Digital passport photo file vs the printed sheet: what each one is for
From one uploaded photo we generate two files: a digital file sized in pixels for an online upload, and a printed sheet sized in millimetres for a paper application.
Last updated: September 2026
- Digital file: 600 dpi, exact pixel size per format, US/India 1200×1200 px, UK/Australia/Schengen 827×1063 px, Canada 1181×1654 px, China 780×1134 px.
- Print sheet: one 10×15 cm JPEG at 300 dpi with cut lines, 2 copies for US/India and Canada, 8 for UK/Australia/EU, 4 for China.
- Both come from the same crop, so the upload and the print are guaranteed to be the same photo.
- Free: 6 photos, kept 45 minutes. Pass: 25 photos, kept 24 hours, €5 for 30 days or €3 for 24 hours. No watermark on either tier.
This page covers what's actually in each file, and how to print the sheet yourself for the price of one ordinary photo print.
You don't pay to find out if your photo is valid. The compliance check and the printable sheet are both free. No card, no account.
Get both versions free, digital file + print sheet →Which one your application wants
Depends on the country and route, and it changes over time: check the current rule at gov.uk/photos-for-passports or your own authority's page.
In practice an online renewal asks you to upload a digital file, while a paper application asks for a printed photo, so it helps to have both from the same crop. If you are still choosing a tool, our comparison of the best free passport photo makers shows which ones keep the digital download free.
One crop, two files
Everything starts from a single face detection and crop, run once on your photo. The digital file and the print sheet are both just that same crop resized into a different output, not two separate edits that could drift apart. Every upload gives you both files, so it doesn't matter which one turns out to be the right one.
The digital file (JPEG or PNG, 600 dpi) is sized in pixels to the exact format you picked, ready for an online upload. The print sheet is a single 10×15 cm (4×6 in) JPEG at 300 dpi with your photo repeated several times and thin grey cut lines between each copy: cut it apart and it's one photo per application, ready for a counter or consulate.
Digital file: resolution per format
We export the digital file at 600 dpi. For the US 2×2 in format that's 1200×1200 px: double the 600×600 px minimum most online portals ask for. Per format:
Those numbers only work forward, not backward: if your source photo itself is small or soft, an old scan, a screenshot, a low-res phone shot from years ago, no export setting fixes that. PicReviver's low-resolution enhancer rebuilds detail and enlarges it up to 4x before you upload it here.
| Format | Photo size | Our file @ 600 dpi |
|---|---|---|
| US, India (2×2 in) | 50.8×50.8 mm | 1200×1200 px |
| UK, Australia, EU/Schengen (35×45 mm) | 35×45 mm | 827×1063 px |
| Canada (50×70 mm) | 50×70 mm | 1181×1654 px |
| China (33×48 mm) | 33×48 mm | 780×1134 px |
Two portals cap the file instead of asking for more, so we scale down to fit: the US DV-Lottery wants exactly 600×600 px under 240 KB, and China's visa portal wants 420×560 px between 40-120 KB. The print sheet stays full resolution regardless of which digital cap applies.
The print sheet: how many copies fit
We fix the print sheet at 10×15 cm (4×6 in), 300 dpi (1800×1200 px), the cheapest standard size any kiosk prints, with your photo repeated and thin cut lines between each copy. How many copies fit depends on the format:
| Format | Photo size | Copies per 10×15 cm sheet |
|---|---|---|
| UK, Australia, EU/Schengen | 35×45 mm | 8 |
| China | 33×48 mm | 4 |
| US, India | 50.8×50.8 mm | 2 |
| Canada | 50×70 mm | 2 |
What actually gets checked on the print itself: real photo-quality paper (plain office paper is an automatic rejection) and the exact size after cutting. Glossy or matte both pass almost everywhere.
Where our output falls short
- Background colour: we always give you a plain white background. Not every authority wants white: check your document's exact requirement before you submit. If it wants grey, cream or anything other than white, our output won't match and you'll need a different source for that shot.
