What the Roblox shirt template actually is
The Roblox shirt template is a UV map — a flat representation of what will become a three-dimensional garment when wrapped around the Roblox avatar’s blocky body. Understanding this is the first step to designing shirts that look the way you intend on the avatar.
A UV map is a technique borrowed from 3D animation and game design. When you have a three-dimensional object and want to apply a flat (2D) texture to it, you “unwrap” the object — imagine cutting the seams of a cardboard box so it lies flat — and paint the texture on the flat version. When the texture is applied back to the 3D object, each part of the flat image maps to the correct surface on the model.
The Roblox shirt template is exactly this: a flat unwrap of the avatar’s torso. The large central panel in the template is the front of the torso. The panel immediately to its right is the back. The two rectangular sections above the central panels are the left and right sleeves. Smaller sections cover the sides of the torso.
When you paint on the template and upload it, Roblox’s engine wraps your 2D texture around the 3D model in exactly the positions defined by the template. This is why design placement matters: a design on the front panel of the template appears on the front of the shirt. A design accidentally placed on the side panels appears under the arm, which is usually not what you intended.
The template panels in detail
Front panel. The largest section of the template. Roughly centred horizontally, occupying most of the left half of the canvas. This is where chest graphics, text, and the main design elements go. The panel is approximately 130 pixels wide and 205 pixels tall.
Back panel. Immediately to the right of the front panel. Same dimensions as the front. A design placed here appears on the back of the shirt.
Left sleeve. A rectangular section above the front panel, on the left side. Smaller than the torso panels — approximately 64×44 pixels. Designs here appear on the avatar’s left arm (the wearer’s left, but the right side when you are looking at the avatar from the front).
Right sleeve. Same dimensions as the left sleeve, positioned to the right in the template. Appears on the avatar’s right arm.
Side panels. Narrow strips on either side of the front and back panels. These are the sides of the torso — the area under the arm. They are rarely used for main design elements because they are barely visible in normal gameplay.
Software options
Photopea (free, browser-based). The most commonly recommended free tool for Roblox clothing design. Photopea supports PSD files, PNG export with transparent backgrounds, layers, masks, and all standard editing operations. It runs in a browser — no installation required. Go to photopea.com and open the shirt template to start designing. Export via File → Export As → PNG.
GIMP (free, desktop). A capable free desktop image editor. Slightly steeper learning curve than Photopea for beginners, but very full-featured. Supports PNG transparency and layers. Available for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Krita (free, desktop). Designed primarily as a digital painting tool. Excellent brush engine and layer support. Popular among Roblox clothing creators who want more artistic control. Exports to PNG with transparency.
Adobe Photoshop (paid). The industry standard. If you already have it, use it. The workflow is identical: open the template PNG, add design layers, hide the template guide, export as PNG with transparency.
Microsoft Paint / MS Paint. Does not support transparency and will save a white background. Do not use for Roblox shirt design. The uploaded shirt will appear with a white rectangle instead of the avatar’s skin tone showing through the transparent areas.
Uploading to Roblox
Step 1 — Go to create.roblox.com. Sign in to your Roblox account. Navigate to the “Create” section and select “Classic Clothing.”
Step 2 — Upload your PNG. Select your shirt file. Add a name for the shirt. The upload costs 10 Robux. If you do not have Robux, you will need to purchase some.
Step 3 — Wait for moderation. Roblox reviews all uploaded content. Approval typically takes a few hours, though it can take up to 24 hours for new accounts. You will receive a notification when the shirt is approved or rejected.
Step 4 — Wear it. Once approved, the shirt appears in your inventory. Go to your avatar and select it to wear. View your avatar in the character customiser to see how the design looks in 3D.
Step 5 — List for sale (UGC Programme members only). If you are in the UGC Programme, you can set a price and list the shirt on the Creator Marketplace. The minimum price for a shirt is 5 Robux; Roblox takes 30% of each sale.
Roblox Content Moderation rules
Understanding what Roblox will and will not approve is more important than understanding how to design. Getting rejected costs you 10 Robux and the time you spent on the design.
