Resize an image to 4 × 6 inches
Four by six inches, also called 4R, is the standard photo print. Phone photos are a different shape, so a lab trims them for you. Crop yours here first and decide what is trimmed.
- Runs in your browser
- Nothing is uploaded
- No sign-up
- No watermark
Drag & drop your image here
or tap to browse · you can also paste from the clipboard
JPG · PNG · WebP · GIF · BMP · AVIF · SVG · up to 50 MB each
Choose an imageBefore
Result
Processed image will appear here.
How to use the 4 × 6 inch photo resizer
Add your photo and move the crop box, which has the 4 × 6 shape, until it frames the picture the way you want. The download is 1200 × 1800 pixels at 300 DPI, the size a lab prints 4 × 6 inches from, with nothing left for the lab to trim.
- Add your photoAny orientation. The frame starts upright or landscape to match it.
- Place the crop boxMove it so the trimmed strip falls on sky, floor or background.
- Download and print1200 × 1800 pixels at 300 DPI, ready for a lab or a home printer.
About this tool
A 4 by 6 inch print has a 2:3 shape. Most phone cameras take 3:4 pictures, and that small difference means a strip has to come off: about a ninth of the picture, split between two opposite edges. Left to the lab's machine, the strip is taken evenly from both sides, which is how heads and feet get clipped in group photos.
Here the crop box has the 4 by 6 shape and you place it yourself, so the trim falls where it does no harm. The picture is then resized to 1200 × 1800 pixels, the count that 300 DPI needs, and the DPI is saved in the file. A lab receiving a file that already has the right shape prints it without cropping anything further.
What you get
- 4 × 6 inch upright or 6 × 4 landscape
- You choose which part of the photo is trimmed
- 1200 × 1800 pixels at 300 DPI, or another resolution
- Option to fit the whole photo with white borders
- DPI saved in the file, so it opens at print size
When to use the 4 × 6 inch photo resizer
Ordering prints from a lab or kiosk
Photos sent in the print's own shape come back with heads, feet and captions intact.
Prints for a standard frame or album
Most ready-made frames and slip-in albums are built around the 4 by 6 inch print.
Postcards
A standard postcard is close to 4 by 6 inches, so the same file works for a card printed at home.
A matching set of prints
Cropping a mixed batch of phone and camera photos to one shape makes them sit evenly on a wall or a page.
What a 4 × 6 print trims from each photo shape
| Photo shape | Typical source | What is trimmed |
|---|---|---|
| 2:3 | DSLR and mirrorless cameras | Nothing: the shapes match |
| 3:4 | Most phone cameras | About 11%, split between the two long edges |
| 9:16 | Phone wide mode and video stills | About 16%, split between the two short ends |
| 1:1 | Square social media pictures | A third, from two opposite sides |
How it works
The 4 × 6 format is older than digital cameras: it is the shape of a 35 mm film frame, 36 by 24 millimetres, enlarged. Cameras descended from film bodies still shoot 2:3, which is why their pictures fill a 4 × 6 print completely. Phone sensors are 3:4, the proportion of early computer screens, and that mismatch is the whole reason phone prints get cropped.
On this page the mismatch is settled before the file leaves you. The crop box is locked to 2:3 and starts as the largest box that fits your picture, centred. Moving it shifts the trimmed strip from one edge to the other; shrinking it zooms in. The selected area is then scaled to 1200 × 1800 pixels at 300 DPI, or to whatever your chosen resolution needs, and the resolution is recorded in the file.
Common problems and how to fix them
- Someone at the edge is still cut off
- A 4 × 6 print cannot hold all of a wider or taller photo. Move the box to favour that side, or choose "Fit the whole picture" and accept a border.
- The lab added white borders anyway
- Check that the lab's order page is set to borderless and to "fill" and not "fit". A file in the right shape needs neither, but the setting can still add a margin.
- The print looks soft
- The crop box selected a small part of the photo. The result says how much it was enlarged. Select a larger area or start from the original file, not a copy sent through a chat app.
- I wanted a landscape print
- Tap "6 × 4 landscape" under the size fields. The crop box turns to the wide shape.
Frequently asked questions
What size is a 4 × 6 photo in pixels?
1200 × 1800 pixels at 300 DPI, which is what photo labs work to. 800 × 1200 pixels, or 200 DPI, still makes an acceptable print.
Why does my phone photo not fit a 4 × 6 print?
Because the shapes differ. A 4 × 6 print is 2:3 and most phone photos are 3:4, so the photo is slightly too tall, or too wide when turned. Either a strip is trimmed, or the whole photo is printed with white borders on two sides.
What is 4R size?
4R is the photo-lab name for a 4 × 6 inch print, which is 10.2 × 15.2 cm. It is the same size under a different label.
Can I print the whole photo without losing anything?
Yes. Choose "Fit the whole picture" and the photo is placed inside the 4 × 6 frame with a border on two sides, in the colour you pick. Nothing is cropped.
What is 4 × 6 inches in centimetres?
10.16 × 15.24 cm, usually sold as 10 × 15 cm. Labs in metric countries print the same size under that name.
How many megapixels do I need for a 4 × 6 print?
About 2.2 megapixels for 300 DPI, which is 1200 × 1800 pixels. Any phone made in the last decade records several times that, so there is room to crop.
Does the lab need 300 DPI?
It needs enough pixels. 300 DPI at 4 × 6 inches is 1200 × 1800 pixels, and labs print well from that. The DPI value saved in the file simply tells their software the intended size.