Save time and space by resizing images.
It’s easy to resize an image in Photoshop without losing quality by adjusting the pixel dimensions. Large photos or those with a high resolution — images with a greater number of pixels — can take a long time to download and require a large amount of space to store. When you want to send an image for someone to glance at, or you need a photo to post on a digital platform, a lower-resolution image with a smaller file size is essential.
Explore the Image Size dialog box.
Adjust width and height or change an image’s resolution, measured by pixels per inch (PPI), by clicking Image › Image Size. This will permanently change the size of the image file.
Choose your unit of measurement.
Change your unit of measurement by clicking the drop-down menu next to Width or Height. Choose from pixels, inches, centimeters, percent of the original size, and more.
Use the Export function.
To create a new, smaller file and keep the original size file intact — in other words how you resize pictures in Photoshop without losing quality — simply click File › Export As. The Export function also lets you to adjust pixels, scale down by percentage, or export as a JPEG with decreased quality.
Get the quality just right.
Zoom in or out of your image in either the Export As or Image Size dialog boxes to ensure your resized image has the right amount of detail for your use case.
How resolution relates to file size.
The higher the resolution, the more detail an image has, and the bigger an image file is — because it’s denser with data. One way to shrink a file size is to lower the resolution, which doesn’t have to change the image dimensions. If you keep the resample box checked as you resize the image in Photoshop, the software will change the amount of pixel data inside of it. This shrinks the file size but keeps the dimensions — or document size — the same.
Consider the end goal for your image.
Different use cases require different image resolutions. For most web uses, 72 PPI is sufficient. However, a higher resolution around 300 PPI or higher is better for creating a high-quality print.
Understand resampling options.
Choose an interpolation method to specify how data is resampled in your image. It’s often best to go with automatic and let Photoshop choose for you, but Bicubic Sharper is a great option for reductions and Bicubic Smoother is good for enlargements.
How to resize images in Photoshop.
Follow these steps to change the size of your image using the Image Size function. Go to File › Save As to create a new version of your photo before making permanent changes. This way, you keep your original image intact.
1. Open it:
Select the image you want to resize, then go to the main menu bar and select Image › Image Size to open the Image Size dialog box.
2. Fit it:
In the Fit To drop-down menu, choose from several popular web and print sizes or use the Width and Height numbers to precisely resize in pixels, inches, or other measurements.
3. Reframe it:
The chain link icon next to Width and Height constrain its proportions — whatever adjustments happen to the width correspond in the image’s height. Click it to untie width and height to change the aspect ratio of your image — also known as document size or canvas size.
4. Resample it:
Keep the checkbox next to Resample selected if you want to keep your image dimensions the same while adjusting the resolution. Otherwise, adjusting resolution automatically changes the dimensions.
5. Save it:
Click OK to apply the changes to your image.
Try your hand at adjusting image size.
Discover more about changing the size of an image with easy-to-follow tutorials. Then explore easy ways to improve resolution in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom.
Follow these image size how-tos.
Learn to adjust image size and resolution by completing some step-by-step tutorials.
Use the Super Resolution tool.
Increase resolution and pixels in just a click with Super Resolution in Lightroom.
Frequently asked questions.
The Photoshop on the Web Beta Blur allows you to easily scale your photos while preserving the existing crop ratio. Note that you must have a valid Adobe Creative Cloud subscription with Photoshop to use this service. To resize your images, take the following steps:
1. Go to Image > Image Size.
2. Keep the link icon highlighted to preserve proportions.
To resize the entire image, press "Ctrl + T" (Windows) or "Cmd + T" (Mac) to activate the Transform tool. Then, drag the corners to resize the image proportionally or hold down the Shift key while dragging a corner to keep the original aspect ratio. To precisely change the size of the image, enter the desired dimensions in the width and height boxes in the options bar. To resize only one dimension, hold down the Shift key and enter the value for the dimension you want to change.
Yes, you can batch resize images in Photoshop using the "Image Processor" script. This script lets users process a series of images. You can even specify the desired size for the output images. To use the Image Processor script, go to File > Scripts > Image Processor. Once there, select the images you want to process, choose the destination folder, and select the size you want to resize to.
To resize an image in Photoshop by dragging, follow these steps:
1. Open the image in Photoshop.
2. Select the Transform tool by pressing Ctrl + T (Cmd + T for Mac). You can also go to Edit > Free Transform.
3. Drag one of the corners of the transform box while holding down the Shift key. This maintains the image’s aspect ratio.
4. Release the mouse button to apply the transformation.
Alternatively, you can also use the "Image Size" dialog box to resize an image. To do this, go to Image > Image Size and enter the desired size in the "Width" and "Height" fields. Make sure that the "Constrain Proportions" box is checked to maintain the aspect ratio of the image.
To scale an image with layer styles in Photoshop, you’ll need to select the proper layer in the Layers panel. Choose Layer > Layer Style > Scale Effects. You can also right-click the FX icon and choose Scale Effects. Enter the appropriate percentage or drag the slider. Select Preview to preview those changes in the image.
In some cases, it might be worth it to convert the layers to a Smart Object. You can then use the Transform tool by pressing Ctrl+T (Cmd+T on Mac) or selecting the Edit > Free Transform tool. Drag one of the corners of the transform box while holding down the Shift key. This maintains the aspect ratio.
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