Photo and Signature Size for Exam Forms: SSC, UPSC, IBPS and Others
The photo and signature sizes recent exam notices ask for, what changed with live photo capture, and how to get any photo between the minimum and maximum KB.
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Every upload slot has two limits
Exam and job portals check each photo and signature against a size range in KB, such as 20 to 50 KB, and often against pixel dimensions too, such as 200 by 230. A file can fail for being too small as well as too large, which surprises a lot of people.
Requirements change between exams and between years, so the official notification for your exam is always the final word. Read its instructions section once and write down, for each slot: format, minimum KB, maximum KB, and any pixel or centimetre size.
What recent notices have asked for
These are the figures given in recent notices and widely followed guidance. Check them against the notice for your own cycle before you upload.
IBPS (PO, Clerk, RRB, SO):
- Photo: 200 by 230 pixels, 20 to 50 KB, JPG
- Signature: 140 by 60 pixels, 10 to 20 KB
- Left thumb impression: 240 by 240 pixels, 20 to 100 KB
- Handwritten declaration: 800 by 400 pixels, 50 to 100 KB
The exact declaration wording and the thumb impression rules are in our IBPS and SBI upload guide.
UPSC:
- Photo: JPG, 20 to 200 KB
- Signature: JPG, 20 to 100 KB, and recent instructions ask you to sign three times on one sheet and upload that single image
- A live photo is also captured during the application and compared with your uploaded photo
SSC:
- Photo: captured live through your webcam or phone camera during the application, so an existing photo cannot be uploaded
- Signature: JPG, 10 to 20 KB, about 4 cm wide and 2 cm high
Each exam has its own detailed guide: UPSC, SSC and RRB and NEET UG.
Live photo capture: what changed
SSC and UPSC now take a photo of you through the camera while you apply. You cannot pick a file for this step, so compression does not apply, but the same rules for a good photo do:
- Face a window or a bright lamp so your face is evenly lit, with no strong shadow behind you
- Use a plain, light-coloured wall as the background
- Remove caps, masks, and glasses, and look straight at the camera
- Keep your face filling the outline shown on screen
Where a portal asks for both a live photo and an uploaded photo, use a recent uploaded photo. A mismatch between the two can stop the application.
How to get a photo inside the KB range
A phone photo is usually 2 to 6 MB and thousands of pixels wide, far above any form limit. The quickest route is the Exam Photo and Signature Resizer: pick your exam and the slot, frame the photo, and it produces a JPG at the right pixel size and inside the KB range, raising files that would fall below the minimum.
If your exam is not listed and you prefer to do it step by step:
- Crop: in Crop Image, choose the 3:4 portrait shape, which is close to most passport-style specifications
- Resize: if the notice gives pixel dimensions, enter them in Resize Image with Keep proportions turned off
- Compress: in Compress Image, choose the maximum from the notice, such as Under 50 KB, or type it with Other size
The compressed file lands under the maximum and usually close to it, which keeps it above the minimum as well. If a small, already-resized photo is below the minimum, resize it a little larger and compress it again.
Signatures and thumb impressions
Sign with a black or dark blue pen on plain white paper, and photograph it in daylight with the phone held flat above the page. Then frame it tightly in the resizer with Signature selected, so there is little empty paper left and the file lands inside the signature limit.
A clean signature on white paper compresses well below 20 KB without looking blurry. A grey or shadowed background is what usually pushes a signature over the limit, so good light matters more than the camera.
For a thumb impression, use a stamp pad, press once without smudging, and photograph and crop it the same way.
Check before you upload
- Open each file and confirm it is the right way up and clearly readable
- Check the size in your file manager. Mac and Windows count KB slightly differently, so a file near the limit can look different on each. Our guide to why upload forms say a file is too large explains this
- Name files the way the notice asks, if it gives names such as photo and signature
- Keep the final files in one folder in case the portal asks you to upload again
The Docsdom tools mentioned here run in your browser, so your photo and signature are not uploaded anywhere except the exam portal itself.
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Free, with no account. It runs in your browser, so your files are not uploaded.
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