When you need this tool
Before sending a photo to print, ordering a canvas, or submitting artwork to a print shop. The shop’s requirement is usually “300 DPI at final size”, and this tells you whether your file meets it.
How it’s calculated
- Convert the printed width to inches (cm ÷ 2.54, or mm ÷ 25.4).
- Divide the image’s pixel width by those inches.
Only the pixels and the print size matter. The DPI value stored in the file’s metadata doesn’t change the answer.
What the numbers mean
- 300 DPI and up: sharp at reading distance. Standard for photos, books and brochures.
- 200–299 DPI: good for most prints; differences are hard to see.
- 150–199 DPI: fine for posters and banners seen from further away.
- Below 150 DPI: likely to look soft or pixelated up close.
The tool also shows how many pixels you’d need for 300 DPI at your chosen size.
Common mistakes
Changing DPI instead of size. Setting 72 to 300 in an editor without resampling just makes the print smaller.
Measuring the wrong side. Use the side that matches the dimension you’re printing. For a landscape print, that’s usually the width.
Related: image print size calculator and cm to pixels.