Photo Cropper
Drag the box to choose your crop, or lock an aspect ratio for a profile picture or post. Nothing is uploaded.
Drop an image here or click to choose
JPG, PNG or WebP · processed on your device
Cropping without losing quality
Cropping never reduces quality in the part you keep — it simply discards the rest. The pixels inside your crop box are copied across untouched, so a crop from a 4000-pixel photo is as sharp as the original. What you lose is resolution: crop to a quarter of the frame and you have a quarter of the pixels, which matters if you then need to print or display it large. The rule is to crop from the largest original you have, and only once.
Which aspect ratio to use
| Ratio | Shape | Used for |
|---|---|---|
| 1:1 | Square | Profile pictures, Instagram grid posts |
| 4:5 | Portrait | Instagram portrait — the largest feed format |
| 9:16 | Tall | Stories, Reels, TikTok, phone wallpapers |
| 16:9 | Widescreen | YouTube thumbnails, video, presentations |
| 3:2 | Classic photo | Standard camera output, 6×4 prints |
| 1.91:1 | Wide | Link preview cards on social platforms |
Profile pictures are almost always displayed as circles even when you upload a square, so keep the subject well inside the middle and leave margin at the edges.
Cropping well
- Rule of thirds. Place the subject a third of the way in rather than dead centre. Eyes on the upper third line is the standard for portraits.
- Do not crop at a joint. Cutting a person at the wrist, elbow, knee or ankle looks like an accident. Crop mid-limb instead.
- Leave room in the direction of movement or gaze. A subject looking left wants space on the left.
- Straighten before cropping. A tilted horizon is much more noticeable than a slightly loose crop.
- Crop once, from the original. Repeatedly cropping and re-saving a JPEG compounds compression loss each time.
How to use the Photo Cropper
- Drop in an image, or click to choose one.
- Drag inside the box to move it, or drag a corner to resize.
- Lock an aspect ratio if you are cropping for a specific platform.
- Choose a format and download.
Frequently asked questions
Does cropping reduce image quality?
Not in the retained area — those pixels are copied unchanged. You do lose total resolution, since you are keeping fewer pixels overall. Save as PNG if you want no re-compression at all.
Are my photos uploaded?
No. Cropping happens entirely in your browser using the canvas API, and the page works with no internet connection.
How do I crop to an exact size in pixels?
Crop to the right shape here, then use the image resizer to set exact dimensions. Doing it in that order avoids distortion.
What size should a profile picture be?
Square, at least 400 × 400 px, and larger is better since platforms downscale. Remember the image will usually be displayed as a circle.
Can I crop a photo to passport size?
Crop to the right ratio here — 35 × 45 mm is roughly 0.78:1 and US 2 × 2 in is square — then resize to the exact pixel dimensions. Check your country’s rules on head size and background separately.
Related tools
Last reviewed September 4, 2026. Results are estimates for general information only.