How to Make an AI Comic for an Instagram Carousel (Sizes, Crops and Pacing)

An Instagram carousel is one of the best formats for short comics: one panel per slide, the reader swipes to reveal the next beat, and the swipe itself becomes your page turn. To make one with AI, generate your panels, crop each to a portrait 4:5 slide (1080×1350 pixels is the common target), keep text large enough for a phone, and post them in reading order.

This guide walks through the whole process with Gootaku's makers: what sizes the tools actually export, how to crop them for Instagram without losing faces, how to pace a story across slides, and what to write in the caption.

Instagram Carousel Basics for Comics

A few platform facts shape every decision below. Instagram changes these from time to time, so check the in-app upload screen if something looks different.

• Slides per carousel: Instagram allows up to 20 photos or videos in one carousel post (it was 10 before 2024).
• Aspect ratios: feed posts support square (1:1), portrait (4:5) and landscape (about 1.91:1). Instagram has also been moving toward taller 3:4 previews on profile grids, so check how your grid currently crops.
• One ratio per carousel: every slide is cropped to the ratio of the first slide. Decide the ratio before you export anything.
• Recommended width: 1080 pixels. Larger uploads are scaled down.

For comics, 4:5 portrait is the usual choice. It takes up the most screen height in the feed of the classic ratios, which means bigger art and bigger text on a phone.

| Ratio | Pixels (1080 wide) | Use it when | |---|---|---| | 4:5 portrait | 1080×1350 | Most comics: tallest classic feed slide, best for single panels | | 1:1 square | 1080×1080 | Gag strips, reaction panels, grids | | 3:4 portrait | 1080×1440 | If your profile grid shows 3:4 and you want it uncropped there; check how the feed displays it first |

What Sizes Gootaku Actually Produces

It is worth knowing the exact sizes before you plan crops. These come from how the Studio generates and exports images:

| Output | Size | Notes | |---|---|---| | Manga and comic panels | 1024×1536 (2:3 portrait) | Default for every manga style and most comic styles | | Retro comic panels | 1536×1024 (3:2 landscape) | The Retro style generates landscape panels | | Webtoon Strip export (PNG) | 800px wide, panels stacked vertically | Free exports carry a small "made with Gootaku" mark on each panel | | CBZ export | One image per panel at generated size, lettering baked in | Unlocks after you buy any token pack | | GIF Maker export | 512×512 square GIF | Instagram feed does not take GIFs; convert to MP4 | | Video Maker | 9:16 portrait MP4 (5, 10 or 15 seconds) | Fits Reels; cropped if placed in a 4:5 carousel |

Gootaku does not have an "Instagram" export preset, so the panels will need a quick crop. The good news: a 2:3 portrait panel is taller than 4:5, so you crop a little off the top and bottom and lose nothing on the sides.

Step 1: Script the Carousel

Write the script with slides in mind, not pages.

• Slide 1 is the hook. It has to stop the scroll on its own. Use the most striking image or an intriguing line, not the establishing shot.
• One beat per slide. Each swipe should reveal one new thing: a line, a reaction, a twist.
• The last slide is the payoff, followed by an optional "follow for part 2" or credits slide.
• 4 to 8 slides is a comfortable length for a single gag or scene. Up to 20 is possible, but long carousels lose readers mid-way.

A 3- or 4-panel gag works almost unchanged as a carousel. Our 3-panel gag strip guide covers the joke structure; just give each panel its own slide.

Step 2: Generate the Panels

Open the Comic Maker for full-color Western or anime styles, or the Manga Maker for black-and-white manga. For each slide:

1. Write a scene description for the panel. Include the framing ("close-up", "medium shot", "wide shot").
2. Keep the subject in the middle band. You will crop roughly the top and bottom 8% off each panel for 4:5, so avoid describing important details "at the top of the frame". Phrases like "centered composition" and "character in the middle of the frame" help.
3. Use a saved character so the same face appears on every slide. Inconsistent faces are the fastest way to lose a reader across swipes. See character consistency for AI manga.
4. Add the lettering — speech, thought, shout or silent bubbles, a narration box or SFX — in the Studio. Lettering is baked into the exported image.

One panel costs one token. A 6-slide carousel is 6 tokens, plus any rerolls.

Step 3: Export

You have two routes:

Webtoon Strip (any account). Export the comic as a Webtoon Strip PNG. It stacks every panel into one 800px-wide image, each portrait panel 800×1200 (very long strips, over about 13 panels, are scaled narrower so the image stays under browser size limits, so export long carousels in batches). Then slice it back into individual panels in any image editor or a phone app that splits images. Free accounts get a small "made with Gootaku" mark in the corner of each panel; it disappears after you buy any token pack.

