Tips for Uploading a Twitter Avatar

Part of opening a Twitter account is choosing the image that serves as your avatar throughout the Twitter website. If you don't upload an avatar, your account proudly displays a boring gray silhouette.

Your avatar plays an important role. It identifies your tweets to your followers and it builds your brand. Usually, your best choice for an avatar is a headshot of you at your best, but it can be of just about anything else — a pet, company logo, car, building — just name it (with some notable exceptions).

Twitter requests two photos when you set up an account: a header photo, which is the large image that appears at the top of your profile, and a profile photo, which is also called your Twitter avatar. The avatar adds personality to your Twitter account and posts.

If you didn't upload an image when you signed up for your account or you are unhappy with your current profile image, upload a new avatar photo.

Your Twitter avatar image must be a JPEG, GIF, or PNG file. Twitter does not support animated GIFs for profile images. If the image you want to use is in a file format Twitter doesn't support, put it through a free photo converter and choose one of Twitter's supported formats for the conversion.

Twitter profile images cannot exceed 2MB in size and must be square. Twitter recommends 400x400 pixels for your profile image, but any square image will do as long as it's no smaller than 400x400 pixels. If you plan to upload a square logo, leave space around the edges. The avatar appears in a circle on Twitter, and the corners of the square image won't show in the circle.

Select a well-lit, high-quality image to represent you on Twitter. A casual headshot works best for personal accounts, while a formal headshot or a company logo is suitable for a business account. Keep a few things in mind:

• Some of the best looking Twitter avatars have a solid background that contrasts with the user's face.
• If you use Twitter for business, consider conveying a short message with one or two words or incorporate a telltale graphic element. A baker might hold a cake, or a web designer might showcase a logo.
• Once you upload an avatar, change it only rarely. When your followers see a consistent image over time, it builds your brand.

To change your avatar, sign in to Twitter on your computer and then:

Here's how to change your Twitter avatar using the mobile Twitter app for iOS and Android mobile devices.

Don't bother uploading a nude image for your avatar. Twitter will reject it. Twitter allows some forms of graphic violence and adult content in tweets that are marked as containing sensitive media. However, you aren't allowed to use this type of content in your profile image.