Spotify Canvas maker: free looping 9:16 videos
Make the short looping video that plays behind your track in Spotify’s Now Playing view. Flowing light in your colors, a 9:16 MP4 of 4 to 8 seconds that loops with no jump, ready for Spotify for Artists.
- 9:16 MP4
- 3 to 8 seconds
- Free, no watermark
How to make a Spotify Canvas
Open the Canvas preset
Make a Canvas opens the editor on a 9:16 frame with an 8 second MP4 loop already set. Pick a look from the Library, or press Inspire for a new one, and set your own colors to match the cover art.
Export a 9:16 MP4
In Export, keep MP4, 9:16 and 1080p (1080×1920), and pick a loop of 4, 6 or 8 seconds. The loop fits whole turns of the motion, so it repeats with no jump. An 8 second loop at 30 fps is about 6 MB.
Upload it in Spotify for Artists
In Spotify for Artists open Music, select the track and click Add Canvas (on the phone app, tap the edit icon next to Canvas). Upload the MP4 and check the preview.
Spotify Canvas size, length and format
Spotify’s Canvas guidelines next to what the Canvas preset exports.
| Length | 3 to 8 seconds |
|---|---|
| Aspect ratio | Vertical 9:16 |
| Size | Between 720 px and 1080 px tall, in Spotify's words |
| File type | MP4 or JPG (a JPG shows as a still) |
| Where it plays | The Now Playing view of the Spotify mobile app, in place of the cover art |
| Length | 4, 6 or 8 seconds, seamless |
|---|---|
| Frame | 9:16 |
| Size | 1080×1920 (1080p) or 720×1280 (720p), both free |
| File | MP4 (H.264), video only, about 6 MB for 8 s at 1080p and 30 fps |
| Frame rate | 24, 30 or 60 fps |
Spotify’s wording reads as 720 to 1080 px on the short side of a 9:16 frame. Artists upload 1080×1920 and 720×1280 files; if an upload is ever refused, export the 720p size and try again.
Upload a Canvas in Spotify for Artists
On a computer: sign in at artists.spotify.com, open the Music tab, select your track and click Add Canvas. Choose the MP4, check the preview and save.
On your phone: open the Spotify for Artists app, tap Music, select the track and tap the edit icon next to Canvas.
Who can add one: team members with the Admin or Editor role, for tracks where the artist is the first main artist, or a main artist on both the track and the release. You can add a Canvas to any track, including upcoming releases. It shows in the Now Playing view of the mobile app, in place of the cover art.
Tips for a Canvas that people watch
- Leave out the text. The Now Playing view already shows the song and artist name, so Spotify suggests not repeating them in the Canvas.
- Keep it calm. Spotify advises against rapid cuts and intense flashing. Slow Speed and low Wobble give a steady loop that plays well for the length of a song.
- Stay inside the safe zone. Phones crop the edges and the title and controls cover the bottom. Keep the brightest light in the middle of the frame. Show safe zone on the phone at the top of this page marks the area.
- Match the cover art.Use the two or three main colors of your cover as the look’s colors, and its darkest tone as the background, so the Canvas feels like part of the release.
- Pick a tall path. Upright paths such as Column, Meander and Bolt fill a 9:16 frame better than a wide ribbon.
Free for your releases
A Canvas made from a free look is yours to use on any release, single or album, with no watermark and no credit needed, and it costs nothing: 9:16 sizes up to 1080×1920 are inside the free export limit of 1,920 px. The same loop works for Instagram Reels, Stories and TikTok, and the VJ loops generator makes matching visuals for your live shows.
For still cover backdrops, try Gradient Lab or the free gradient wallpapers. Backgrounds Supply Pro adds 4K loops and the full library of backgrounds.
FAQs
Spotify Canvas: size, length, uploading and making one free
Spotify asks for a vertical 9:16 video between 720 and 1080 pixels tall in its own words, which artists read as the short side: 1080×1920 or 720×1280. The Canvas preset exports 1080×1920 by default, and 720×1280 is one click away.
3 to 8 seconds. The Canvas preset opens on an 8 second loop, and you can choose 4 or 6 seconds instead. Longer loops in the editor (12 and 20 seconds) are too long for a Canvas.
Yes. Every look exports free as a 9:16 MP4 at 1080×1920 or 720×1280, with no watermark, no signup and no credit needed. The whole video is made in your browser.
On a computer, sign in at artists.spotify.com, open Music, select the track and click Add Canvas. In the Spotify for Artists phone app, tap Music, select the track and tap the edit icon next to Canvas. Then choose your MP4 and check the preview.
Spotify for Artists team members with the Admin or Editor role. The artist has to be the first main artist on the track, or a main artist on both the track and the release.
Yes. Spotify lets you add a Canvas to any track, including upcoming releases, so you can set it up in Spotify for Artists before release day.
It always repeats while the song plays, so a seamless loop looks best. Spotify's guide names three styles: a continuous loop, a hard cut and a rebound. Loops from this maker are continuous: the last frame leads straight into the first with no jump.
Spotify suggests leaving out the song and artist name, because the Now Playing view already shows them. Flowing light in the colors of your cover art works well without any text.
MP4 or JPG. Use an MP4 for a moving Canvas; a JPG only shows a still. The maker exports H.264 MP4, the format Spotify for Artists takes, with no audio track.
Yes. Make a Canvas opens the editor with a Canvas template already set: 9:16, an 8 second loop and MP4. The looks on this page fill a tall frame well; any of the editor's 128 looks works, with your own colors.
Phones have different screen shapes, so Spotify crops the edges of a 9:16 Canvas to fill them, and the title and controls cover the bottom. Keep the brightest part of the light in the middle; the safe zone on this page's phone preview shows the area to use.
Yes. Reels, Stories and TikTok use the same 9:16 frame, so the same MP4 works there, and you can export a longer 12 or 20 second loop for them. Loops from free looks are free for commercial use, including music promotion.
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