Carousel Builder

Slide 1 of 5 · Cover1080×1350

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Carousel Cover Slide — Free Carousel Slides Social Post Template

Carousel Slides · v1.0.0 · Updated 2026-10-16 · Instagram, Facebook & X · HTML + CSS

CategoryCarousel Slides
Tagscarouselcoverswipegradientbold
Sizes4:5 · 1080×13501:1 · 1080×10809:16 · 1080×192016:9 · 1600×9001.91:1 · 1200×6272:3 · 1000×1500
Updated October 16, 2026

What's included

Features

Big hook headline in Poppins 800 with *asterisk* highlights
"Save this" kicker and slide counter (e.g. 1/7)
"Swipe →" pill in the accent colour
Indigo-to-violet gradient with a decorative accent circle
Matches the Step and Final carousel slide templates
4: 5 portrait default, the carousel format that fills the feed
Long hooks shrink to fit
PNG, JPEG, ZIP or HTML export

About this template

Carousel Cover Slide — Free Instagram and LinkedIn Carousel Template

Carousel Cover Slide social post template: The first slide of a carousel: a bold hook headline on a vivid gradient, a slide counter, your handle and a "Swipe" arrow that invites the next tap.

Carousel Cover Slide is the first slide of a free carousel template set for Instagram and LinkedIn. It's built to stop the scroll and earn the swipe: a bold hook headline on a vivid indigo-to-violet gradient, a "Save this" kicker, a slide counter ("1/7"), your handle and a bright "Swipe →" pill.

The hook is everything

A carousel lives or dies on its first slide. The headline is set in Poppins at 800 weight, very large, with tight tracking. Promise a specific payoff ("7 CSS tricks I wish I knew *sooner*") and colour the emotional word with *asterisks*. Long hooks shrink to fit.

Signals that invite a swipe

The slide counter tells people how much value is coming, and the yellow "Swipe →" pill in the bottom-right corner points them onward. A large translucent accent circle in the top-right corner, drawn with a CSS pseudo-element, adds depth without distracting from the headline.

Part of a matching set

Use this cover with Carousel Step Slide for each point and Carousel Final Slide for the call to action. Give them the same palette and fonts and the whole carousel looks designed as one.

Carousel sizes

Instagram carousels use one aspect ratio for every slide. 4:5 portrait (1080×1350) takes up the most feed space and is the default. LinkedIn document carousels also work well at 4:5 or square. Download each slide as a PNG and upload them in order.

Extend with AI

Take This Post Further With AI

Give the carousel templates to an AI assistant to outline a carousel from one idea, write a scroll-stopping hook, or generate every slide's text for the Step template.

Prompt to recreate it

Copy this into your AI assistant of choice to build the effect from scratch, or as a jumping-off point for your own variant:

text
Build a 1080×1350 Instagram carousel cover slide in HTML and CSS.

- Diagonal gradient from deep indigo to violet, with a large translucent accent circle (::after) in the top-right corner.
- Top row: a "Save this" kicker and a slide counter pill ("1/7").
- Middle: a huge hook headline (Poppins 800, tight tracking) with an accent highlight.
- Bottom row: the handle on the left and a yellow "Swipe →" pill on the right.
- Use --u (1% of the shorter side) for sizing.

Want to tighten it up first? Run this prompt through the AI Prompt Studio to score it across 8 quality dimensions, catch anti-patterns, and tune the wording for Claude, ChatGPT, or Gemini before you paste it in.

Why use it

Why Use the Carousel Cover Slide Template

➜
Designed to earn the swipe
A huge hook headline, a slide counter and a "Swipe →" pill all push people to the next slide, where the value is.
▦
Matching slide set
It pairs with the Step and Final slide templates in the same style, so a whole carousel looks designed as one.
▯
Right size by default
It starts at 1080×1350, the 4:5 carousel size that takes the most room in the Instagram feed.

How it’s different

How It’s Different From Canva-Style Templates

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Real HTML and CSS, not a locked image
Canva-style templates only give you an image. These are plain HTML and CSS you can copy, download as a .html file or fork into My Code, then reuse on a website, in an email or in your own design system.
◍
Private by design
Text and photos never leave your browser. Images are drawn locally on a canvas, so client photos and unreleased product screenshots stay on your device.
⇲
Every size from one design
Layouts use relative units, so one design exports as an Instagram portrait post, a square, a Story, a 16:9 X post, a LinkedIn image and a Pinterest pin, or all six at once as a ZIP.
✓
Free, with no account or watermark
No sign-up, no premium-only templates, no watermark and no download limits. Edits are saved in your browser for next time.
Aa
Text that always fits
Long headlines shrink step by step instead of overflowing, and Story layouts keep text clear of Instagram’s buttons. Most template editors leave both to you.
v1
Versioned templates
Each template has a version number and an update date, and the exported HTML records which version you used, so you can tell when a design changes.

