By PassportNinja Team · Last updated: July 2026
The State Department wants a 2×2 inch photo, head 1–1⅜ inch tall, plain white background, taken in the last 6 months. Upload any decent photo and PassportNinja does the sizing, the head-height check and the white background (free), with a printable 10×15 cm (4×6 in) sheet.
Make my US passport photo →Requirements last checked: July 2026. Always confirm with the issuing authority.
| Requirement | Rule | PassportNinja |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 2×2 in (51×51 mm) · digital 600×600 px min | ✓ exact, 600 dpi |
| Head height | 1–1⅜ in (25–35 mm), chin to crown | ✓ measured & checked |
| Background | Plain white or off-white | ✓ replaced automatically |
| Position | Centered, facing camera, eyes open | ✓ auto-centered · you check expression |
Applying online for a renewal or the DV lottery? See digital upload vs printed 2×2: what to submit where. Curious why the size and background rules exist at all? Read passport photo requirements explained.
US infant photos follow the same 2×2 format, with two eased rules: a child under one does not need both eyes fully open, and nobody else may appear in the frame — no arms, hands, chairs or pacifiers. The usual trick is to lay the baby on a plain white sheet and shoot straight down, or seat them in an empty car seat draped in white. Upload that and the tool crops and sizes it like any other photo; expression rules are relaxed for infants, so a natural face is fine. For the full walk-through, see the baby passport photo guide.
Almost every other country uses 35×45 mm — a taller rectangle. The United States is one of the few that asks for a perfect square, a legacy of the old imperial print sizes American photo labs were built around. That is why a photo cropped for a European passport will not pass for a US one, and vice-versa: the aspect ratio is different, not just the size. The same square 2×2 spec also covers most US visa photos and the Diversity Visa (green-card) lottery, though the lottery wants a digital file rather than a print — pick the DV-Lottery template and the tool outputs the square digital format the entry form expects.
The output follows the published State Department specifications (size, head height, white background). Acceptance is always the authority's decision — follow the checklist above for the things a tool can't judge, like expression and lighting.
Pick the "US DV-Lottery / digital" template in the tool: it produces the required square digital format.
Download the 4×6 sheet and print it at any drugstore photo kiosk — CVS, Walgreens, Walmart and Costco all do a 4×6 print for well under a dollar. The sheet lays out several 2×2 copies with cut lines, so one print gives you spares.
For an online renewal the single square JPG is what you upload (1200×1200 px, comfortably above the 600×600 minimum) — no print needed. A first-time application at an acceptance facility still takes a printed 2×2. Which one you need is covered in digital vs printed.
Yes. Since November 2016 glasses are not allowed in US passport photos at all, except with a signed doctor's statement for a medical reason. Take them off before you shoot.
Yes — same 2×2 format, but the child must be alone in the frame and, if under one, doesn't need both eyes open. See the baby photo guide.
Deleted automatically — upload right after processing, results within 45 minutes. See privacy.