UPSC photo and signature size
UPSC sets file-size ranges rather than fixed pixel dimensions — and asks for your signature three times. Get both inside the required range.
- Choose Photograph, Signature or Thumb impression — the requirement for this exam is already filled in.
- Select your image and check the preview, moving the crop up or down if a face sits badly in the frame.
- Click Resize & Compress. The JPEG downloads inside the required size range.
What UPSC asks for
| Item | Dimensions | File size | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| Photograph | No fixed pixel size | 20–200 KB | JPG |
| Signature | No fixed pixel size | 20–100 KB | JPG |
The three-signature rule
This is the UPSC-specific requirement that surprises people. You are asked to sign three times, one below the other, vertically, on a single sheet of plain white paper in black ink — then photograph or scan that whole sheet as one image.
The purpose is consistency: three signatures show your natural variation, which is what gets compared at the examination hall. So sign normally all three times rather than carefully reproducing the first. Leave a little space between them, keep them roughly the same size, and crop to the block of three when you upload.
Because the image is tall and narrow, upload it as a single file — do not crop to one signature and do not stack three separate scans.
No fixed dimensions, but that isn't freedom
UPSC states a file-size range and not a pixel size, which sounds easier and causes its own problem: candidates upload a full-resolution phone photo, find it is 4 MB against a 200 KB ceiling, and compress it so hard that the face becomes unusable.
The sensible approach is to reduce the dimensions first and only then compress. The tool above caps the longest edge at 600 pixels, which is ample for a document photograph, and then finds the quality that lands inside the range — so you get a clean file rather than a heavily-compressed large one.
The photograph itself
- Plain white background, front-facing, centred.
- Face filling around 75% of the frame, with both ears visible and the edges of the face clear.
- Eyes open, natural expression — UPSC's guidance specifically asks you not to smile or frown.
- Black ink for the signature sheet, on plain white paper.
Some UPSC examinations have in the past asked for the photograph to carry your name and the date printed across the bottom. That requirement comes and goes between cycles and between examinations, so read your notification rather than assuming either way.