4x6 Photo Size

How the 4x6 photo size crops phone pictures

A landscape 4×6 print uses a 3:2 shape. Filling it with a 4:3 phone photo trims 11.1% of the original area. A centered crop trims 5.6% of the image height at the top and another 5.6% at the bottom. In portrait the trim is on the left and right.

For a 4,032 × 3,024 px landscape photo, the Fill crop keeps 4,032 × 2,688 pixels, enough for 672 PPI on a 6×4 inch print. Fit keeps the entire image on a 5.33 × 4 inch area with about a third of an inch of white space on each side.

On an iPhone, open the Camera controls and choose Aspect. Shoot in 4:3 and leave space around faces and feet when you expect to crop for 4×6 later. Settings → Camera → Grid can help you judge the margins. For an existing photo, check the crop here before ordering.

• Apple’s Camera aspect and grid controls

Make a 4×6 print file

Choose a photo. The tool opens with 4×6 paper and uses the photo's orientation. Switch between portrait and landscape if you need the print to sit a certain way in a frame.

Use Fill for a borderless file and tap to position the crop. Use Fit to keep all of the photo with white borders where needed. Download the JPG, select 4×6 at your lab, and check its final preview. At home, check that the print dialog uses 4×6 paper and the intended scaling.

4×6 inches and 10×15 cm

Both sizes have a 2:3 portrait ratio. Their physical sizes differ slightly because 4×6 inches converts to 10.16×15.24 cm. At 300 PPI, a 10×15 cm print uses about 1,181 × 1,772 px, compared with 1,200 × 1,800 px for a 4×6.

Pick the size your lab actually offers. A file prepared for one can have the right proportions for the other, but the physical print, paper fit, or reported density may differ after the lab scales it. The same ratio alone does not make the papers interchangeable.

Check sharpness before you export

For a 4×6 at 240 PPI, aim for 960 × 1,440 usable pixels in portrait. At 150 PPI, the equivalent is 600 × 900 pixels. Use the pixels inside the final crop to decide whether the source has enough detail for your print.

The export tool can size a smaller image to the requested pixel dimensions. That scaling does not recreate detail in faces or text. If the source PPI is low, try a less aggressive crop, use the original file instead of a messaging app copy, or choose a smaller print.