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Known Participant
Jan 19, 2026 6:15 PM UTC
Question

Calculation for Exporting JPG from InDesign at the correct Pixel Size

Exporting JPG from InDesign as anything other than 72dpi will change the pixel size from the size of the document.

Example: Document size 1000x1000px will export at 92dpi at 1333x1333px. 

 

It's really frustraiting when you need to export at specific resolution for printing or web, so I ran some tests and found the calcuations to adjust document size so it will export at the correct size for your intented resolution. 

 

To use this calulation, in document setup:

Type your intended export pixel size and multiply it with the decimal from the chart below. Set the unit as Pixels or type px after the number.

[intented export pixel size] * [decimal from the chart below] 

Example: 1200px*.75 =900 document pixel width (exports at 1200px at 96dpi)

 

Export ResolutionMultiply Indended Export Pixel Size By:
72 dpi0.00
96 dpi0.75
150 dpi0.48
300 dpi0.24
600 dpi0.12
1200 dpi0.06

 

I think it will work well enough for output dpi 300 and under, but over 600 you have to use such a small artboard I'm not sure that would be workable. 

8 replies

leo.r
Community Expert
Community Expert
Jan 19, 2026 7:33 PM UTC
quote

It's really frustraiting when you need to export at specific resolution for printing or web


By @lflammini

 

P.S. And especially pixel units should never be used in documents designed for printing.

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lflamminiAuthor
Known Participant
Jan 19, 2026 7:49 PM UTC

I don't think it really matters so long as your following the requested print specifications? If they request pixels, I'll do that, if they request inches then I'll do that. 🤷‍♀️

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rob day
Community Expert
Community Expert
Jan 19, 2026 8:57 PM UTC

Hi @lflammini , InDesign has a Pixel Ruler Unit, but it has nothing to do with image resolution—the Pixel unit is static and always equals 1/72 of an inch.

 

If you want to export a JPEG to a specific pixel dimension, set your Rulers to Inches, and divide the target pixel dimension by the page dimension as Inches.

 

Here my page is 5" x 5". If I want to export a 2200 x 2200 Pixel JPEG, I would set the Resolution to 440PPI (2200/5 = 440)

 

875465i6BF4793FA2B52723.png

 

 

The JPEG’s Image Size in Photoshop:

 

875466i3FD60EA58063AAD8.png

 

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leo.r
Community Expert
Community Expert
Jan 19, 2026 7:31 PM UTC
lflamminiAuthor
Known Participant
Jan 19, 2026 7:46 PM UTC

I thought you meant the rulers affected the export settings for a second and I was confused. hah

I use points on my document rulers, not pixels. I use pixels when my web designer needs specific output resolution and pixel width. This was my solution so I don't have to dump an exported jpg into photoshop to re-size it. 

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