Will the image still look original at 500 KB?

For nearly all photographs viewed on a screen, yes. Differences only appear under pixel-level inspection.

Can I compress a HEIC or RAW-ish phone photo directly?

HEIC files from iPhones are decoded here and re-encoded as JPG or PNG in one pass. Camera RAW formats need to be exported from your camera software first.

Resize an image to 500 KB

500 KB suits high-resolution scans, portfolio images and email attachments that must stay light. Drop your photo in below — the target is already set to 500 KB, and everything runs inside this browser tab, so the image never leaves your device.

Target file size

Dimensions

Output format

How to get a photo under 500 KB without it turning to mush

Crop before you compress

Empty background costs bytes. Cropping tight on the subject leaves more of the size budget for the detail that matters.

Match the required dimensions

Most forms cap both KB and pixels. Set the dimension preset here as well so a 500 KB file is not rejected for being the wrong shape.

Use JPG for photos

PNG stores photos far less efficiently. Choosing JPG output often reaches the target with visibly better quality.

Who asks for 500 KB?

500 KB is the practical ceiling for email attachments, forum uploads and high-resolution scans that still need to move quickly.

Settings that actually reach 500 KB

You can keep 2500–3000 px on the long edge here with quality around 80. This is the point where compression is a convenience rather than a compromise.

The mistake that gets uploads rejected

Emailing ten 500 KB images individually. Most mail servers cap the total message, not the single file — combine document scans into one PDF instead.

Questions about 500 KB uploads

Will the image still look original at 500 KB?: For nearly all photographs viewed on a screen, yes. Differences only appear under pixel-level inspection.
Can I compress a HEIC or RAW-ish phone photo directly?: HEIC files from iPhones are decoded here and re-encoded as JPG or PNG in one pass. Camera RAW formats need to be exported from your camera software first.