on the video ID. Full watch URLs, youtu.be short links, Shorts and embed URLs all resolve.
Why some sizes are missing
maxresdefault is conditional
YouTube only generates the 1280 x 720 version for videos uploaded at 720p or above. Older and lower-quality uploads top out at hqdefault, 480 x 360.
Missing sizes return a placeholder, not an error
A size YouTube never generated answers with a 120 x 90 grey image rather than a 404, so this tool tests the returned width and hides the ones that came back as placeholders.
Saving is a link, not a button
The images are served cross-origin, so a download attribute is ignored by browsers and a canvas re-encode would throw a security error. Opening the image and saving it is the approach that actually works.
How to use it
- 1
Paste the video URL
Any YouTube link works — full watch URLs, youtu.be short links, Shorts and embed URLs.
- 2
Pick a resolution
Every thumbnail YouTube generated for that video is shown, from 120x90 up to 1280x720 maxres.
- 3
Open or save it
Open the image at full size and save it. The files come straight from YouTube's image servers.
What this will not do
- It returns the thumbnail, not the video. This is not a video downloader.
- Private, deleted and age-restricted videos have no publicly reachable thumbnail, so nothing will resolve for them.
- A thumbnail you downloaded is reference material. Republishing someone else's thumbnail as your own is copyright infringement — study what works, do not copy it.
- It does not tell you why a thumbnail performs. Run it through the Thumbnail Analyzer to get that read.
Common questions
How do I download a YouTube thumbnail in HD?
Paste the video URL and choose the maxresdefault option, which is the 1280x720 version. Not every video has one — older or low-resolution uploads may top out at hqdefault (480x360), and the tool shows which sizes actually exist.
Does this work for YouTube Shorts?
Yes. Shorts URLs are recognised and resolved to the same thumbnail set as any other video.
Is it legal to download a YouTube thumbnail?
Downloading one for reference, analysis or competitive research is normal practice. Republishing someone else's thumbnail as your own is copyright infringement. Use them to study what works, not to copy.
Why is only the low-resolution version available?
YouTube generates maxresdefault only for videos uploaded at 720p or above. If a video was uploaded at lower quality, the highest available is hqdefault at 480x360.
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