What gets rejected:
- Real-world brand logos and trademarks (Nike, Supreme, Gucci, Apple, etc.)
- Copyrighted characters from games, films, TV shows, or animation
- Adult content, nudity, sexually suggestive imagery
- Violent imagery, blood, gore
- Hate symbols, offensive text, slurs
- Designs that closely mimic Roblox’s own avatar items in a confusing way
- Images from the real world that contain real people’s faces
What is generally safe:
- Original designs with no recognisable brand or character elements
- Abstract patterns, geometric designs
- Text you wrote yourself with no brand association
- Simple logos you created from scratch
- Pixel art in an original style
Grey areas:
- Parody designs (may be approved or rejected inconsistently)
- Vintage or retro designs that vaguely evoke a style without copying a specific brand
- Fan tribute designs that do not reproduce copyrighted elements
When in doubt, test with an original design first to understand the moderation process before investing significant time in a design that might be rejected.
Design tips for this resolution
Working at 585×559 pixels requires accepting certain visual constraints. This is not a high-resolution canvas — it is approximately the size of a postage stamp on a modern high-DPI screen. Here is what works and what does not:
What works: Bold shapes with high contrast. Simple text in large point sizes (18px minimum in the file). Solid colour fills and gradients. Clean pixel art at 1:1 scale. Repeating tile patterns (these look good on sleeves especially).
What does not work: Photographs (too much detail lost). Fine text under 12px. Subtle gradients and colour variations (the compression and 3D wrapping flattens these). Detailed faces or logos at small sizes. Drop shadows and complex blend modes (they look fine in the editor but often compress poorly during upload).
Texture repeats on sleeves. Because the sleeve panels are small, using a repeating tile pattern on the sleeves is a design-efficient approach — it fills the space without requiring a custom design for a 64×44px area. A simple diagonal stripe or dot pattern works well.
Common mistakes
Mistake 1: Saving as JPG. A JPG file does not support transparency. The areas of the shirt that should be transparent (showing the avatar’s skin) will instead be white. The uploaded shirt will have white patches. Always save as PNG.
Mistake 2: Wrong canvas dimensions. If you crop or resize the template file, the UV map is distorted and your design will appear in the wrong position on the avatar. Work at exactly 585×559; do not resize the canvas.
Mistake 3: Designing on the template layer. Work on a new layer above the template. The template guide should be a reference layer that you hide before exporting. If you paint directly onto the template layer, the guide lines become part of your design.
Mistake 4: Using copyrighted designs. A shirt featuring a recognisable sports team logo or a well-known cartoon character will be rejected. It is also a copyright violation, regardless of Roblox’s moderation outcome.
Mistake 5: Misidentifying the front and back panels. The front panel is on the left side of the standard template; the back panel is on the right. New designers sometimes reverse these and find their main design on the back of the shirt instead of the front. Reference the official Roblox Creator Documentation panel diagram before designing.
Worked example
Mia is 14 and wants to create a retro gaming-themed shirt for her Roblox avatar. She downloads the 585×559 PNG template and opens it in Photopea.
She creates a new layer above the template guide. On the front panel, she draws a pixel art game controller — about 80×60 pixels, centred on the panel. She uses four colours: dark grey, light grey, red, and blue. The design is simple enough that it is legible at small scale.
On the back panel, she adds the text “GAME MODE” in a bold pixel font, white, 20px. She tests legibility by zooming out to 50% — the text is readable.
She hides the template guide layer, checks that the background is transparent (the grey checkerboard pattern shows through in Photopea, confirming transparency), and exports as PNG at the original dimensions.
She logs in to Roblox, uploads via create.roblox.com, pays 10 Robux (she bought 80 Robux for £0.79), and names the shirt “Retro Game Controller Shirt.”
Six hours later: approved. She puts it on her avatar and checks the 3D view — the controller is centred on the chest as intended, and the back text is legible. She lists it on the marketplace for 30 Robux, which gives her 21 Robux after Roblox’s 30% cut — meaning she would need to sell roughly 1,000 shirts to recoup a typical DevEx cashout threshold.
For now, she has a shirt she designed herself, an understanding of the upload process, and a plan to make more.