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The numbers the State Department publishes
The Digital Image Requirements page on travel.state.gov sets out what the DS-160 photo upload accepts:
| Requirement | Value |
|---|---|
| Shape | Square — height equal to width |
| Pixel size | At least 600 × 600, at most 1200 × 1200 |
| File format | JPEG |
| File size | 240 kB or less |
| Colour | 24-bit colour, sRGB |
| Compression | No more than 20:1 |
| A scanned print | 2 × 2 inches (51 × 51 mm), scanned at 300 pixels per inch |
This page opens the resizer on those values: 600 × 600 pixels, a 240 KB ceiling and a 54 KB floor. The floor is the part most guides leave out.
The rule people miss: no more than 20:1
A 240 KB ceiling invites squeezing the file as small as it will go. The same page caps compression at 20:1, which puts a floor under the file. An uncompressed colour image takes three bytes per pixel, so a 600 × 600 photo is 1,080,000 bytes before compression, and a twentieth of that is 54,000 bytes. A 600 × 600 JPEG smaller than about 54 KB has been compressed harder than the rule allows.
The floor rises with the pixel size while the ceiling stays at 240 KB, so the room between them shrinks:
| Pixel size | Uncompressed | Smallest file at 20:1 | Window |
|---|---|---|---|
| 600 × 600 | 1,080,000 bytes | 54 KB | 54–240 KB |
| 800 × 800 | 1,920,000 bytes | 96 KB | 96–240 KB |
| 1000 × 1000 | 3,000,000 bytes | 150 KB | 150–240 KB |
| 1200 × 1200 | 4,320,000 bytes | 216 KB | 216–240 KB |
That is why 600 × 600 is the size to aim for: it is the smallest allowed, and it leaves the widest room between the two limits. Larger is allowed, but a 1200 × 1200 photo has to land in a 24 KB gap. We read the ratio the usual way — against the uncompressed 24-bit image — and if you choose a larger size, the tool works the floor out again for it.
What the tool sets, and what it cannot check
- It sets the square crop (you place the frame), exactly 600 × 600 pixels, a JPEG between the floor and the ceiling, and 300 DPI in the file header — which makes the 600 pixels a 2 × 2 inch print, the size of the paper photo.
- It does not check the photo itself. The general rules on the photo requirements page are about you and the picture: in colour, taken within the last six months, a plain white or off-white background, a neutral expression with both eyes open, the head between 50% and 69% of the image height, and no eyeglasses except in rare circumstances. A resizer cannot see any of that.
- It does not retouch. The photo must not be digitally altered. Cropping and resizing are what the State Department’s own photo tool does too; nothing here changes your face, the light or the background.
The State Department also says that acceptance of the photo is at the discretion of the embassy or consulate where you apply. Treat the numbers as the part you can get exactly right, and the photo rules as the part to get right when you take the picture.
When the DS-160 will not take the photo
- Not square. A phone photo is 4:3 or 16:9; the form wants equal sides. The frame here is square, and you choose what stays inside it.
- Too large. A phone photo is several megabytes; at 600 × 600 the JPEG comes out far under 240 KB.
- Too compressed. Under the 54 KB floor at 600 × 600. Tools that squeeze a file “as small as possible” produce exactly this; the tool here raises the quality until the file clears the floor.
- Not really a JPEG. A PNG or HEIC renamed to .jpg is still a PNG or HEIC inside. The file made here is always a real JPEG.
- An error that names the service — “service unavailable” or a 503 — comes from the website, not from your photo. A different photo will not fix it; trying again later will.
Your photo stays on your device
A visa photo is a biometric picture of your face. It is resized and compressed in your browser and never uploaded, and the new JPEG carries none of your phone’s EXIF data — no location, no device, no capture time. For a form with other numbers, resize image to KB starts from blank settings.
How to resize a photo for the DS-160
The size and both limits are already set on this page.
Step 1: Add your photo
Drag it onto the box above or click to choose it. A phone photo is fine; HEIC opens in Safari.
Step 2: Place the square frame
Drag the frame so your head is centred with a little room above it, and zoom in until your head fills roughly half to two-thirds of the height — the rule is 50% to 69%.
Step 3: Prepare and download
The result card shows the file size and confirms it is between the 54 KB floor and the 240 KB limit.
Step 4: Upload it in the DS-160
Use the downloaded JPEG in the photo step of the form. If it is still rejected, check the photo rules above: the file’s numbers are already right.
Frequently Asked Questions
What size is a US visa photo in pixels?
Square, at least 600 × 600 and at most 1200 × 1200 pixels. 600 × 600 is the simplest choice and the one this page uses.
What is the maximum file size for the DS-160 photo?
240 kB. The tool keeps the file under 240,000 bytes, which is under the limit however the form counts a kilobyte.
Is there a minimum file size?
Not as a number, but the compression must not exceed 20:1. At 600 × 600 pixels that works out to about 54 KB, so a smaller file is over-compressed.
What is the US visa photo size in cm?
The paper photo is 2 × 2 inches, 51 × 51 mm — about 5 × 5 cm. The digital photo is measured in pixels; 600 × 600 at 300 DPI prints at the same 2 × 2 inches.
Can I wear glasses in a US visa photo?
According to the State Department, eyeglasses are no longer allowed in new visa photos, except in rare circumstances.
Is my photo uploaded to this site?
No. Everything happens in your browser, and the file never leaves your device.
Related Tools
- India e-Visa photo: a square JPEG between 10 KB and 1 MBThe e-Visa form takes a square JPEG between 10 KB and 1 MB, and a PDF of your passport page under 300 KB. Both can be made here without uploading either.
- Resize Image to KB: Pixel Size, KB Limit and DPIFit a photo to the pixel size, file-size limit and DPI an online form asks for, in one step.