Download Bilibili Thumbnails & Cover Images
Every Bilibili video has a cover image — and sometimes you just want that picture. This guide gets you the original at full resolution, free, with no sign-up — and explains the one quirk that breaks Bilibili images on other websites.
Last updated: October 2026
The direct answer: paste a BV ID, AV number, or full video link into the tool below and it fetches the video’s original cover image at the highest resolution Bilibili serves — then downloads it straight to your device as a file. Free, no account, no watermark. Download the file; don’t just copy the image URL — Bilibili’s image CDN can refuse to display hotlinked images on other sites, so an embedded URL may show as a broken image where a downloaded file works everywhere.
Thumbnail downloader
Accepts a BV ID, AV number, full video link — or paste a Bilibili cover image URL directly. The preview loads with no referrer so Bilibili’s CDN serves it; the download saves the actual file.
Bilibili’s image CDN sends open CORS headers, so the download button works directly in your browser. Bilibili’s data API does not — if the BV lookup is blocked, the tool shows you a one-step manual path to the cover URL.
What resolutions are available?
Bilibili stores each video’s cover as a single original image (not a set of sizes like video streams). What you get depends on what the uploader provided:
| Source | Typical resolution | What the tool gives you |
|---|---|---|
| Standard upload cover | Around 1920×1080 (1080p) or the uploader’s original | The original file, unmodified — the sharpest version that exists |
| Older / low-effort uploads | Often 640×360 or lower | Whatever the original is — no upscaling, no fake “HD” label |
| Auto-generated thumbnail (uploader picked none) | A video frame, usually 1280×720 | The exact frame Bilibili extracted |
One honest caveat: a cover image is never higher resolution than what the uploader gave Bilibili. If a video’s cover looks soft, the original was soft — no tool can recover detail that was never uploaded.
Thumbnail vs cover: Bilibili’s terminology
On Bilibili, the video’s main image is officially called the cover (封面） — it’s the image you choose when uploading, and the data field is literally named pic. English-speaking users usually call the same thing the thumbnail. They’re the same file; this guide uses both words so you find what you’re looking for either way.
What it is not: a screenshot of a random frame (unless the uploader never set a cover — then Bilibili picks a frame for them). The tool above always fetches the official cover, which is the highest-quality version available.
What people use these for — and the rights note
- Creators studying design: thumbnails are the #1 click driver on Bilibili. Saving covers from top channels as reference material is how many creators learn composition, typography, and color.
- Your own videos: lost the original cover file? Re-downloading your own upload’s cover is the fastest way to recover it.
- Wallpapers and fan art: many uploaders commission gorgeous covers — fans save them as phone or desktop wallpaper.
- Archives and catalogs: if you maintain a list of videos (a course, a research corpus), the cover makes each entry recognizable at a glance.
The rights note: cover images are publicly served by Bilibili, and downloading them for personal use — study, reference, your own uploads — is the normal, expected use. But a cover is still someone’s creative work: don’t re-upload another creator’s cover as your own video’s thumbnail, don’t sell it, and don’t use it in commercial designs without permission. When in doubt, make your own.
Finding a cover URL without the tool
If the tool’s BV lookup is ever blocked, the manual path takes under a minute: open https://api.bilibili.com/x/web-interface/view?bvid=BV… in a browser tab and search the page for "pic" — the value is the full cover URL. (For multi-part videos the cover is shared across parts; one pic covers the whole entry.) Paste that URL back into the tool above for preview and one-click download, or save it directly with right-click → save image.
The hotlinking quirk: why Bilibili images break on other sites
Here’s the technical detail that trips people up. Bilibili’s image CDN checks the Referer header — the “which site sent me here” signal your browser attaches to image requests. When the image is embedded on a site Bilibili doesn’t recognize, the CDN can refuse to serve it (a 403), and the image shows as broken — even though the URL is perfectly valid.
That’s why this guide keeps saying download the file:
- Downloading (the tool above, right-click → save,
referrerpolicy="no-referrer") works everywhere, forever. - Embedding the raw URL in your own site or document is fragile — it may load today and break tomorrow, depending on the CDN’s mood and your visitors’ browsers.
The tool’s preview uses referrerpolicy="no-referrer" for exactly this reason — it strips the Referer header so the CDN serves the image. The download goes further: once the file is on your device, no CDN policy can touch it.
Frequently asked questions
What format are Bilibili thumbnails in?
Almost always JPEG (occasionally WebP for newer uploads). The tool downloads the original file as-is, so the extension matches what Bilibili serves.
Is the thumbnail downloader really free?
Yes — completely free, no account, no watermark, no limits.
Why does the image show as broken when I embed the URL on my site?
Bilibili’s image CDN can block hotlinked embeds based on the Referer header. Download the file instead of embedding the URL — a local file works everywhere, an embedded URL is at the CDN’s mercy.
Can I get the thumbnail without the full video URL?
Yes. A bare BV number (like BV17x411w7KC), an AV number, or a b23.tv short link all work in the tool above.
Can I also download the video itself?
Of course — the same page downloads the full video in HD MP4 at bbvideosaver.com, or extracts MP3 audio.
Related guides: Video quality guide · Downloader FAQ · 4K guide
