How to Create Your First Carousel

This guide walks you through creating your first carousel in PXT Creator Studio — from a blank canvas to a finished set of 9:16 slides you can publish to TikTok or download for Instagram.

Go to pxtcreator.com and sign in with your free account. From your dashboard, click New Carousel to open the editor. Every new carousel starts at the TikTok-native 9:16 vertical size (1080 × 1920 px), so your slides are correctly framed from the first click.

Step 2: Start from a template (or a prompt)

You have two ways to begin:

Pick a template — browse the template gallery and choose a layout that fits your content. Templates come pre-sized at 9:16 with text placement already inside the safe zone.
Use the AI outliner — type a topic (for example, "5 tips for growing on TikTok") and PXT generates a full slide-by-slide outline you can refine. See Using the AI Slide Outliner for details.

Step 3: Add your text and images

Click any slide to edit it:

Text overlays — double-click a text block to edit it, and choose from the built-in font styles. Text stays inside the safe zone so it won't collide with TikTok's caption or side buttons.
Images — upload your own photos or drop in a background. Everything is anchored to the 9:16 frame, so nothing gets cropped unexpectedly.
Reorder slides — drag slides in the slide tray to change their order. Aim for a strong hook on slide one and a payoff on the last slide.

Step 4: Keep it to 6–10 slides

The best-performing carousels run 6 to 10 slides — long enough to tell a complete story, short enough that viewers reach the end. You can add more, but a tight, well-paced carousel almost always outperforms a long one.

Step 5: Save, then publish or export

Your work auto-saves to your private workspace as you go. When you're happy:

Publish to TikTok in one click if you've connected your account — see How to Publish a Carousel to TikTok.
Download the slides as images to post manually on TikTok, Instagram, or anywhere else.

That's it — your first carousel is ready. From here, duplicate it as a starting point for your next post to keep a consistent look across your account.

Where to go next

What Size Should a TikTok Carousel Be? — the dimensions, and how Instagram differs
Why Your Slide Text Is Getting Cut Off — the safe zone, in detail
How Many Slides Should a Carousel Have? — why 6 to 10 is the range
How to Make a TikTok Carousel — the longer walkthrough, including hooks and pacing