- What we don't check: we measure head size and position automatically, but we don't evaluate your expression, whether your eyes are open, shadows on your face, or glasses. Check those yourself against the published checklist before you submit.
Straight from an iPhone: HEIC works
Upload the .heic file your iPhone saves by default and we read it directly: no need to convert to JPEG first.
Free vs Pass: what changes
Free gives you 6 photos per session, kept for 45 minutes: the digital file and the print sheet, both included, no watermark on either. A Pass raises that to 25 photos per session, kept for 24 hours: €5 for 30 days of that limit, or €3 for a single 24-hour window. Every tier gets the exact same files at the exact same resolution: paying buys batch size and time, never a better result, and there is no watermark at any tier to remove.
Your upload is deleted from our server the moment processing finishes. Everything runs on one machine here in the Netherlands: nothing is sent to a third-party service for face detection, background removal, or anything else.
The 10×15 cm sheet trick (print for ~€0.15)
At the drugstore, supermarket or kiosk, you're ordering one ordinary photo print, not a passport photo:
- Put the downloaded
sheet.jpgon a USB stick or your phone, or upload it to the print service. - Order one 10×15 cm (4×6 in) print, typically €0.15-0.35.
- Critical step: choose "actual size" / "no crop" / borderless off if the kiosk asks. Any "fill the paper" or "auto-enhance crop" option rescales the sheet and your photos come out the wrong size in millimetres.
- Cut along the grey lines with scissors or a ruler and blade. Measure one photo to confirm (35×45 mm for EU formats).
That's a booth's €10-15 product for the price of one print. One caveat as always: exact acceptance is up to the issuing office, and a small number of countries require an in-person photographer step that a home print can't replace.
Combining the photo, the form and a scanned ID page into one file before you upload it? ScanReviver's merge PDF merges them in the order you choose.
Before you upload
What is a passport size photograph, exactly?
What is a passport size photograph? A small standard-size portrait with a plain background and the face filling most of the frame; and what is ID photo, then? The same thing under a shorter name. What is the size of a passport photo depends on the country: the UK passport size photo is 35×45 mm, the same as most ID documents, and India's is 2×2 inches. So the passport picture size, or the passport size picture you print, follows from the country you pick in the tool, which then gives you both the digital file and the print sheet this page compares.
How do I know if I should upload the digital file or print the sheet?
That depends on your country and application route, and it changes over time: check the issuing authority's page for the current rule. Both outputs come from the same photo either way, so you're never stuck without the one you need.
Should a passport photo be printed glossy or matte?
Most authorities, including the US State Department, accept both glossy and matte, as long as it's real photo-quality paper with a clean, continuous-tone print. What gets rejected is plain office paper, visible inkjet banding or pixelation: the paper finish itself is rarely the problem.
What is the passport picture size for a digital upload versus a print?
A print is measured in millimetres and a digital upload in pixels. At 600 dpi the US and India square is 1200×1200 px, and the UK, Australia and EU format is 827×1063 px.
Does digital photo scanning of an old passport photo work?
Yes. Scan the print flat or photograph it in good light, then upload the result like any other photo. The tool re-crops it to the exact spec, but a blurry source stays blurry.
Does the size of passport photos differ by country?
Yes. Authorities set their own sizes: the US and India use 50.8×50.8 mm, the UK, Australia and the EU 35×45 mm, Canada 50×70 mm and China 33×48 mm. That is why a sheet fits eight copies of a 35×45 mm photo but only two of the US square.
Can I print passport photos on my home inkjet?
Only if you use genuine photo paper and the print shows no banding or dots under close inspection. A €0.15 kiosk print is safer and usually better quality than a home inkjet.
Where can I actually get passport photos printed?
Two options once you have the digital file: your own inkjet on genuine photo paper, or any pharmacy or photo-kiosk print counter, which is usually where to get passport photos printed most cheaply and reliably. Either way, print the sheet at actual size: no "fill the page" scaling, so the 10×15 cm sheet comes out at the size it was made for.
