How to Change the Number of Columns on Pinterest

Pinterest doesn’t have a setting for the number of columns. The grid simply fits as many columns as your browser window has room for. So to change it on a computer, change how much room Pinterest thinks it has: zoom out (Ctrl and −, or ⌘ and − on a Mac) for more, smaller pins, or zoom in for fewer, bigger ones. If you want an exact number that stays put, an extension can set it for you.

Why does Pinterest show the number of columns it does?

Pinterest’s home feed, search results and boards use a masonry grid: pins of different heights stacked in columns of the same width. The width of each column stays roughly the same, so the number of columns depends on how wide the page is. A wide monitor gets lots of columns, a laptop gets fewer, and a narrow window may get only two or three.

We looked through Pinterest’s help center and couldn’t find any option for grid size or density, on the web or in the app.

How to get more columns on Pinterest (desktop)

Zoom out. Browser zoom makes everything on the page smaller, so the same window has room for more columns.

• Windows, Linux, ChromeOS: press Ctrl and − (minus). Each press zooms out one step.
• Mac: press ⌘ and −.
• Or use your browser’s menu: in Chrome and Edge, open the ⋮ or … menu and use the − button next to Zoom.

Try 80% or 67% and see how many columns fit. Press Ctrl and 0 (or ⌘ and 0) to go back to 100%.

Chrome and Edge remember zoom per site, so pinterest.com stays zoomed out while other sites stay normal.

The catch: zoom shrinks everything, not just the grid. Pin titles, buttons and the search bar get smaller too, and at 50% the text is hard to read.

How to get fewer, bigger pins

Zoom in with Ctrl and + (or ⌘ and +). Each column gets wider, so fewer fit and every pin is larger. You can also make the browser window narrower if you’d rather keep text at normal size.

This is handy on a big monitor, where Pinterest at 100% can show so many small pins that it’s hard to look at any one of them.

Can you change columns in the Pinterest app?

We couldn’t find a column setting in the Pinterest app, and Pinterest’s help center doesn’t describe one. On a phone, the layout is set by Pinterest. On a tablet, turning it sideways gives the grid more room.

How to pick an exact number of columns

Zoom is a blunt tool: you get whatever number of columns happens to fit, and readability suffers. If you want, say, exactly five columns at normal text size, an extension can set the grid directly.

Feed Cleaner Pro has a Columns setting from 1 to 12 and a Spacing setting for the gap between pins, from edge to edge to airy. It applies to Pinterest’s pin grids, and the layout holds as you scroll and new pins load. Leave it on “Pinterest default” and nothing changes.

The free version of Feed Cleaner removes ads, shopping pins and suggestion blocks, and the closed gaps make the grid feel less crowded on its own. Columns and spacing are part of Pro, which you can try free for 3 days without a card.

Which method should you use?

	Browser zoom	Feed Cleaner Pro
Cost	Free	Paid (3-day free trial)
Exact number of columns	No, whatever fits	Yes, 1 to 12
Text size	Shrinks or grows with the grid	Stays the same
Spacing between pins	No	Yes
Works in the app	No	No

If you only want a bit more on screen, zoom is enough. If you look at Pinterest on a big monitor every day, a fixed grid is more comfortable.

FAQ

Why did my Pinterest grid suddenly get smaller?

Usually because the zoom level changed, often by pressing Ctrl while scrolling the mouse wheel. Press Ctrl and 0 (⌘ and 0 on a Mac) to reset it.

Does zooming out make Pinterest images blurry?

No. Zooming out shows the images smaller. Zooming in a long way can make them look soft, because Pinterest loads grid-sized copies. For the full-size image, see how to download a Pinterest image in full size.