Passport Photo Size Guide: Millimetres, Pixels and KB

Guide · Photo sizes and dimensions

"Passport size photo" is not one size. It is a family of similar-but-different sizes, and the wrong one is a common reason applications get rejected. This guide lists the standard sizes in all three units that matter — millimetres for print, pixels for screens, and KB for upload limits — and shows how to make your photo match.

The standard sizes, country by country

United States (passport & most visas): 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm). Digital uploads: between 600 × 600 and 1200 × 1200 pixels, JPEG, file size 240 KB or less.
United Kingdom: printed photos 45 × 35 mm. Digital photos: at least 600 pixels wide and 750 pixels tall, JPEG, between 50 KB and 10 MB.
Schengen / EU countries: 35 × 45 mm is the shared standard for passports and visas.
Canada (passport): 50 × 70 mm — noticeably taller than most, which catches people out.
India (passport & most government forms): 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm) for passports; online exam and job forms often ask for roughly 350 × 350 pixels with a file between 10 KB and 200 KB, varying by portal.
China (visa): 33 × 48 mm, usually on a white background.

These are the widely published standard dimensions, but authorities update specifications and individual forms set their own. Treat this list as your starting point and always confirm the exact numbers on the form or official page you are submitting to — it takes one minute and saves a rejected application.

Converting between mm, inches and pixels

The bridge between print size and pixel size is print resolution, and 300 dots per inch (DPI) is the standard for ID photos. At 300 DPI, one inch equals 300 pixels, so the conversions are simple: 2 inches = 600 pixels; 35 mm ≈ 413 pixels; 45 mm ≈ 531 pixels; 50 mm ≈ 591 pixels; 70 mm ≈ 827 pixels. That is why the US digital minimum of 600 × 600 pixels is exactly its 2 × 2 inch print size at 300 DPI. If a portal gives you pixels only, match the pixels exactly — the millimetres will take care of themselves.

Making your photo the right size, step by step

Start from a clear photo taken against a plain, light background, facing the camera, with space around the head and shoulders. Then: crop it to the right shape first (a square photo cannot be stretched into a 35 × 45 mm rectangle without distortion — the shape ratio must match, 7:9 in that case). Next, resize to the exact pixel dimensions with our Image Resizer. Finally, if there is a KB limit, bring the file down with the matching fixed-target tool — Compress Image to 200KB, to 100KB or to 50KB. For very small limits, our guide to compressing an image to 20KB explains the resize-first method in detail.

The rules that are not about size

Size gets a photo uploaded; these rules get it accepted. Head and shoulders centred, with the face taking up roughly 70–80% of the frame height on most specifications. Plain background — white or light grey depending on the country. No head coverings except for religious reasons, no sunglasses, and glasses rules differ (the US has required no glasses at all since 2016; other countries vary). Even lighting, no harsh shadow across the face, mouth closed and eyes open, photo recent — typically taken within the last six months. A photo can be pixel-perfect and still fail on any one of these, so read the requirement list on your form as carefully as the size.

A note on privacy

A passport photo is identity material. Every tool on this site processes images inside your own browser — the file never travels to a server, so resizing and compressing your ID photo here leaves no copy of it anywhere else. That is exactly how it should be for documents like these. For the general method behind the KB side of this guide, see how to compress an image without losing visible quality.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most common passport photo size?

Two sizes dominate: 35 × 45 mm (UK, Schengen Europe and much of the world) and 2 × 2 inches / 51 × 51 mm (United States, India). Canada is the common exception at 50 × 70 mm. Always check your specific application — "passport size" alone does not tell you which one.

How many pixels is a 35 × 45 mm photo?

At the standard print resolution of 300 DPI, 35 mm is about 413 pixels and 45 mm is about 531 pixels, so roughly 413 × 531 pixels. Some digital systems ask for larger files — the UK digital minimum is 600 × 750 pixels — in which case follow the pixels they state, not the conversion.

My photo is the right pixels but the file is too big. What do I do?

Keep the pixel dimensions exactly as they are and lower only the file size: run the photo through the Compress Image tool or the fixed-target tools for 200KB, 100KB and 50KB. Never fix a KB problem by shrinking pixels below the required dimensions — that trades one rejection for another.

Can I take my passport photo with my phone?

Yes, in most cases — stand against a plain light wall in even daylight, hold the phone at eye level about an arm's length plus a step away, and leave space around your head. Then crop and resize to the official specification using the tools on this page. Just confirm your authority accepts self-taken photos, as a few still require a studio or booth photo.