Video Thumbnail Grabber
Get the cover image off any YouTube or Vimeo video, at full size.
Grab the cover image off a video
Paste a YouTube or Vimeo link and you get every size of its cover image, straight from the source, at full resolution. Shorts work too.
The images are fetched by your browser from the video site itself — the link never reaches a DO101 server, because there isn’t one.
Private by design. This tool runs entirely in your browser. Your input is processed on your own device and is not uploaded by DO101.
About the Video Thumbnail Grabber
Paste a YouTube or Vimeo link and get its cover image in every size the site publishes, up to 1280×720, straight from the source at full quality. Shorts, youtu.be links, embeds and unlisted Vimeo videos all work. Save the provider's own file untouched, or re-encode it as PNG, WebP or JPG. Your browser fetches the picture directly from the video site — the link never reaches a DO101 server, because there isn't one.
How to use it
- 1Copy the share link from YouTube or Vimeo — Shorts and youtu.be links are fine.
- 2Paste it in the box and press Get covers.
- 3Every size the video actually has appears, biggest first, with its real dimensions.
- 4Press Download to save the original file, or switch the format to PNG, WebP or JPG first.
What you get
- Every size the video has, from 1280×720 down, with the real pixel dimensions measured
- Works with YouTube, YouTube Shorts, youtu.be, embed links and Vimeo
- Saves the provider's own file byte for byte — no re-encoding, no quality lost
- Optional conversion to PNG, WebP or JPG in your browser
- Shows the video title and channel, and links back to the original
- Copy the picture straight to the clipboard, or copy its direct address
- Tells you when a video has no HD cover instead of handing you an upscale
- Warns which sizes are 4:3 and will have black bars on a widescreen video
- No account, no upload endpoint, and the link never reaches a DO101 server
Links it understands
youtube.com/watch?v=…
The address bar on a desktop
youtu.be/…
What the Share button copies
youtube.com/shorts/…
A Short — same covers as any other video
youtube.com/embed/…
Or the whole <iframe> snippet, pasted in
vimeo.com/123456789
Including /channels/ and /groups/ links
vimeo.com/123456789/abc123
An unlisted video, with its hash
The sizes YouTube keeps
Every video has the smaller ones. Only videos uploaded in HD have the big one, and the tool tells you when there isn’t one rather than handing you an upscale.
Max — 1280×720
16:9, and only exists if the video was uploaded in HD.
SD — 640×480
4:3, so a widescreen video gets black bars.
High — 480×360
4:3. Always present, whatever the video.
Medium — 320×180
16:9, and a good small one.
Small — 120×90
4:3. The old list-view size.
Why it cannot download the video
Cover images are published openly — your browser is allowed to load them from any page, which is exactly what this tool does. Video files are not.
YouTube puts its streams behind a signature that changes constantly and has to be solved by a server; Instagram and TikTok use signed addresses that refuse requests from other websites altogether. A site offering those downloads is running a server that works around those protections, which breaches the platforms’ terms and has repeatedly been fought over in court. DO101 has no server, so this tool stops where the open, published part stops.
Frequently asked questions
Can it download the video itself?
No, and it is worth being straight about why. Video files are not served in a way a web page is allowed to read — YouTube puts them behind a rotating signature that has to be solved server-side, and Instagram and TikTok use signed URLs that block other sites outright. Any site that does offer it is running a server that strips those protections, which is both against those platforms' terms and legally contested. This tool only takes the cover image, which those sites publish openly for anyone to load.
Why will it not take an Instagram, TikTok or X link?
Those platforms do not publish their cover images in a way another website can fetch. Instagram and TikTok serve signed URLs that refuse requests from other sites, and X only gives out an embed card. That is their decision, not a limitation here — no tool running purely in your browser can get around it.
What is the biggest thumbnail I can get?
1280×720, which is the largest YouTube generates and only for videos uploaded in HD. If a video was uploaded at a lower resolution, the biggest is 480×360 and the tool says so rather than pretending otherwise. Anything advertised as larger elsewhere has been upscaled, which adds pixels but no detail.
Why do some sizes have black bars?
Three of YouTube's sizes are still generated at the old 4:3 shape, so a widescreen video gets padded with black above and below. The tool labels those, so you can pick a 16:9 one instead — Max at 1280×720 and Medium at 320×180 are the widescreen ones.
Does the image lose quality?
Not if you leave the format on Original, which saves the provider's own file exactly as it was sent — nothing is decoded or re-encoded. Converting to PNG, WebP or JPG does re-encode it, which is why it is a separate choice rather than the default.
Am I allowed to use the thumbnail?
Saving it is one thing; reusing it is another. The image belongs to whoever made the video, and downloading it here gives you no rights over it. Quoting one in a review or a news piece is usually fine under fair use or fair dealing, but using it as your own artwork, in an advert, or as a thumbnail on your own video is not. Credit the channel, and ask first if it is anything commercial.
Is my link sent anywhere?
Only to the video site itself. Your browser asks YouTube or Vimeo for the title and the picture directly, exactly as it would if you had opened the page. There is no DO101 server in the middle, which is also why there is nothing to sign up for.
Does it work with private or age-restricted videos?
No. It can only see what the site publishes to everyone. A private, deleted or members-only video returns nothing, and the tool says so rather than guessing.
Keep going
People who use this tool usually reach for these next.
Shrink JPG, PNG or WebP files without leaving your browser.
Hinglish title, description, tags, hook and pinned comment for a Short.
Check any YouTube link and find the official, permitted way to download the video.
Resize pictures to exact pixel dimensions or a percentage.