Two size systems, one photo

Every passport photo has two descriptions of its size, and they answer different questions. The print size — 2×2 inches, 35×45 mm — describes paper. The pixel size — 600×600, 630×810 — describes the file. Ink measures the first, and online application portals measure the second. The exchange rate between them is resolution, expressed in dots per inch (dpi), and it is the source of nearly every “why is my photo the wrong size” question.

The conversion table

The left columns are fixed by geometry; the right ones are the official digital specs — where a portal publishes one — last checked in October 2026. Numbers for the first six rows are the ones the checker presets enforce.

Document	Print size	Pixels @300 dpi	Official digital spec	File limit
US passport & visa	2×2 in (51×51 mm)	600×600	600–1200 px square JPEG (DS-160)	≤240 KB
UK passport	35×45 mm	413×531	≥600×750 px	50 KB–10 MB
Schengen / EU visa	35×45 mm	413×531	set by each consulate’s portal	varies
China visa	33×48 mm	390×567	354–420 × 472–560 px window; some centres cap at 354×472	~40–120 KB
India passport (missions abroad)	— (digital spec)	—	exactly 630×810 px, ICAO guideline	≤250 KB at Bern
India e-visa	— (digital only)	—	square, ≥350×350 px	10 KB–1 MB
Canada passport	50×70 mm	591×827	portal-dependent	—
Australia / NZ / Japan	35×45 mm	413×531	portal-dependent	—
Brazil visa	5×7 cm	591×827	portal-dependent	—

The math: inches to pixels

Pixels = inches × dpi. That is the whole formula.

• 2 inches at 300 dpi → 2 × 300 = 600 px. At 600 dpi → 1200 px. At 150 dpi → 300 px, which is why a 150-dpi export of a US photo fails the 600 px floor.
• Millimetres convert first: divide by 25.4. So 35 mm = 1.378 in → 1.378 × 300 ≈ 413 px wide; 45 mm = 1.772 in → 531 px tall.
• Worked example, China’s 33×48 mm print: 33/25.4 × 300 ≈ 390 px, 48/25.4 × 300 ≈ 567 px — close to, but not identical to, the 354×472 px upload window, because the upload spec is a slightly different 3:4 shape than the print.

Why ‘two inches’ is not a pixel count

A JPEG only stores pixels — the dpi figure inside the file’s metadata is an instruction to printers, not a measurement. The same 600×600 px file prints at 2 inches when tagged 300 dpi and at 4 inches when tagged 150 dpi, without a single pixel changing. That is why upload forms state pixel dimensions outright, and why “the embassy wants 2×2 inches” tells you nothing about the file until a resolution is chosen: 300 dpi is the conventional answer, and it lands you on 600×600 px.

Digital specs are windows, not floors

The most useful habit in this table is checking both ends of a digital spec:

• US (DS-160): 600–1200 px square. A 4000×4000 px phone photo is too big — downscale it, don’t just crop it.
• UK: a floor of 600×750 px and a ceiling imposed by the 10 MB file limit rather than the dimensions.
• China: a window of 354–420 × 472–560 px — narrower than the print-equivalent — and some current centre forms stop at 354×472 px, so the conservative file is exactly that.
• India: one exact size, 630×810 px — neither smaller nor larger.
• India e-visa: a floor only — square, at least 350×350 px, capped by the 1 MB file limit.

File-size caps interact with pixel counts: a heavily compressed 600×600 px JPEG can drop under the UK’s 50 KB floor, while an uncompressed 1200×1200 can blow past the US 240 KB ceiling. Export JPEG at moderate quality and check both numbers — the checker reads both from the file.

If you’re printing instead of uploading

For a physical print the pixel requirement works in reverse: the file needs enough pixels that 300 of them fit in every printed inch. The 300-dpi column of the table is the minimum resolution for each country’s print. A lab print tagged at 300 dpi and the same file tagged at 600 dpi look identical on paper — what matters is whether the pixel count covers the physical size. PrintSheet tiles a compliant crop onto a standard 4×6 print sheet in your browser.

Check your file

Drop the photo into the checker and it reads the real pixel dimensions and byte size, compares them with the selected country’s window, and flags both too-few and too-many pixels. For every rule that isn’t about the file — size on paper, head band, background — the country requirements table lists the numbers, and the US requirements checklist covers the State Department’s full list including the digital upload rules.

Frequently asked questions

How many pixels is a 2×2 inch passport photo?

It depends on the resolution you print at. At the standard 300 dpi, a 2×2 inch photo is 600×600 pixels; at 600 dpi it is 1200×1200 pixels. The US online visa form (DS-160) accepts exactly that range — a square JPEG between 600×600 and 1200×1200 px, no larger than 240 KB — which corresponds to 300–600 dpi on a 2-inch print.

What pixel size does the UK require for a passport photo?

For online applications, GOV.UK asks for a digital photo of at least 600×750 pixels — a 4:5 portrait matching the 35×45 mm print — saved as a JPEG between 50 KB and 10 MB. Paper photo-booth prints remain an option for postal applications, but the pixel minimum only applies to the upload.

What is 35×45 mm in pixels?

Multiply millimetres by dpi and divide by 25.4. At 300 dpi, 35×45 mm works out to 413×531 px; at 600 dpi it doubles to 827×1063 px. Schengen consulates set their own upload windows, so check your portal — the print-equivalent number just tells you whether your file can fill the 35×45 mm frame cleanly.

Why does the same photo size give different pixel counts?

Because inches describe paper and pixels describe the file — DPI is the exchange rate between them. A 2-inch square holds 600 pixels across at 300 dpi but 1200 at 600 dpi, and both print at the same physical size. That is why digital application forms specify pixels directly: the pixel array is the only size a file actually has.

Can a passport photo have too many pixels?

Yes — several portals cap the maximum as well as the minimum. The US DS-160 form rejects anything above 1200×1200 px, India's missions-abroad guideline fixes the photo at exactly 630×810 px, and Chinese visa centre forms accept a window of 354–420 × 472–560 px with some capping at 354×472 px. A big phone photo usually has to be shrunk to fit the window, not just to satisfy a minimum.

What DPI should a passport photo be?

For printing, 300 dpi is the accepted floor — at that resolution a 2×2 in print needs at least 600×600 px and a 35×45 mm print needs at least 413×531 px. For uploads the DPI tag inside the file is ignored entirely: the portal reads the pixel dimensions and the byte size, so a 600×600 px file passes whether its metadata says 72 or 300 dpi.