How to use the Compress Image
- 1
Drop one or more photos (JPG, PNG or WebP) into the box, or click to choose them.
- 2
Keep Target size selected and tap the limit your form gives, such as 50 KB, or tap Custom and type your own. Switch to Quality if you would rather set the level yourself.
- 3
Choose JPG or WebP as the output. JPG is the safe choice for any official website.
- 4
Press Compress. Compare Original and Compressed in the preview, then download each file or use Download all.
Getting a photo under 20 KB or 50 KB for a form
Recruitment and admission portals are strict about file size. A notification might say the photograph must be between 20 KB and 50 KB and the signature between 10 KB and 20 KB, and the upload button simply refuses anything outside those numbers. Phone photos are typically 2 to 6 MB, so they need to shrink by a factor of a hundred or more.
In Target size mode you give the upper limit and the tool does the trial and error for you. It saves the photo again and again at different quality settings, narrowing in on the highest quality that still fits under your limit. The result usually lands just below it: ask for 50 KB and you will typically get something between 45 and 50 KB.
For a range such as 20–50 KB, pick the upper number. You get the best picture the portal will accept, comfortably above the minimum. Always read the size printed next to the result before uploading, because a handful of forms also reject files that are too small.
When quality alone isn't enough
Lowering quality only goes so far. Past a certain point a JPG starts to show blocky squares and smudged edges, which can get a photo rejected by the person who checks it. So the tool doesn't push quality below 40%. If the file is still too big at that level, it reduces the width and height of the image instead, then looks for the best quality again at the new size.
This is the same thing an experienced person would do by hand. A 4000 × 3000 pixel phone photo can't be a crisp 20 KB file at full size, but at around 500 pixels wide it can, and it still looks sharp on a form preview or an admit card. When the dimensions have been reduced, the result line says "resized to fit" and shows the new pixel size.
If a form demands exact dimensions as well, for example 200 × 230 pixels or 3.5 × 4.5 cm, set those first with the Resize Image tool and then compress the resized photo here. Once the dimensions are already small, the target is usually met by quality alone.
Typical results
These are rough figures from ordinary phone photos. Your numbers will vary with the picture: a plain background compresses far better than a busy street scene.
| Original | Target | Usual outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 4 MB phone photo, 4000 × 3000 | 200 KB | Roughly 1300 to 2000 px wide, looks the same on a phone or laptop screen |
| 4 MB phone photo, 4000 × 3000 | 50 KB | Roughly 650 to 1000 px wide, good for forms and email |
| 4 MB phone photo, 4000 × 3000 | 20 KB | Roughly 400 to 650 px wide, fine for a passport-style photo |
| Signature scan on white paper, 1 MB | 20 KB | Often reached at high quality with no resizing |
| 1 MB screenshot (PNG) | 100 KB | Saved as JPG; sharp text may need a higher target |
JPG, WebP and what happens to PNG files
The output is either JPG or WebP. JPG is accepted by every website and every phone, and it is the format almost all Indian government and exam portals ask for, so it is the default. WebP produces noticeably smaller files at the same visual quality and is a good choice for your own website or for sending on chat apps, but many official forms will reject it.
PNG files are converted, because PNG has no quality setting to work with. If a PNG has transparent areas, such as a signature with no background or a logo, they become white in a JPG. Choose WebP if you need to keep the transparency.
Quality mode is for when you don't have a fixed limit. Around 75% is a good balance for photos; most people can't tell it apart from the original at normal viewing sizes. If an already well-compressed JPG comes out larger than it went in, the result line says so, and you can simply keep the original.
Privacy, and a small bonus
Your photos are compressed by your own browser using its built-in image encoder. They are not uploaded, so there is no waiting on a slow connection and nobody else ends up with a copy of your face, your signature or your ID card. Large batches are processed one after another on your device; a dozen phone photos take a few seconds on a modern phone.
Saving the image afresh also drops the hidden details your camera stored inside it, such as the phone model, the date and, if location was switched on, the GPS position where the photo was taken. That is worth having when a photo is going to be posted publicly or sent to strangers.
Frequently asked questions
How do I reduce photo size to 20 KB?
Add the photo, keep Target size selected, tap 20 KB and press Compress. The tool finds the best quality that fits and shrinks the dimensions if it has to. Check that the size shown is under 20 KB, then download.
How do I compress a photo to between 20 KB and 50 KB?
Choose 50 KB as the target. The result normally comes out just under 50 KB, which sits inside the range and keeps as much quality as the portal allows.
How can I reduce a signature to 10 KB?
Tap Custom, type 10 and compress. Signatures on plain white paper compress very well, so the size is usually reached without visible loss. Crop the image tightly around the signature first for the cleanest result.
Will compressing make my photo blurry?
At sensible targets, no. Quality is never taken below 40%; beyond that the image is made smaller in pixels instead, which keeps edges clean. Very small targets on large photos do mean fewer pixels, so zooming in will show less detail.
Why can't the tool reach my target size?
With extremely small targets, a couple of KB for a big photo, even a tiny version may not fit. The result line then shows the smallest file it could make. Crop the photo or resize it first and try again.
Is it safe to compress my Aadhaar or ID photo here?
The images are processed entirely in your browser and never uploaded to a server. Closing the tab removes them from memory.
Can I compress several images at once?
Yes. Add as many as you like, set the target or quality once, and press Compress. Each image gets its own download button, and Download all saves them one after another.
Last updated on November 9, 2026