Compress an image to 2 MB

Where 2 MB limits come from

The first row explains a lot of "max 2 MB" messages. PHP's upload_max_filesize setting defaults to 2M, and plenty of hosts never change it. PHP counts 2M as 2,097,152 bytes, so a 2,000,000-byte file from this tool passes with room to spare.

For X and YouTube images, the Twitter header and YouTube banner and thumbnail pages crop to the right size and keep the file under 2 MB in one step.

What 2 MB holds

In our tests, at good JPEG quality:

PNG screenshots and graphics

A PNG screenshot of a large or high-resolution screen easily runs to several megabytes, because PNG is lossless. Exported as JPG or WebP at high quality, the same picture is usually well under 2 MB with text still crisp. In a JPG, transparent areas turn white; WebP keeps them transparent.

When your photo is already under 2 MB

Then there's nothing to do. The tool would re-save it at high quality and keep it under 2 MB, but the new file can be a little larger than the original. Use the original as it is.

When the upload still fails

• Format: some forms refuse WebP and HEIC. Choose JPG. iPhone HEIC photos open in Safari; elsewhere, export them as JPG first.
• Pixel size: a form can cap dimensions as well as bytes. Set the max width.
• A total limit: some forms cap the whole submission, not each file. Compress to 1 MB or 500 KB so several files fit.

How to compress to 2 MB

1. Drop your photos, one or a batch.
2. 2 MB is already selected. Add a max width if the site has a pixel limit.
3. Check each result's size and dimensions.
4. Download them one by one or together as a zip.

Everything runs in your browser; your photos are never uploaded.