How to Edit a Thumbnail on Facebook

Your Facebook thumbnail is often the very first thing people see, acting as a tiny billboard for your video or a preview for your shared link. Getting it wrong can mean losing a click, while getting it right entices your audience to stop scrolling and engage. This guide will walk you through exactly how to edit your Facebook thumbnails for both videos and link shares, giving you full control over your content’s first impression.

Why Your Facebook Thumbnail is the Gatekeeper to Your Content

Before we jump into the steps, it’s important to understand the two main types of "thumbnails" on Facebook, as they are handled very differently:

• Video Thumbnails: This is the still image that represents your video before anyone hits play. You have full control over this, whether you’re uploading a new video or editing an existing one. A great video thumbnail piques curiosity and clearly communicates what the video is about.
• Link Preview Images: This is the image that Facebook automatically pulls when you share a link from a website. Unlike video thumbnails, Facebook severely limits your ability to edit this image directly. This change was made years ago to prevent bait-and-switch tactics and the spread of fake news.

Both are fundamental to driving clicks and engagement. A generic, blurry, or irrelevant thumbnail is a missed opportunity. A custom, eye-catching one is a powerful marketing tool that works for you 24/7.

How to Edit a Thumbnail When Posting a New Facebook Video

Setting the right thumbnail from the start is the most straightforward way to manage your video's appearance. The process gives you several options, from letting Facebook do the work to uploading a perfectly polished custom graphic.

Here’s how to do it step-by-step when uploading a video to a Facebook Page:

1. Start Your Post: Go to your Facebook Page and create a new post by clicking "Photo/Video." Select your video file from your computer to begin the upload.
2. Open Video Options: As the video uploads, a composer window will appear where you can add your caption, title, and tags. Look for a button or link that says "Video Options" and click on it.
3. Navigate to 'Thumbnail': A new editor window will open. On the left menu, you should see an option labeled "Thumbnail," or it may show up in the main panel. This is your command center for choosing the video's preview image.
4. Choose Your Source: Facebook provides three primary choices:
   • Choose suggestion: Facebook will automatically select several still frames from your video that it thinks would make a good thumbnail. You can simply click through these options to pick the one you like best. This is quick, but you’re limited to what Facebook offers.
   • Choose frame: This option presents a filmstrip view of your entire video. You can drag a slider or use arrows to scrub through the timeline and select the exact moment you want to use as your thumbnail. This is great for capturing the most dynamic or interesting frame.
   • Upload image: This is the recommended choice for most marketers and creators. It allows you to upload a completely custom image you’ve designed yourself. This gives you total control over the text, imagery, and branding.
5. Upload Your Custom Thumbnail: If you select "Upload image," you will be prompted to select a file from your computer. Choose your pre-designed graphic. For best results, your custom thumbnail image should be the same aspect ratio as your video (e.g., 16:9 for landscape or 9:16 for vertical). Facebook recommends an image of at least 1280 x 720 pixels. Once uploaded, click "Save."
6. Finish and Post: After saving your thumbnail choice, complete the rest of your post details (title, caption, etc.) and schedule or publish your video.

How to Change the Thumbnail of an Already Published Facebook Video

Did you spot a typo in your custom thumbnail or realize the auto-selected frame wasn’t quite right after publishing? No worries. Changing the thumbnail on an existing video is just as simple.

Follow these steps:

1. Locate The Video: Navigate to your Facebook Page’s "Videos" tab (or Creator Studio) to find the video you want to edit.
2. Open the Editing Menu: Click on the video to open it. Find the three-dot menu (...) in the top-right corner of the video post.
3. Select "Edit Video" or "Edit Post": From the dropdown menu, choose the option to edit. This will reopen the video details editor, which looks very similar to the one you used when first uploading.
4. Adjust the Thumbnail: On the right-hand side of the editor, you’ll find the Thumbnail section. Just like before, you can choose a suggested frame, scrub through the video to pick a new one, or upload a brand-new custom image to replace the old one.
5. Save Your Changes: After you've made your selection, hit the "Save" button to apply the changes. The video on your timeline will now display the new thumbnail. Note that it might take a moment or require a page refresh for the change to become visible everywhere.

