Support: DPI Checker

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Common questions

How do I check the DPI of an image?

Open the image here and choose the size you want to print. The tool divides the pixels in the image by the inches of the print, which gives the real resolution at that size, and tells you whether it is enough. It also shows the DPI label saved inside the file, if there is one, although that label does not affect the print.

What DPI do I need for printing?

It depends on how far away the print will be seen. As a working rule of the print trade, anything held in the hand, such as photos, business cards and flyers, wants 300 pixels per inch and still looks good at 200. Posters and signs on a wall want 150. Banners seen from across a room or a street look sharp at 72, and large ones are often printed at less. Your printer may set its own requirement, which comes first.

My image says 72 DPI. Is it too low to print?

Not necessarily. The 72 is a label saved in the file that tells software how large to display it; it says nothing about how many pixels the image has. A 6000 x 4000 pixel photo labelled 72 DPI prints a sharp 20 x 13 inch poster. Check the pixels against your print size instead, which is what this tool does.

Can I change an image from 72 DPI to 300 DPI to make it print better?

Changing the label alone does nothing: the image has exactly the same pixels. Resampling it to add pixels makes the file bigger, but the new pixels are guesses made from the old ones, so the print is softer, not sharper. The real fixes are printing smaller or finding a larger original.

How big can I print a photo from my phone?

A 12 megapixel phone photo is 4032 x 3024 pixels. At 300 pixels per inch that is a sharp 13.4 x 10.1 inch print; at 150, right for a poster on a wall, it is 26.9 x 20.2 inches; and as a banner seen from a distance it can go to several feet. Open your photo and the table shows the sizes for your own image.

What resolution does a banner need?

Much less than people expect, because banners are read from a distance. 72 pixels per inch at the finished size looks sharp from across a room, so a 3 x 6 ft banner wants about 5184 x 2592 pixels, and 50 is usually still fine. Logos and text are best supplied as vector artwork, which has no pixels and stays sharp at any size.

What is bleed, and why does it change the answer?

Bleed is artwork that runs past the finished edge, usually 1/8 inch on every side, so that a cut landing slightly off still shows ink instead of a white sliver. It makes the printed area a quarter of an inch larger each way, so the image is stretched a little further. Tick the bleed box if your printer asked for it.

Why does it say part of my picture will be trimmed?

Because the picture and the sheet are different shapes. A phone photo is 4:3 and an 8 x 10 print is 5:4, so to fill the paper without white strips the picture is enlarged until both sides are covered and the extra is cut off. The darker area on the preview is what goes.

Does this work for PDF, AI, EPS or SVG files?

No, and it does not need to for most of them. Logos, shapes and text saved as vector artwork have no pixels and print sharp at any size. Only photos and other pixel images placed inside those files have a resolution, and you can check those here before you place them.

Is my image uploaded?

No. The image is opened and measured by your browser on your own device. It is never sent to us or to anyone else, and closing the tab clears it.