How to crop an image into a circle
- 1Drop a photo on the box or pick one from your phone or computer. HEIC photos from an iPhone work too.
- 2Drag the circle over the face or object and pull a corner handle to make it bigger or smaller.
- 3Set an output size if you need one, then download the round PNG.
Tips for a round profile picture
- Center the face: a circle cuts off more at the corners than a square, so keep the eyes near the middle and leave a little room above the head.
- Mind the pixels: the result size under the frame tells you how many pixels you keep. Crop from a large photo so the picture stays sharp.
- Plain backgrounds look calm: for a cut-out look, remove the background with the background remover first, then crop the result here.
Want a square, a 4:5 post or another shape instead? The same tool does it on the image cropper page. To scale the round picture to an exact size afterwards, use the image resizer.
Profile picture sizes the big platforms ask for
All four platforms below ask for a square file, so for them a square crop from the image cropper is enough. Use this page when you need the circle baked into the file. The numbers come from each platform's own help pages:
| Platform | Size in pixels | File |
|---|---|---|
| LinkedIn profile photo | 400 × 400 up to 7680 × 4320 | PNG or JPG, up to 8 MB |
| X profile photo | 400 × 400 recommended | JPEG, GIF or PNG, under 2 MB |
| YouTube profile picture | Shown at 98 × 98 | JPG, GIF, BMP or PNG, up to 15 MB, no animated GIF |
| Slack profile photo | 512 × 512 to 1024 × 1024 | Not specified |
A square of 1000 × 1000 pixels covers all four, and a round crop of that size still looks sharp when a site shows it at 200 pixels. More sizes, including covers and posts, are on the social media image sizes page.
Why the corners are transparent
Image files are always rectangles, so a circle needs a format that can mark pixels as see-through. PNG stores an alpha channel for exactly that, as the W3C specification describes, and WebP supports transparency as well. JPG has no alpha channel, which is why the JPG button is switched off in circle mode: the corners would have to be filled with a solid color, and the circle would stop being a circle on any other background. PNG is the safe pick; every app, editor and upload form accepts it. Choose WebP only when the file goes on your own website and you want it smaller.
If you place the PNG on a page, keep the background behind it plain. The transparent corners show whatever is underneath, so a busy pattern behind the circle makes the edge harder to read.
Output size and sharpness
The number under the frame is the pixel size of your crop, for example 1,320 × 1,320. Without an output size, that is what you download. With an output size, the crop is scaled to it. Scaling down is safe: a 1,320-pixel crop set to 400 × 400 keeps all the sharpness you can see at that size and gives a much smaller file. Scaling up is not: a 300-pixel crop set to 1000 × 1000 looks soft, because the missing pixels are made up. If the face is small in the photo, use the original image from the camera instead of a copy that was sent through a messenger.
Sources
- LinkedIn Help: profile photo requirements
- X Help Center: help with uploading a profile photo
- YouTube Help: channel profile picture and banner
- Slack Help: upload a profile photo
- W3C: PNG Specification: optional alpha channel
- Google Developers: WebP: transparency support
Frequently asked questions
Why is the downloaded file square?
Image files are always rectangles. The parts outside the circle are fully transparent, so on a website, in a slide or in a document the picture shows as a clean circle on any background.
Why can I not save a circle as JPG?
JPG cannot store transparency, so the corners would be filled with a solid color. PNG and WebP keep them see-through. PNG is the safe choice, since every app and upload form accepts it.
What size should a round profile picture be?
Check what the site or app asks for and type that size under Output size. LinkedIn takes profile photos from 400 × 400 pixels, X recommends 400 × 400, and Slack wants between 512 × 512 and 1024 × 1024. Leave the field empty to keep every pixel of your crop.
Do I need a round file for a social media profile picture?
Not for the platforms in the table below: LinkedIn, X, YouTube and Slack all ask for a square file. A round PNG with transparent corners is for places that show the file exactly as it is: your own website, a slide, an email signature, a document or a team page. If you upload a round PNG where a square is expected, the transparent corners are shown in whatever color the app puts behind the image.
Can I rotate or flip the photo first?
Yes. Rotate in 90-degree steps and flip horizontally or vertically, then place the circle. Flips act on the photo as you see it.
Why does the circle look blurry after cropping?
The circle only keeps the pixels inside it. If you crop a 300-pixel wide face out of a photo and then set an output size of 1000 × 1000, the browser has to invent pixels and the result goes soft. Crop from the largest version of the photo you have, and set an output size that is smaller than, or equal to, the pixel count shown under the frame.
Is my photo uploaded?
No. Your browser crops the image and saves the PNG on your own device. Nothing is sent to a server.