BOOK COVER SIZE CHART
The cover is never "one size".
Here is every size, in one table.
KDP paperback wraps, ebook covers, audiobook squares and the bleed/DPI rules attached to each. Print it, or let the calculator do it live.
KDP paperback wrap sizes
Assumes black & white on white paper (0.002252 in per page), 300 pages, and 0.125 in bleed on all sides.
| Trim size | Spine @ 300 pp. | Full wrap (in) | Wrap @ 300 dpi (px) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 × 8 | 0.676 in | 10.926 × 8.250 | 3,278 × 2,475 |
| 5.25 × 8 | 0.676 in | 11.426 × 8.250 | 3,428 × 2,475 |
| 5.5 × 8.5 | 0.676 in | 11.926 × 8.750 | 3,578 × 2,625 |
| 6 × 9 | 0.676 in | 12.926 × 9.250 | 3,878 × 2,775 |
| 6.14 × 9.21 | 0.676 in | 13.206 × 9.460 | 3,962 × 2,838 |
| 6.69 × 9.61 | 0.676 in | 14.306 × 9.860 | 4,292 × 2,958 |
| 7 × 10 | 0.676 in | 14.926 × 10.250 | 4,478 × 3,075 |
| 7.44 × 9.69 | 0.676 in | 15.806 × 9.940 | 4,742 × 2,982 |
| 7.5 × 9.25 | 0.676 in | 15.926 × 9.500 | 4,778 × 2,850 |
| 8 × 10 | 0.676 in | 16.926 × 10.250 | 5,078 × 3,075 |
| 8.5 × 8.5 | 0.676 in | 17.926 × 8.750 | 5,378 × 2,625 |
| 8.25 × 6 | 0.676 in | 17.426 × 6.250 | 5,228 × 1,875 |
| 8.25 × 8.25 | 0.676 in | 17.426 × 8.500 | 5,228 × 2,550 |
| 8.5 × 11 | 0.676 in | 17.926 × 11.250 | 5,378 × 3,375 |
Spine changes with page count and paper — change either one and every row above shifts. Use the calculator for your actual numbers.
Kindle ebook
1,600 × 2,560 px
1.6:1 ratio, under 50 MB, JPEG or TIFF. The 2,560 px long edge is what Amazon uses for the zoom view; smaller covers look soft on retina screens.
Print paperback
trim × 2 + spine + bleed
300 dpi, CMYK-safe, all fonts embedded, single-page PDF for the interior and one wrap PDF for the cover.
Audiobook (ACX)
2,400 × 2,400 px
Square, RGB, minimum 72 dpi but 300 is safer. No text inside the outer 5% — ACX crops on some players.
Three sizes people confuse
Front cover vs full wrap. A "6 × 9 cover" means one 6 × 9 face. The file KDP wants is the wrap: 12.9 × 9.25 in for a 300-page book. Upload the face and KDP stretches it across the wrap, which is exactly what "my cover came out zoomed in and cut off" means.
Ebook vs print. A 1,600 × 2,560 ebook cover is 1.6:1. A 6 × 9 print face is 1:1.5. The same artwork cannot serve both without recropping — plan for two exports.
Trim vs finished size. Bleed is trimmed away. If your artwork stops exactly at the trim line, a 1/16 in cutting drift leaves a white sliver on the edge. Keep art 0.125 in past the trim and text 0.25 in inside it.
Know the size. Then make the file.
CoverNice builds the wrap at your trim size and page count, keeps text inside the safe area, and exports at 300 dpi.
Questions people actually ask
What size is a book cover in pixels?
For a 6 × 9 KDP paperback, the full wrap at 300 dpi is about 3,878 × 2,775 px. For a Kindle ebook cover, Amazon recommends 2,560 px on the longest side with a 1.6:1 ratio, which is 1,600 × 2,560 px.
What is the standard book cover size?
There is no single standard — the cover is always the trim size. 6 × 9 in is the most common for trade paperbacks in the US, 5.5 × 8.5 in for UK-style fiction, and 5 × 8 in for shorter novels.
How much bleed does a book cover need?
0.125 in on every outside edge for KDP. That makes the wrap 0.25 in wider and 0.25 in taller than two full covers plus the spine.
What DPI should a book cover be?
300 dpi at final trim size. Anything under 300 renders soft in print; 600 dpi is accepted and rarely worth the file size.