Where does X show the picture as a round image?
The profile photo is shown as a circle on the profile and beside posts.
The circle sits on the profile and beside posts. It is small in a timeline. A header image is a different rectangle and is not what this tool crops. Keep the subject centered so the round mask does not take the edge of a face.
What size does X actually publish?
X Help’s article on customizing your profile explains how to change the profile photo and the header. It does not publish a pixel size for the profile photo. Unofficial size charts are not stored here.
X does not get a fake official pixel size on this page. Where the help text gives a range or a render size, that text is quoted below. A 512 pixel export is labeled a general recommendation, including on the button, and it is not presented as X’s specification.
No width or height from X is written into the data file. If you have seen 400 by 400 on a marketing page, that number is not repeated here as an X specification. The editor can still export 512, or a custom size you choose, without calling it official.
How should I crop before I upload?
High contrast matters in a fast timeline. A pale logo on a pale crop disappears next to text. Use both preview plates. Crop tighter than you would for a print photo.
The help center home is the source we can point at for the lack of a size, not a hidden spec sheet. If X publishes a number, this page should quote it instead of the general recommendation.
What file should I download?
PNG or JPG is a reasonable download. This page does not invent a file-type rule to go with the missing pixel size. Upload the file yourself. Transparency may be flattened by the network. Assume the circle sits on the app’s background.
The mock is a generic profile with a circle. It does not copy the X interface or logo.
What if X changes the screen?
Help centers get reorganized. The finding on this date is the absence of a pixel size, which is still a finding. Update the date when someone checks again, even if the absence remains.
How do I use the file on X?
A circle crop for X is the profile photo you change from X Help’s customization article. That article explains the photo and the header. It does not publish a pixel size, so a circle crop for X at 512 is a general recommendation. Center the subject. The round photo is what people see beside a post, and the corners of a square logo will not survive it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the official X profile size?
We did not find one to cite. It is not stored as a number.
Is 400 by 400 official?
Not in the material checked for this page. It is not listed as a spec.
Is 512 official?
No. It is a general recommendation.
Is the profile photo round?
It is shown as a circle on the profile and beside posts.
Do you upload it to X?
No. You download a file and upload it yourself.
Sources
- X help — 2026-10-06