CBZ (after any token pack). A CBZ file is a zip archive. Rename it to .zip, open it, and you get one image per panel at the generated size with lettering baked in. This is the cleanest route for carousels: no slicing and higher resolution.

Step 4: Crop to 4:5

Each 2:3 panel needs a center crop to 4:5:

| Source panel | 4:5 crop | Then resize to | |---|---|---| | 1024×1536 (CBZ) | 1024×1280 (trim 128px top and bottom) | 1080×1350 | | 800×1200 (strip slice) | 800×1000 (trim 100px top and bottom) | 1080×1350 |

Shift the crop window up or down per panel if a speech bubble sits near the top or bottom edge; you do not have to cut evenly. Any phone photo editor with a 4:5 crop preset does this.

If you prefer square slides, crop to 1024×1024 instead. You will lose more of the panel, so plan close-ups for square carousels.

Retro-style panels are landscape (3:2). For a 4:5 carousel they need a heavy crop; either stick to 1:1 slides or place each panel on a 4:5 background with a caption bar above or below.

Step 5: Make Text Readable on a Phone

A carousel is read at phone size, usually around 6 inches wide. Text that looks fine on a laptop can be unreadable:

• Short lines. Aim for one short sentence per bubble, two at most.
• Fewer bubbles per slide. One or two.
• Check on your phone before posting. Send the slides to yourself and swipe through.

Our speech bubble design guide has more on placement and size, and how to write manga dialogue covers cutting lines down.

Step 6: Post and Caption

• Upload in reading order. Manga reads right to left on a page, but a carousel always swipes left to right, so number your files.
• First line of the caption is a hook, not a hashtag wall. Something like "She finally confessed. He was not listening." works better than "New comic!".
• Credit the process honestly. If the art is AI-generated, say "AI-assisted" in the caption. Audiences react far better to transparency than to finding out later.
• Add a call to action on the last slide or in the caption: follow for part 2, read the full chapter (link in bio), or comment with a guess.
• Hashtags: a few relevant ones ("webcomic", "comicstrip", your genre) beat a long list of generic ones.

Animated Slides: GIFs and Video

Motion can make a carousel stand out, with a couple of caveats:

• GIFs: Gootaku's GIF Maker exports 512×512 animated GIFs. Instagram's feed does not accept GIF files, so convert to MP4 with any video converter. Square animation suits a 1:1 carousel best.
• Video: the Video Maker produces 9:16 portrait clips. That is a Reels format; inside a 4:5 carousel it will be cropped, so keep the action centered. Video length is 5, 10 or 15 seconds, at 3, 6 or 9 tokens.

A good pattern: still panels for the story, then one short animated slide at the climax.

Turning a Carousel Into a Series

One carousel is a post. A weekly carousel is a webcomic. Use the same character, the same visual style and the same day each week. Point readers to where the full story lives: your Gootaku profile, Webtoon Canvas or Tapas. If you are thinking about income later, our guide to how Webtoon Canvas creators make money and the audience growth guide are good next reads.

FAQ

What size should a comic carousel be on Instagram?

Most comic creators use 4:5 portrait at 1080×1350 pixels, because it fills the most feed height of the classic ratios. Square 1080×1080 works for gag strips. All slides in one carousel use the ratio of the first slide.

How many slides can an Instagram carousel have?

Up to 20 photos or videos per carousel. For a single comic scene, 4 to 8 slides keeps most readers swiping to the end.

Does Gootaku export Instagram-sized images?

Not as a preset. Manga and comic panels are generated at 1024×1536 (2:3), and exports are a Webtoon Strip PNG (800px wide) or, after any token pack, a CBZ with one image per panel. Crop each panel to 4:5 and resize to 1080×1350 before posting.

Will the watermark show on Instagram?

Exports from accounts that have never bought a token pack carry a small "made with Gootaku" mark in the bottom-right corner of each panel. Buying any pack, from $2.99, removes it from future exports.

Can I post a manga that reads right to left as a carousel?

Yes. Put one panel on each slide, in story order. The page-level right-to-left order does not apply to a carousel, since the reader only sees one panel at a time.

Can I use AI-generated comics on Instagram?

Instagram allows AI-generated images and labels some AI content automatically. Check Meta's current AI labeling rules, and disclose AI assistance in your caption either way.

Make Your First Carousel

Script five slides, generate five panels, crop, post. It takes an afternoon, not a month.

Open the Comic Maker → — 1 free token to start and 1 more every 2 days, no card required.

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Keep Reading

• AI Comic Strip Maker Guide — generating strips from text
• How to Grow a Manga Audience — where your readers come from
• Manga Panel Templates — page layouts and when to use each
• AI Video vs GIF vs Manga: Which Format? — choosing the right output