Resize a 2x2 Passport Photo
A US passport photo is a 2 x 2 inch square, which at the standard 300 DPI print resolution means exactly 600 x 600 pixels — also the minimum the State Department accepts for digital submission. Typing 600 into both fields of the By Pixels tab produces that file. Before you rely on it, read the middle section: pixel dimensions are the one requirement a resizer can guarantee, and they are the smallest part of what gets a photo accepted.
Document photo sizes worth knowing
| Document | At 300 DPI | At 600 DPI |
|---|---|---|
| US passport and visa — 2 x 2 in | 600 x 600 px | 1200 x 1200 px |
| UK and EU standard — 35 x 45 mm | 413 x 531 px | 827 x 1063 px |
| Canada — 50 x 70 mm | 591 x 827 px | 1181 x 1654 px |
The arithmetic, and where DPI really lives
Print size times resolution gives pixels: 2 inches times 300 dots per inch is 600, in each direction. The same multiplication covers any other document — the UK's 35 x 45 mm photo is 1.38 x 1.77 inches, hence 413 x 531 pixels at 300 DPI. Every value in the table above is that one formula applied.
DPI itself is not stored in the pixels — it is a note in the file header saying how densely to print them, and this tool does not write one. That matters less than people fear: a 600 x 600 image printed across two inches is 300 DPI by definition, whatever the header says or omits. When a submission portal demands the field literally, open the file in a desktop editor, set the value without resampling, and re-export.
What this page can check, and the longer list it cannot
A resizer can guarantee two things: the pixel count and the square shape. The rules that actually get photos rejected are different ones. The US standard wants the head between 1 and 1-3/8 inches from chin to crown, the eyes between 1-1/8 and 1-3/8 inches up from the photo's bottom edge, a plain white or off-white background, a neutral expression, even lighting without shadows, no glasses, and a picture taken within the last six months.
None of that is visible to this tool, and no resizer can assess it. Frame your shot against the official template from the issuing authority — the State Department publishes one with the head measurements drawn on — and treat this page as the final step that lands framing you have already verified onto exactly 600 x 600 pixels.
Crop first, and resist the urge to retouch
Work in this order: photograph, crop, resize. Use the image cropper to cut a square with the head positioned per the template, then bring that square here and type 600 twice. Resizing before cropping surrenders the framing to Fill & Crop, which trims blindly from the centre and knows nothing about chins.
And leave the pixels honest. Passport rules bar digital alteration of the image, so swapping in a white background, smoothing skin or straightening a tilted head in software risks rejection at submission — an examiner comparing the photo against your face is the whole point. A wrong background means re-shooting against a plain wall, not editing. The one manipulation that is always legitimate is the one this page performs: changing how many pixels carry the unaltered picture.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many pixels is a 2 x 2 inch photo?
600 x 600 at the standard 300 DPI, or 1200 x 1200 where 600 DPI is requested. The formula is inches multiplied by the DPI value, and it works for every document size in the table.
Will the output pass the official checks?
Dimensionally, yes. Everything else — head size, eye position, background, expression, lighting — is a property of the photograph itself, which this tool cannot see or fix. Verify those against the official template before resizing.
How large must the head be in the frame?
For the US document: 1 to 1-3/8 inches from chin to the top of the head, with the eyes 1-1/8 to 1-3/8 inches up from the bottom edge. Get that right at the cropping stage, not the resizing stage.
My background isn't white. Can I fix that digitally?
Better not to. The rules prohibit altering the image, and a replaced background is alteration an examiner may spot. Re-shoot in front of a plain pale wall — it costs five minutes and removes the risk.
What numbers do UK or Canadian documents need?
The UK and EU 35 x 45 mm size is 413 x 531 pixels at 300 DPI; Canada's 50 x 70 mm is 591 x 827. Type them into the width and height fields directly — the presets cover social platforms, not documents.
Is it safe to put an identity photo through an online tool?
Through this one, yes: the processing is done by your own browser, and the picture never crosses the network. Load the page, disconnect from the internet, and the resize still works.