Step by step

How to Use

  1. 1
    Pick the sizeChoose Portrait 4:5 (the Instagram feed default), Square, Story / Reel, Landscape 16:9 for X, a 1200×627 LinkedIn image or a 1000×1500 Pinterest pin. Carousel Cover Slide opens at 1080×1350.
  2. 2
    Edit the textClick any text in the preview, or use the fields on the left (kicker, hook, slide counter, swipe text and more). Wrap words in *asterisks* to colour them.
  3. 3
    Add your imagesClick a photo area in the preview or use Images to upload your logo. Images stay in your browser.
  4. 4
    Match your brandApply your saved brand kit or one of 12 palettes, set exact colours, and choose heading and body fonts from any Google Font or your own uploaded font.
  5. 5
    Preview it in the feedSwitch the preview to Instagram, Story, X or LinkedIn to see the post with your name, handle and caption, and fix anything the quality checks flag.
  6. 6
    Download, save or bulk createDownload PNG, JPG or PDF, every size as a ZIP, or copy the HTML. Save it to My designs to reuse later, or turn a CSV into dozens of posts with Bulk create.

Real-world uses

Common Use Cases

📋
Listicle carousels
Open a "7 tools I use daily" or "5 mistakes to avoid" carousel with the number in the hook and the slide counter showing how many slides follow.
🎓
Mini-guides and tutorials
Promise one clear outcome on the cover, then teach it step by step with the Carousel Step Slide template in the same colours.
💼
LinkedIn document posts
Export the slides at 4:5, combine them into a PDF, and upload it as a LinkedIn document post, a format that tends to earn long dwell time.
🔖
Save-worthy cheat sheets
Use the "Save this" kicker for reference content like shortcuts or checklists, which people bookmark and come back to.

Got questions?

Frequently Asked Questions

Make a cover with this template, one Carousel Step Slide per point, and a Carousel Final Slide, all in the same palette at 1080×1350. Download each one and upload them together as a carousel post, in order.

Use 1080×1350 (4:5 portrait) for Instagram, which fills the most screen space. Every slide in a carousel must share the same aspect ratio.

Instagram allows up to 20 slides, but 5 to 10 is common. Make sure the counter on the cover matches the real number of slides.

Yes. Export the slides at 4:5 or square, combine them into a PDF, and upload it as a document post.

Portrait post 1080×1350 (4:5): Instagram feed (recommended), Facebook and LinkedIn feeds, X portrait. Square post 1080×1080 (1:1): Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and X feeds. Story / Reel 1080×1920 (9:16): Instagram and Facebook Stories, Reel covers. Landscape post 1600×900 (16:9): X feed image, Facebook landscape. LinkedIn image 1200×627 (1.91:1): LinkedIn shared image and link posts, Facebook link images. Pinterest pin 1000×1500 (2:3): Pinterest standard pin (the recommended 2:3 ratio). Switch sizes in the editor and the layout adapts, or click "All sizes (ZIP)" to download every size at once.

Press Play in the editor to watch the animation for free. Downloading it as an animated MP4 (or WebM) for Reels, Stories and WhatsApp Status is for Patreon supporters, who enter the supporter passcode once. PNG, JPG, PDF and HTML exports are free.

Yes, for Patreon supporters. Choose Export, then "Bulk create from CSV", and paste rows from a spreadsheet or upload a CSV whose column names match the Carousel Cover Slide fields. Every row becomes one post, and you download them all as a ZIP.

Yes. The preview switches between the plain design and mock-ups of an Instagram feed post, an Instagram Story, an X post and a LinkedIn post, using the name, handle and logo from your brand kit and the caption you type.

Yes. "Copy HTML" and "Download .html" give you one self-contained file: the markup, all the CSS and links to the Google Fonts it uses. "Fork to My Code" saves an editable copy in the UI Snippets editor. The file records the template name and version (v1.0.0).

Yes. It is free for personal and commercial posts, with no sign-up and no watermark. Everything runs in your browser and nothing you type or upload is sent to a server.

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