Reduce a photo below 200 KB, 500 KB or 1 MB
Published · Updated 3 min read
An online form often refuses a photo over 200 KB, 500 KB or 1 MB. Yet a phone produces images of several megabytes. Reducing the dimensions in pixels first, then adjusting the quality, gives a much lower weight than quality alone.
The starting point
A phone photo commonly measures 4,032 by 3,024 pixels and weighs close to 2 MB. The weight depends on the content: a real photo, more detailed, weighs more at the same setting. The figures below give the order of magnitude, and the method stays the same.
Quality alone is not enough
Compress image lowers the weight without touching the dimensions: the photo stays at 4,032 by 3,024 pixels.
| Quality | Resulting weight |
|---|---|
| 90 | 1,72 MB |
| 70 | 555 KB |
| 50 | 307 KB |
| 30 | 224 KB |
Even at quality 30, the file goes over 200 KB. To get under this limit by quality alone, you would have to lower it to the point of damaging the image.
Reduce the dimensions first
Resize image changes the number of pixels. With JPG as the output format, the weights obtained are as follows.
| Width | Quality | Resulting weight |
|---|---|---|
| 2 400 px | 80 | 285 KB |
| 1 600 px | 80 | 164 KB |
| 1 200 px | 80 | 117 KB |
| 1 200 px | 60 | 80 KB |
| 800 px | 70 | 57 KB |
A photo 1,600 pixels wide at quality 80 gets under 200 KB, whereas quality alone could not do it. The dimensions weigh more heavily in the result than the quality.
Which width to choose
An ID or profile photo is displayed at a few hundred pixels: a width of 800 to 1,200 pixels is most often enough. If the form asks for precise dimensions, respect them first, then look at the weight.
The order of steps
- Crop the photo if the subject takes up only part of the image, with Crop photo: the pixels removed no longer weigh anything.
- Resize by choosing the JPG format and a width, for example 1,600 pixels.
- Read the weight of the resulting file.
- If it is still too heavy, lower the width by one step or the quality by 10 points, then start again from the original photo.
Starting again from the original at each attempt avoids stacking up quality losses.
The format matters too
For a photo, JPG gives the lightest files. The choice between JPG, PNG and WebP is detailed in Which image format to choose by use.
What the tool does not offer
No setting asks for a target weight: you proceed in steps, reading the weight shown after each attempt.
For which forms
An ID photo for an online procedure, a profile, an advertisement or a file: the common limits are 200 KB, 500 KB and 1 MB.
Check before sending
- Open the resulting photo at real size.
- Look at the faces, the text and the outlines.
- Keep the original: the light file is only for this form.
Frequently asked questions
- How do you reduce a photo below 200 KB?
- Reduce the dimensions first to about 1,600 pixels wide, with a quality of 80 in JPG: the file gets under 200 KB.
- Should you lower the quality or the dimensions?
- The dimensions weigh more heavily in the result than the quality. Reduce them first.
- Can the tool aim for a precise weight?
- No, you proceed in steps, reading the weight shown after each attempt.
- Which format should you choose for a photo?
- JPG, which gives the lightest files.