How to Reduce Photo Size on Android (Samsung, Pixel, Any Phone)

Which method works on my phone?

Android makers ship their own gallery and camera apps, so menu names vary between Samsung, Google Pixel, Xiaomi, OnePlus, Motorola and others. The steps below use Samsung's and Google's wording; on other brands, look for the same words in the editor's menu or the camera settings.

How do I resize a photo in Samsung Gallery?

Samsung's Gallery has a built-in Resize tool that scales a photo down by percentage. It cannot make a photo larger, and it does not let you pick a JPEG quality or a target in KB.

1. Open Gallery and tap the photo, then tap the Edit (pencil) icon.
2. Tap More options (the three dots, top right) and choose Resize.
3. Pick a percentage and tap Done.
4. To keep the original, tap the three dots again and choose Save as copy (called Save copy on some versions). Tapping Save replaces the original.

Can Google Photos reduce photo size?

Only partly. Google Photos is built for backup and quick edits, not for setting a file size. What it can and cannot do:

• Can crop: cropping removes pixels, so the saved copy is smaller, but you lose part of the picture.
• Storage saver backups: cloud copies are compressed, and photos over 16 MP are resized to 16 MP. This changes the backup, not the file on your phone or the photo you send.
• Recover storage (in Google Photos settings on the web) converts existing Original quality backups to Storage saver, to free up account storage.
• Free up space deletes the phone's copies of photos that are already backed up. It frees space but does not compress anything.
• Cannot resize to a pixel width, set a JPEG quality, or hit a target such as 100 KB.

Which camera settings make Android photos smaller?

Two settings decide the size of every future photo: the resolution and the file format. Neither changes photos you have already taken.

• Samsung: tap the resolution button at the top of the camera viewfinder and choose 12MP rather than 50MP or 200MP. In Camera settings > Advanced picture options, High efficiency pictures saves HEIF instead of JPEG, which is often around half the size.
• Google Pixel: photos are 12 MP by default. Pro models can switch to 50 MP in the camera's settings panel (Pro tab, Resolution); leave it on 12 MP for everyday shots.
• Other brands: look for Resolution, Picture size or Aspect ratio in the camera settings, plus an option called HEIF or High efficiency.

How do I compress a photo to an exact size on Android?

For a form or website with a limit such as 200 KB or 1 MB, use a browser compressor. Fast WebP Converter works in Chrome on Android, processes the photo on the phone itself and never uploads it. It is free for a single image, with nothing to install.

1. Open fastwebpconverter.com/compress in Chrome.
2. Tap to add photos; Android's photo picker opens.
3. Choose Target size and type the limit, for example 200. Or keep the quality slider and start around 75.
4. Optional: turn on Limit width and enter 1600 to cut the pixel count too.
5. Download. The file lands in your Downloads folder, visible in the Files app and in your gallery's Downloads album.

JPG photos stay JPG. HEIF photos cannot be decoded in Chrome, so the compressor cannot read them on Android: turn off High efficiency pictures (or your brand's HEIF option) for photos you will need to upload. The tool also strips location (GPS) data from the copy.

Typical Android photo sizes

If you are on an iPhone too, the same ideas apply with different menus: see reduce photo size on iPhone. If a site still refuses the file, fix an image that is too large to upload.