Letter size in pixels at 72, 96, 150 and 300 DPI
US Letter paper is 8.5×11 inches (215.9×279.4 mm). To print it at 300 DPI you need 2550×3300 pixels.
Because Letter is measured in whole inches, the math is easy: multiply each side by the DPI. And if all you want is to print a few images on Letter paper, you can skip it entirely. Drop them into the Letter layout tool and it places them at real size and exports at 300 DPI automatically.
Letter in pixels at common resolutions
| DPI | Letter portrait (width×height) | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| 72 | 612×792 | PDF page units (1 point = 1/72 inch) |
| 96 | 816×1056 | CSS pixels on the web (1 px = 1/96 inch) |
| 150 | 1275×1650 | Drafts, prints where sharpness isn’t critical |
| 300 | 2550×3300 | Standard print quality |
| 600 | 5100×6600 | Very fine text and line art |
For landscape Letter, swap the two numbers: at 300 DPI that’s 3300×2550 pixels.
How the numbers are worked out
DPI means dots per inch, so:
pixels = inches × DPI
At 300 DPI the width is 8.5 × 300 = 2550 and the height is 11 × 300 = 3300. If you’re starting from millimeters, divide by 25.4 first. Unlike A4, Letter comes out to whole pixels at every common resolution, so you won’t see apps disagree by a pixel.
Too few pixels, or too many?
- Too few and the print looks soft. A 1080-pixel-wide phone screenshot stretched across the full 8.5-inch width works out at about 127 DPI: readable, but not as sharp as the original.
- Too many does no harm; the file is just bigger.
- An image’s “DPI” on its own tells you little. What matters is how large it’s printed. The same 2550-pixel-wide image is 300 DPI at 8.5 inches wide and 600 DPI at 4.25 inches wide.
Making a Letter canvas in an image editor
In Photoshop, GIMP and similar apps, pick the US Letter preset when creating a new document, or enter 8.5×11 inches at a resolution of 300. If the app only accepts pixels, enter 2550×3300. Watch out for presets labeled A4: it is narrower and taller than Letter, so a page designed for one will be scaled or cut off when printed on the other.
But if your goal is to print photos, screenshots or PDFs on Letter paper, building a canvas and positioning everything by hand is the long way around. Use the Letter printing tool instead: add your files, they’re laid out at real size, and nothing is uploaded.