Free US Passport Photo Online — Make a 2×2 in (51×51 mm) Photo

Need a US passport photo? Upload a recent photo and IDPhotoBy sizes and crops it to the U.S. Department of State's official standard — a 2×2 inch (51×51 mm) photo with your head 25–35 mm (about 1 to 1 3/8 inches) from chin to crown on a plain white or off-white background — with the US Passport document already selected. The same photo works for a printed photo and for the digital photo you upload for online renewal. It is free — no payment required.

The U.S. Department of State sets the rules for a US passport photo, and IDPhotoBy checks your photo against them. Here is what the State Department requires:

• Size 2×2 inches (51×51 mm) — a square, color photo taken in the last 6 months.
• Head size 25–35 mm — measured from the bottom of your chin to the top of your head (about 1 to 1 3/8 inches), with your head centered. Your hair may extend past the edges of the photo, as long as your entire head is shown and is the appropriate size.
• Plain white or off-white background — with no shadows, and no texture, objects or lines.
• Natural expression — you can smile, but keep your eyes open and your mouth closed, looking straight at the camera.
• No glasses — take off any eyeglasses, sunglasses or tinted glasses before the photo.
• An evenly lit face — with no shadows on your face or behind you.
• Bareheaded — hats and head coverings are only accepted for religious reasons.

The US passport photo size is 2×2 inches, which is 51×51 mm (about 5.1×5.1 cm) — a square photo with your head centered. For a printed photo you bring or mail in, that 2×2 inch print at photo resolution is what the passport agency expects.

For the online renewal channel you upload a digital passport photo instead. The State Department accepts a JPG, JPEG, PNG, HEIC or HEIF file sized between 54 KB and 10 MB. IDPhotoBy outputs a square file at print resolution that lands well inside that range, so the same photo prints correctly and passes the digital-upload size limits.

• Upload a recent, well-lit photo with the tool on this page — the US Passport document is already selected.
• IDPhotoBy resizes and crops your photo to 2×2 inches (51×51 mm) with your head at the required size, and checks that your background is a plain white or off-white with no shadows.
• Preview the result — check the head size and position, the plain background, and that your eyes are open and clearly visible.
• Download the finished photo free, then print it at 2×2 inches or upload the digital file for online renewal.

The free US passport photo maker doubles as a size checker and resizer for a photo you already have — there is no app to download, it runs online in your browser.

IDPhotoBy sizes and crops the photo you upload to the 2×2 inch (51×51 mm) US standard and checks that the background is a plain white or off-white without shadows. It does not retouch, beautify or otherwise edit your face. That matters here: the State Department tells you to submit the original, unchanged photo, and not to change it using computer software, phone apps, filters or artificial intelligence. So your face is left exactly as it is — only the framing, size and background are prepared.

Cropping and repositioning are fine: the State Department itself lets you crop or reposition your photo when you upload it for online renewal, which is exactly what this tool does. What we do not do is promise acceptance — no online tool can. Your file is prepared to the published State Department requirements, and the passport agency makes the final decision. And it stays free: no paid plan, no per-photo charge and no skip-the-line fee.

You do not need a studio. You can take a US passport photo at home with a phone and still get a compliant result:

• Stand about 60 cm (2 feet) in front of a plain white or off-white wall, in soft, even daylight so there are no shadows behind you or on your face.
• Face the camera straight on, with a natural expression and your eyes open. Have someone take the photo, or use a timer, and hold the phone at eye level.
• Fill the frame with your head and the top of your shoulders, then upload it here and let IDPhotoBy crop it to the exact 2×2 inch size.

The same steps work for a baby or child's passport photo — lay an infant on a plain white sheet and photograph from directly above, with the eyes open if you can, then crop to size. Take the photo within the last 6 months so it still looks like the applicant.

• A busy or colored background. It must be plain white or off-white, with no shadows, patterns or objects behind you.
• Wearing glasses. Eyeglasses are no longer accepted — take them off before the photo.
• An edited or filtered photo. Beauty filters, retouching and AI edits are rejected; use a straight, unedited photo and let the tool handle only the size, crop and background.
• Smiling with an open mouth. A natural smile is fine, but keep your mouth closed and your eyes open, looking at the camera.
• The wrong size. The photo must be 2×2 inches (51×51 mm) with your head 25–35 mm from chin to crown — IDPhotoBy sets this for you.

Requirements can change — check the official U.S. Department of State passport-photo rules (travel.state.gov) before you apply; they are the final authority on whether a photo is accepted.