PDF Medic OnlineCompress image to 1MB
Make a photo smaller than 1MB for a form or an upload — the box below is already set.
Files never leave your device
How to Compress image to 1MB
- Press Choose pictures and pick one photo or several, or drop them on the box above. They stay on your device.
- Fit a size is already chosen, with 975 in Must be under (KB).
- Press Compress, then read the notes under the result: they say if a photo was also made smaller in pixels.
- Press Download, or Download all (ZIP) when you compressed several.
What 1 MB means for a phone photo
A photo from a phone camera is often 12 megapixels (4032 × 3024 pixels) and a few MB. Getting it under 1 MB usually takes more than a lower quality setting, so it helps to know what the tool did with our test pictures:
- A 12-megapixel picture full of fine detail, 3.5 MB: made 2495 × 1871 pixels (about 4.7 megapixels) at a JPEG quality of about 80%, 970 KB.
- An even grainier version, 6 MB: 2459 × 1844 pixels, also at about 80%.
- A simpler 12-megapixel picture with large smooth areas, 1.3 MB: all 4032 × 3024 pixels kept, at about 83%, 925 KB.
- A 12-megapixel photo of a page of printed text, 3.9 MB: 1878 × 2505 pixels at about 76%.
Why the tool trims pixels instead of crushing quality
Fit a size first tries to keep every pixel, searching for the highest JPEG quality between 92% and 40% that fits. It never goes below 40%. If even that is too big, it makes the photo smaller in pixels, step by step, until it fits, and then uses the room left under 975 KB to raise the quality again. That is why the detailed test picture ended up at about 80% quality with fewer pixels, rather than at full size with very low quality.
About 4.7 megapixels is still more than twice the pixels of a full HD screen, so a photo like that looks fine when viewed whole. Where you will notice the difference is when you zoom in on small details, or print large.
iPhone photos (HEIC)
iPhones often save photos as HEIC. In Safari on iPhone, iPad or Mac this page can open them, and the compressed copy is a JPG under 1 MB, which many forms that refuse HEIC will take. A HEIC photo that was already under 1 MB may come back unchanged, still as HEIC, because the JPG version would have been bigger; use Convert image if you need a JPG of it. Browsers that cannot read HEIC show a message instead of compressing.
Why 975
This tool counts 1 KB as 1,024 bytes, so 975 in the box is 998,400 bytes. That is under 1 MB whether a site means 1,000,000 bytes or 1,048,576. The number applies to each photo on its own, so it suits forms that allow 1 MB per photo.
Everything happens in your browser: your file is never uploaded to any server. You can check: once your file is open, turn on airplane mode — the tool still works.
Questions
How do I compress a photo to 1 MB on iPhone?
Open this page in Safari, press Choose pictures and pick the photo from your library. Keep 975 in the box, press Compress, then Download. Nothing needs to be installed.
Can I keep all the pixels and still get under 1 MB?
Sometimes. Simple photos do. For a detailed one, crop away what you don’t need with Crop image first: a smaller crop has fewer pixels to fit, so more of them can stay. If the place you are sending it allows 2 MB, use the 2MB page instead.
How big can I print a 1 MB photo?
Our detailed test photo kept 2495 × 1871 pixels. At 300 pixels per inch, a common print sharpness, that is about 8 × 6 inches.
Can I compress many photos to 1 MB at once?
Yes. Choose them all together. Each photo is fitted under 975 KB on its own, and you download them together as a ZIP file.
Is my file uploaded?
No. Compress image to 1MB runs in your browser on your own device. The file is never sent to our server or anyone else. Once your file is open you can even turn on airplane mode.
Is it free?
Yes. No sign-up, no limits on how many files, and no watermark is added to your file.
Does it work on a phone?
Yes, in any modern browser on iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows or Linux. Very large files work best on a computer, because a phone browser has less memory.