Crop images online — precise cropping for social, web, and documents
Upload an image and crop it accurately without uploading to a server. Great for profile photos, banners, thumbnails, and preparing images for PDFs and web uploads.
Image Cropper
How it works
Upload an image and crop it precisely in your browser using a professional cropper component. Choose an aspect ratio (or keep it free), then download the cropped result in JPG, PNG, or WebP.
- For social avatars and logos, 1:1 is usually best.
- For thumbnails, 16:9 is common.
- For stories/reels, 9:16 is often required.
The cropper runs fully in your browser using the HTML canvas pipeline. When you select an image, the page reads it locally, renders it into an off-screen canvas, and lets you define a crop rectangle (your chosen x/y coordinates and width/height). When you export, the script draws only that selected region to a new canvas and generates the final image file for download.
Because the processing is client-side, the tool is fast and privacy-friendly: your image does not need to be uploaded to a server. This also makes it reliable on slow connections and helpful for sensitive documents where you prefer to keep files local.
What gets changed (and what doesn’t)
- Changed: the visible frame (only the selected area is kept), and optionally the output format if you convert elsewhere.
- Not changed: the original file on your device remains untouched. The cropper creates a new copy.
Export quality notes
Cropping itself does not reduce quality. Quality changes only happen if you re-encode to a lossy format (such as JPEG) or if you downscale. For screenshots with small text, avoid aggressive re-encoding after cropping; keep the output crisp and readable.
Common use cases
Cropping is not just aesthetic — it solves practical submission and publishing problems. Below are common scenarios where a clean crop saves time, reduces confusion, and improves how professional your file looks.
- Job applications: crop scans so only the document is visible (remove desk edges, background, and camera UI).
- University portals: crop certificates to the relevant stamp/section before converting to PDF for upload.
- Blog and SEO: crop images to a consistent aspect ratio so your article cards and thumbnails look uniform.
- Social media: crop to square or portrait without cutting faces or important text.
- Receipts and invoices: crop to the content area to keep the file tidy before archiving.
Recommended aspect ratios (practical defaults)
- Square (1:1): product shots, profile images, simple thumbnails.
- Portrait (4:5): Instagram feed posts, mobile-first visuals.
- Landscape (16:9): banners, YouTube thumbnail framing, wide hero images.
- Document-style: keep the paper edges clean and crop out backgrounds to look “scan-like”.
After cropping, if the file is still heavy, use Image Tools to resize and compress for faster loading and fewer upload failures.
Related tools
Tips & Troubleshooting
These quick notes help you get clean, reliable results with Crop images online — precise cropping for social, web, and documents—especially when you’re uploading to forms, emailing files, or preparing documents for submission.
Best results
- Resize before compressing when possible—downsizing gives the biggest reductions.
- Use JPG for photos and PNG for graphics/text; avoid PNG for large photos unless needed.
- Check the output on a phone screen (most viewers are mobile).
- If you need consistent sizing, stick to standard formats (e.g., 1080×1350 for Instagram).
Troubleshooting
- If the image looks blocky, increase quality slightly or export at a higher base resolution.
- If colors shift, ensure the image is in sRGB (standard for web).
- If compression barely changes size, the file may already be optimized—try resizing instead.
- If transparency is required, use PNG; otherwise JPG will be smaller.
Privacy
Privacy note: processing runs locally in your browser. Your files stay on your device unless you choose to download the result.
Related reading
- Image compression for web: best practices
- Reduce image size without losing quality
- Why images get huge (and how to fix it)
Make the crop look “intentional”
- Align to edges: keep margins consistent so the result looks clean and deliberate.
- Protect text: leave a small buffer around important text so nothing looks cramped.
- Don’t over-crop: for IDs and certificates, keep any official seals or reference numbers fully visible.
When the crop is still too large
Cropping reduces pixel area, which often reduces file size — but not always enough. If you need a strict target (for example, “under 1MB”), follow this order:
- Crop to remove unnecessary areas.
- Resize to the real display or submission size.
- Compress with a sensible profile (stronger for photos, gentler for text-heavy screenshots).
You can handle resize and compression in one place using Image Tools.
FAQ
No. Cropping happens locally in your browser.
PNG is lossless and preserves transparency, so file sizes are typically bigger. Use JPG/WebP for smaller outputs.
Yes. Select a new file and crop again.
Does cropping reduce file size?
Usually yes, because fewer pixels are kept. However, the final size also depends on format and encoding. If you still need a smaller file, resize and compress after cropping.
Will my original image be modified?
No. The cropper creates a new exported file. Your original image remains unchanged on your device.
Which format should I export for documents?
For text-heavy screenshots or scans, PNG keeps sharp edges but can be larger. JPEG is smaller for photos. If you need a portal-friendly document, crop first, then convert to PDF using the Image → PDF tool under PDF tools.
Why does my cropped image look slightly softer?
If the export re-encodes to a lossy format or scales the image, edges can soften. Keep the output at original pixel density when possible and avoid overly aggressive compression for text.
Can I crop images on mobile?
Yes, the tool works in modern mobile browsers. For best results, avoid switching apps during export and verify the output in your downloads.
What if the file won’t upload after cropping?
Check the portal limit and target below it. Then resize to a smaller width and compress. Use the Image Tools page for a fast resize+compress workflow.