The Tricky Situation: What to Do with Link Preview Thumbnails

This is where things get a bit more technical, and it's a common point of frustration. You share an article on Facebook, and it pulls a completely wrong image - maybe an ad from the sidebar or a tiny logo. Unfortunately, you can't just click "edit" and upload a new one within Facebook. Authority over the link preview image lies with the website being linked.

Here’s what’s really happening and how you can manage it.

Understanding Open Graph (OG) Tags

Facebook uses a bit of code called Open Graph meta tags to understand the content on a web page. A specific tag, `og:image`, tells Facebook which image to use as the thumbnail for a link share. If this tag isn't set, is missing, or is set incorrectly on the website's end, Facebook just has to guess, and its guess can often be wrong.

Solution 1: If You Own the Website

If you're sharing a link from your own blog or website, the solution is to set the `og:image` tag yourself. Most modern CMS platforms like WordPress (with Yoast SEO), Squarespace, and Shopify make this very easy. Look for a "social sharing" or "SEO" section in your page or post editor where you can specify a "featured image" or "social sharing image."

If you need to do it manually, the code snippet you'd add to the <,head>, section of your page's HTML looks like this:

<,meta property=",og:image", content=",https://www.yourwebsite.com/images/your-perfect-thumbnail.jpg", />,

Solution 2: Using the Facebook Sharing Debugger

If you've just updated the `og:image` on your website but Facebook is still showing the old image, it’s because Facebook has cached the old information. You need to force it to re-scan the page.

1. Go to the Facebook Sharing Debugger tool.
2. Paste the URL of your webpage into the box and click "Debug."
3. The tool will show you what information Facebook sees, including any errors with your OG tags. To refresh it, click the "Scrape Again" button. This will force Facebook to pull the latest version of your page, including the new thumbnail. Now, when you share the link, the correct image should appear.

Solution 3: A Manual Workaround for Any Link

What if you don't own the website and can't change the OG tags? There's a popular workaround that gives you visual control back, though it functions a bit differently. Instead of an official link preview, you create an image post that links out.

1. Create a new post on your Facebook Page.
2. Instead of pasting the link first, click to add a photo. Upload your eye-catching, custom-designed image for the link.
3. Once the image is uploaded, write your caption. In the text itself, paste the link you want to share.
4. Publish the post. The result will be a post featuring a large, beautiful image you chose. The link will be clickable in the post text above it. While it’s not an official "link preview," this method often results in higher engagement because the visual real estate is dominated by your compelling image instead of a small link preview thumbnail.

Tips for Designing Thumbnails That Get Clicks

Knowing how to change a thumbnail is half the battle. Creating one that captures attention is the other.

• Clarity and Simplicity Reign: Your thumbnail will be tiny on a mobile feed. Avoid clutter. Use a single, high-resolution focal point and bold, easy-to-read text.
• Show Human Faces: We are naturally drawn to other people. A clear shot of an emotive face - happy, surprised, intrigued - almost always performs better than a thumbnail of an object or landscape.
• Use Brand Consistency: Incorporate your brand fonts, colors, or a small logo to build brand recognition over time. When your followers see your recognizable style, they'll know the content is from you.
• Create Curiosity: Use your thumbnail's text to pose a question or highlight a dramatic outcome. Phrases like "The big mistake..." or "How I achieved..." make users want to click to find out the answer.
• Contrast is Your Friend: Use bright colors that stand out against Facebook's white and blue interface. High-contrast images and text are easier to see and more likely to grab attention mid-scroll.

Final Thoughts

Mastering your Facebook thumbnail is a small step that brings a massive return. For videos, you have full control to select the perfect frame or upload a custom image directly within Facebook’s editor. For link shares, the key is understanding that control comes from the website’s "og:image" tag, which you can manage on your own site or influence with tools like the Sharing Debugger.

Consistently creating amazing thumbnails is much easier when you're not bogged down by a confusing content schedule. At Postbase, we built our visual calendar to give you a clear, bird's-eye view of everything going live across all platforms. By planning your content in our intuitive calendar, you can spot opportunities to create cohesive, on-brand visuals, ensuring your thumbnails for Facebook videos, Reels, and YouTube Shorts all tell a consistent story. This level of planning frees up the time and mental space to move from just scheduling posts to thoughtfully crafting a powerful visual strategy.