There is no way around an eye-catching video thumbnail if you want to get views on YouTube. Whether in the search results or in the recommendations: A well-chosen thumbnail helps your video stand out from the crowd and attract clicks.
YouTube says that fully 90% of the top videos on the platform use a custom thumbnail. That should speak for itself, but there’s one small wrinkle: Creating good ones takes time and skill. And that’s why creators turn to custom thumbnail design services for YouTube, Instagram Reels, and other social video.
There are other benefits to upping your thumbnailing game. Improving your click-through-rate (CTR) is one, because that’s a big signal for YouTube’s algorithm to boost your videos. Recognizable branding is another. Both help you grow your audience.
Thumbnail services make sure that your content appears in its best light. There are a lot of them out there, though. So, to get you started, we’ve compiled the top 5 custom thumbnail design services for 2023.
Let’s dive right in!
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Tasty Edits is a video editing service trusted by hundreds of creators and SMBs. YouTube and social media work is their specialty. And that’s why they know exactly how to turn out an eye-popping thumbnail for your vid.
You can get thumbnails designed both as a standalone service and as part of a full video edit. Tasty Edits provides everything you need for social video – editing, vertical video formats, thumbnails, etc. – so you can get everything from one source. This saves cost and speeds up turnaround.
Using a full video service provider lets you get things done faster and with less hassle, giving you back valuable time. Nonetheless, if YouTube thumbnail design is all you need, Tasty Edits is more than happy to give.
Tasty Edits Thumbnail Pricing
- $30 for a single thumbnail
- $27 each for 4 thumbnails (10% off)
- $24 each for 8 thumbnails (20% off)
- Custom pricing available
- Top quality thumbnails
- 24 hour turnaround
- Dedicated thumnail artist
- Bulk discounts
- 3 revisions per thumbnail
- No free trial
Custom Thumbnails is not exactly what it says on the tin. Despite the name, you can actually order all kinds of graphic design work from them. You can get thumbnails, banners, and post designs for most popular social media sites, as well as education platforms like Udemy and stream sites. For example, they offer podcast designs for Stitcher.
Since it’s less specialized on thumbnails – or video in general – than other services, it’s somewhat more expensive. However, it’s a good choice if you want to push your video drops with a custom-tailored social media blast.
Custom Thumbnails Pricing
- $47 single design
- Subscriptions start at $97/month (for 4 designs)
- up to $997/month (75 designs)
- 24–48h turnaround
- Batch orders with custom priority
- Cheaper than a full-on graphic design service subscription
- More expensive than pure thumbnail services
- Large orders will take a while to complete
- One thumbnail at a time
Video Zeus is a company focused on doing a few simple services well. They focus especially on the needs of YouTubers and of course creators. As the Video Zeus Academy, the company even runs its own courses to equip interested YouTubers for success.
Apart from this, they offer basic video editing – and a thumbnail design service. The pricing is simple and transparent, the turnaround is 48 hours. Unlike Custom Thumbnails above and Dava below, there is no subscription.
The order process starts with a quick call rather than a subscription form. On the upside, it’s personal service – on the downside, you might have to wait a bit for a call slot.
Video Zeus Thumbnail Pricing
- $29 for a single thumbnail
- Packages from $89 (4 thumbnails)
- Up to 75 thumbnails in a pack ($989)
- Unlimited revisions
- Dedicated account manager and editor
- No limits on length
- 1-2 business days turnaround ("Director" only)
- Up to 5 days turnaround in cheaper plans
- Relatively expensive 4-video/month plan
- Many premium features (like thumbnails) are only in the more expensive “Director” plan
Divine Technology, based in Texas and Gujarat, is coming to custom thumbnail design from the graphics angle. Their standout service is company logo design, but they also offer lots of related graphic design services. Even a game avatar design!
Divine Technology promises unique, attractive thumbnails that draw an audience with a meaningful peek at your video’s content. The company is geared more towards business customers – which shows in the high-end packages. Yet solo creators are entrepreneurs too, and so Divine Technology also has more affordable offers for individuals and small teams.
Divine Technologies YouTube Thumbnail Pricing
- Starter: $35/order (2 variants, 4 revisions, 3-day delivery)
- Plus: $55 /order (3 variants, 8 revisions, 2-day delivery)
- Pro: $95/order (4 variants, unlimited revisions, 2-day delivery, account manager)
- $30 addon on all plans for 24h delivery
- 24h delivery option
- Delivers at least 2 variants
- Many add-on services for other platforms
- Numerous add-on and stand-alone services
- 3-day delivery on Starter plan
- No bulk or subscription discounts
Dava Marketing also is a video editing company – among other things. One of these services is a standalone thumbnail design subscription. Dava’s US-based designers are here to help you reach your channel aims, whether that’s clear, elegant branding or an all-out effort to up your CTR.
Dava’s team is more than happy to analyze your YouTube analytics data to tailor better thumbnails – even to upgrade your existing ones. There are several subscription plans to match your output, and you also get shorter turnaround on the higher tiers.
Dava Marketing Thumbnail Pricing
- $299/month Basic plan: 1 thumbnail/week
- $599/month Premium: 2–3 thumbnails/week
- $799/month Master: 4–5 thumbnails/week
- $150 off monthly if paid annually on all plans
- 24h turnaround (Premium & Master plans)
- YouTube video analytics analysis
- Expensive
- Limited thumbnail output
- Unlimited revisions on Master plan only
The Bottom Line - 2023’s Best Custom Thumbnail Design Services
Every thumbnail design service on this list offers a solid service. Now it’s your turn to find the offer that best fits what you need.
Some questions to ask are: Do you need flexible pricing – or a get-it-and-forget-it subscription? Do you only need the basic job done, or do you also want analysis, instant communication, or even coaching?
There’s a service out there for everyone – you can even give AI thumbnail tools a go.
Here at Tasty Edits, though, we’re proud of giving you a great customer experience, with high-quality thumbnails, fast turnover, and affordable packages.
But don’t just take our word for it – let our clients’ reviews speak for themselves.
Yes, as a rule. Custom-made thumbnails are almost always more attractive than a still frame from your video.
Yes. Thumbnail design takes skill – but more than that, it eats up your valuable time. Outsourcing thumbnail creation to a freelancer or a company is a great way of increasing visibility without spending a lot of time on it.
Videos with good thumbnails have better CTR, which makes the algorithm recommend them even more. Also, YouTube does a visual analysis of thumbnails – which is why you’ll see videos with similar thumbnails appear in the sidebar.