Related: Free Passport Photo Maker: Any Photo, 12 Countries.
What's a "digital copy" of a passport photo, exactly?
The passport photo digital copy is simply the cropped, correctly-sized image file itself: the same file you'd otherwise print. Some online applications only ever want that digital copy uploaded and never see a printed version at all.
The kiosk cropped my sheet and the photos are the wrong size, why?
The kiosk scaled the image to "fill" the paper. Reprint and choose actual size / no cropping. The sheet is generated at exactly 10×15 cm at 300 dpi, so printed 1:1 the photos measure precisely right.
Is a photo printed from a digital file treated differently from a studio photo?
No, authorities judge the photo, not its origin: except in the handful of countries that require an in-person photographer step, which a home print can't replace. Everywhere else, a home photo formatted to the published requirements and printed at a kiosk is normally treated the same; the authority still makes the final call.
How do I print a passport photo at a supermarket or drugstore kiosk?
Download a print sheet laid out on a standard 10×15 cm (4×6 inch) canvas, take it to any photo kiosk or online print service, and order one standard 10×15 print: it costs roughly €0.15-0.35. Crucially, print at 'actual size' with no cropping or 'fill' scaling, then cut along the printed lines.
Where can I print my digital passport photo once I have the file?
Take the downloaded 10×15 cm sheet to any pharmacy or photo-kiosk print counter: that's usually the cheapest, most reliable option (see above), or print it yourself on genuine photo paper. Either way, print at actual size with no "fill the page" scaling.
What resolution does a digital passport photo need?
For US digital submissions the standard is a square photo of at least 600×600 pixels. PassportNinja saves at 600 dpi, well above that, and for the two portals with strict pixel limits it sizes the file exactly: 600×600 px under 240 KB for the DV lottery, and 420×560 px for China's visa form. Because the UK passport photo size is 35×45 mm, a UK file comes out at 827×1063 px and a sheet holds eight copies.
Can I get passport photos postnet, or do I need a different printer?
PassportNinja doesn't print anything itself: it gives you a digital file and a 10×15 cm print sheet you can take anywhere, Postnet included, or to any pharmacy or photo-kiosk counter (see above for exactly how to order it as one ordinary print, not a special passport product).
Does UPS Store offer a digital passport photo, and is there an app?
UPS Store prints passport photos in-store and, at some locations, can hand you a ups passport photo digital copy on the spot (UPS Store locations are independently owned franchises, so the offer and price differ per store; one Charlotte store lists a digital copy at $19.99, checked 2 October 2026): that's a separate in-person service, not this tool. There's no digital passport photo app here either, just a browser page. How to upload a digital passport photo in practice: crop it with PassportNinja, download the file, then upload that same file wherever the form (or a ups store digital passport photo kiosk) asks for it.
Where do I get digital passport photos near me?
You do not need a physical shop for digital passport photos near me or a digital photo for passport near me, the digital file is made online here and downloaded straight to your device, no location involved. Only the printed sheet needs a nearby kiosk (see above), the digital file never does.
I already have a printed passport photo, how do I get it as a digital file?
Photograph or scan the print in good light and upload it here like any other photo: going from scanner photos to digital this way re-crops and re-whitens it to the exact spec, rather than just copying the scan. For old or damaged family photos rather than a passport shot, PicReviver's dedicated scanning tools give a cleaner result than a simple re-scan.
Is this a passport vs passport card comparison?
No: this page compares the digital file against the printed sheet our tool generates from one photo, not the US passport book against the separate wallet-sized passport card. If it's genuinely passport vs passport card you're after: the State Department asks for the identical photo (2×2 inch, plain white background) for both documents, so the US passport photo tool covers either one: only the card itself is a different physical document, not a different photo spec.
By Sam Ridder, I build and run PassportNinja on my own hardware, on my own. Who I am.