Resize photo to 600x600 pixels

Exactly 600 × 600 pixels, JPEG, 240 KB or less, in color, taken within the last 6 months against a plain white or off-white background, with the head filling 50–69 % of the image height, a neutral expression and no glasses. The “DV lottery / DS-160” option here makes that file and checks the 240 KB limit before download.

No dates are announced: DV-2027 registration was postponed in November 2025 and had not opened as of September 2026, and there are no DV-2027 or DV-2028 dates yet. Check dvprogram.state.gov; any other site claiming it is open is a scam. When it opens, entry costs a $1 fee and needs a scan of your passport’s bio and signature page; the photo rule stays exactly 600 × 600 px, JPEG, 240 KB or less.

The DS-160 upload rejects a file that is not a JPEG, not square, smaller than 600 × 600 or larger than 1200 × 1200 pixels, or over 240 KB; a photo that breaks the composition rules (head outside 50–69 % of the height, shadows or a background that is not plain white or off-white, glasses) can also be refused. Choose “DV lottery / DS-160”, fit the head between the guide lines and upload the downloaded .jpg itself, not a screenshot or a chat-app copy; if it still fails, retake the photo against a white wall in even light. If the confirmation page shows an “X” instead of your photo, the upload failed: the State Department says to bring one printed 2 × 2 in photo with the DS-160 confirmation page to the embassy or consulate — choose “Plain 600×600” here and print the 4×6 in sheet.

No. The photo must be taken within the last 6 months, and the official DV instructions warn that submitting the same photo as a prior year’s entry may make you ineligible. Take a new photo for every entry — a phone camera and a white wall are enough.

Yes. 600 pixels at 300 DPI is exactly 2 inches, and the file carries 300 DPI, so printing it at 100 % (“actual size”) from a computer gives a true 2 × 2 inch photo. For a photo lab or kiosk, pick “Plain 600×600” or “1200×1200” (the DV option is upload-only and makes no sheet), order the 4×6 in print sheet as a normal 4×6 print at 100 % with no fit, fill or borderless cropping, and cut along the grey lines.

Choose the 600×600 option and drop the photo: the tool crops a square from the original instead of squeezing it, so the face keeps its proportions. Drag and zoom until the top of the head touches the red line and the chin sits in the shaded band, then download. If the part you keep is smaller than 600 × 600 pixels it has to be enlarged and turns soft — use the photo straight from the phone camera, not a small copy from a chat app.

A square JPEG from 600 × 600 up to 1200 × 1200 pixels, 240 KB or less, in color, taken within the last 6 months on a plain white or off-white background, with the head filling 50–69 % of the image height. The 600 × 600 file this tool makes passes the DS-160 as well as the DV lottery; the 1200 × 1200 option is meant for printing.

The part of the original you kept was smaller than the output — under 600 × 600 pixels for the DV and Plain options, or under 1200 × 1200 for the 1200×1200 option — so it had to be enlarged, often because the source was small or you zoomed in far. The tool shows a warning when that happens. Use the photo straight from the phone camera, which is thousands of pixels wide, not a small copy saved from a chat app.

No. The photo is cropped, resized and compressed entirely inside your browser. It never leaves your device and nothing is stored.