12 x 18 inches (30.5 x 45.7 cm)
How many pixels for a 12 x 18 print?
For a sharp 12 x 18 print you need 3600 x 5400 pixels (19.4 megapixels) at 300 pixels per inch. At 200 PPI, 2400 x 3600 pixels still look sharp at arm's length, and 1800 x 2700 (150 PPI) is the usual floor for a print seen from a few feet away.
| Quality | Portrait (width x height) | Landscape | Megapixels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sharp, 300 PPIPhoto quality, even held in the hand | 3600 x 5400 | 5400 x 3600 | 19.4 MP |
| Good, 200 PPILooks sharp at arm's length | 2400 x 3600 | 3600 x 2400 | 8.6 MP |
| Fair, 150 PPIFine on a wall, seen from a few feet away | 1800 x 2700 | 2700 x 1800 | 4.9 MP |
Check your photo for a 12 x 18 print
Drop in a photo or type its size in pixels. The photo is read on your device and never uploaded.
Your photo stays on this device: only its width and height are read, in your browser. Nothing is uploaded.
Or try an example
Add a photo or type its size to see how it prints at 12 x 18, and at every other common size.
Will it print sharp at 12 x 18?
How common image sizes print at 12 x 18, filling the paper. A 12 MP phone photo comes out at 224 PPI, good, with 11% trimmed to fit.
| Image | At 12 x 18 | Trimmed to fit |
|---|---|---|
| 24 MP camera photo6000 x 4000 (24 MP) | Sharp333 PPI | None |
| 12 MP phone photo4032 x 3024 (12.2 MP) | Good224 PPI | 11% |
| 4K video frame3840 x 2160 (8.3 MP) | Fair180 PPI | 16% |
| Full HD frame or screenshot1920 x 1080 (2.1 MP) | Too low90 PPI | 16% |
| Instagram portrait post1080 x 1350 (1.5 MP) | Too low75 PPI | 17% |
| Small web image1024 x 768 (0.79 MP) | Too low56 PPI | 11% |
| Early camera phone photo640 x 480 (0.31 MP) | Too low35 PPI | 11% |
The 12 x 18 shape and cropping
A 12 x 18 print has a 3:2 shape. 3:2 photos (most cameras) fit it with nothing trimmed. Other shapes lose part of the picture to fill the paper:
- 4:3 (most phones): 11% trimmed
- 16:9 (video and widescreen): 16% trimmed
- 5:4 (Instagram's 4:5 portrait posts): 17% trimmed
- 1:1 (square posts): 33% trimmed
To keep the whole photo, choose "fit" instead of "fill" when you order, and accept a white border, or pick a print size closer to the photo's shape.
If your photo is too small for 12 x 18
- Find a bigger copy. A photo saved from a chat, a social network or a web page is often a smaller copy of the original, which can have several times the pixels.
- Print smaller. The calculator above shows the largest size your photo prints sharp at.
- Upscale it. Pixelperfect redraws a 1024 x 768 web image at about 2370 x 1770 pixels, which takes it from 56 to 131 PPI at 12 x 18 (too low). That is the limit: the free plan returns about 4 megapixels, which reaches only about 139 PPI at 12 x 18, so for a print this size look for a larger original instead. The added detail is drawn by AI rather than recovered, so check small text and faces before you print. How AI upscaling works
12 x 18 print questions, answered
How many pixels is a 12 x 18 at 300 DPI?
What is the minimum resolution for a 12 x 18 print?
How many megapixels do I need for a 12 x 18 print?
Can I print a 12 x 18 from a phone photo?
Can upscaling make a small photo big enough for a 12 x 18?
Other print sizes
Printing smaller?
12 x 18 needs a large original. For prints up to about A4, an upscale can turn a small photo into one that looks sharp at arm's length. Your first 3 upscales each month are free.