How to Resize an Image in Paint: Guide for Windows 10 & 11

Whether you're using Windows 10 or Windows 11, it's easy to resize an image in Paint using the "Resize" or "Resize and Skew" tool. You can also use Microsoft Paint to crop pictures, which allows you to keep part of the image while removing its outer areas. Keep reading to learn how to enlarge, shrink, and crop an image in Microsoft Paint.

How to Resize a Picture in Paint for Windows

Professional photographer Boris Polissky recommends using Paint to resize images, as it comes with every version of Windows. Just open the image in Paint, choose "Resize" or "Resize & Skew," select a percentage of how much you want to resize the image, and save the new image as a copy.

Method 1

Method 1 of 4:

Resizing an Image (Windows 11)

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1
Open the image in Paint. To do so, right-click the image, select Open with, then choose Paint from the menu.
- Alternatively, you can open Paint first from the Start menu, click the File menu, select Open, and choose the image you want to resize.
2
Click the Resize and Skew icon in the toolbar. You'll see this icon on the "Image" panel of the toolbar–it looks like a photograph inside a larger square with an arrow pointing up. You can also open the menu using the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + W.^{[1]
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Research source}

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3
Select "Percentage" if not already selected. This allows you to make the image larger or smaller by a certain percentage. For example, if you want to make the image twice as large, you'll resize it by 200%. To make it half the size it is now, you'd resize it by 50%.
4
Make sure the chain link icon is selected. You'll see this icon between the "Horizontal" and "Vertical" fields. As long as the link is selected (highlighted), changing the horizontal size will also adjust the vertical size (and vice-versa) automatically.
- If you don't do this, the image will appear warped.
5
Resize your image. Enter the percentage by which you want to increase or decrease the image size. Numbers over 100 will make the image bigger, and numbers below 100 will decrease its size.
- Your image starts at 100% (current full size) for both the vertical and horizontal values. If you change these values to "75", you'll reduce the image size to 75% of its original size.
- Similarly, if you change the values to "200%", you'll make the image twice as large as it is now.
- If you know the exact horizontal or vertical pixel count you want, you can click the circle next to "Pixels" instead.
- If you're resizing using pixels, type the number of vertical pixels you want to use into the "Vertical" text box. You can also click the chain link to change the aspect ratio and enter a different value for the horizontal value if needed.
6
Click OK to resize the image. You will see the new image size immediately.
7
Save your image to a different file. Instead of overwriting the original image, Polissky recommends making a copy.^{[2]
X
Expert Source

Boris Polissky
Professional Photographer

Expert Interview} To do this, click the File menu, then select Save As (not "Save"). Enter a name for your new file, then click OK to save it.

Method 2

Method 2 of 4:

Resizing an Image (Windows 10)

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1
Open the image in Paint. To do so, right-click the image, select Open with, then choose Paint from the menu.
- Alternatively, you can open Paint first from the Start menu, click the File menu, select Open, and choose the image you want to resize.
This option is on the middle-right side of the "Image" section at the top of the Paint window.^{[3]
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Research source}
3
Select "Percentage". If "Percentage" doesn't have a black dot next to it, click the circle next to "Percentage" to ensure that your image's size will be increased or reduced by the percentage you enter.
- Your image starts at 100% (current full size) for both the vertical and horizontal values. If you change these values to "75", you'll reduce the image size to 75% of its original size.
- Similarly, if you change the values to "200%", you'll make the image twice as large as it is now.
- If you know the exact horizontal or vertical pixel count you want, you can click the circle next to "Pixels" instead.
4
Check the "Maintain aspect ratio" box. If there is no check mark in the box next to "Maintain aspect ratio", click the box. This ensures that when you resize one aspect of the image (e.g., vertical), the other aspect adjusts automatically without warping the image.
- If this box is already checked, proceed to the next step.
5
Resize your image. Enter the percentage by which you want to increase or decrease the image size. Numbers over 100 will make the image bigger, and numbers below 100 will decrease its size.
- Your image starts at 100% (current full size) for both the vertical and horizontal values. If you change these values to "75", you'll reduce the image size to 75% of its original size.
- Similarly, if you change the values to "200%", you'll make the image twice as large as it is now.
- If you know the exact horizontal or vertical pixel count you want, you can click the circle next to "Pixels" instead.
- If you're resizing using pixels, type the number of vertical pixels you want to use into the "Vertical" text box. You can also uncheck the "Maintain aspect ratio" box to change the aspect ratio and enter a different value for the horizontal value if needed.
Doing so will apply your changes to the image.
7
Save your image to a different file. Instead of overwriting the original image, Polissky recommends making a copy.^{[4]
X
Expert Source

Boris Polissky
Professional Photographer

Expert Interview} To do this, click the File menu, then select Save As (not "Save"). Enter a name for your new file, then click OK to save it.

Method 3

Method 3 of 4:

Cropping an Image (Windows 11)

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1
Open the image in Paint. To do so, right-click the image, select Open with, then choose Paint from the menu.
- Alternatively, you can open Paint first from the Start menu, click the File menu, select Open, and choose the image you want to crop.
2
Click the Selection tool. It's the square made of a dotted line in the upper-left corner of Paint. This allows you to select the part of the image you want to keep.
3
Click and drag a box around the part of the image you want to keep. Everything outside the box you draw will be cropped from the final image.
4
Click the Crop icon in the toolbar. This icon, which is in the "Image" panel of the toolbar, looks like two overlapping right angles. Clicking the icon instantly crops out the parts of the image outside the square or rectangle you've drawn.^{[5]
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Research source}
5
Save your image to a different file. To do this, click the File menu, then select Save As (not "Save"). Enter a name for your new file, then click OK to save it.

Method 4

Method 4 of 4:

Cropping an Image (Windows 10)

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1
Open the image in Paint. To do so, right-click the image, select Open with, then choose Paint from the menu.
- Alternatively, you can open Paint first from the Start menu, click the File menu, select Open, and choose the image you want to crop.
- Understand what cropping accomplishes. Cropping an image results in keeping a smaller section of an image while "cropping" out the parts you don't want. This is ideal if you're trying to remove excess parts of your photo while maintaining its resolution.
Select is in the "Image" section of the Home tab at the top of the "Paint" window. A drop-down menu will appear.
It's the first option in the drop-down menu here.
4
Click and drag to select the part of the image you want to keep. Doing so will drag a rectangular dotted line over the image. Anything inside the dotted line will remain when you crop the picture, and anything outside the line will be removed.^{[6]
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Research source}
- If you're trying to remove a border from a photo, the best way to do so is to click in the top-left corner and drag diagonally into the bottom-right corner (or similar).
- To remove the dotted line and start over, click anywhere outside of the area surrounded by dotted lines.
It's at the top of the "Image" section of options and to the right of Select. Clicking this button will remove everything outside of the dotted lines, leaving only the part of the image that's inside.
6
Save your image to a different file. To do this, click the File menu, then select Save As (not "Save"). Enter a name for your new file, then click OK to save it.

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Question

I have an image that I need to size at 2" x 3" landscape before emailing it, so that it prints that size, no matter who prints it. What can I do?

Community Answer

The best option is to copy the image into another program, such as Microsoft Word or Open Office Draw, so that you can view what dimensions it will print out beforehand and not worry about the printer stretching the image.

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If I crop an image, do I only see a tiny image of the cropped photo?

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No. It crops wherever you selected. If you use the crop tool on a human face, it will remove everything but the face.

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When I resize up to 125 percent, it does not increase the size when I print it. How can I get the printed size increased?

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First, save your image, with a different filename/extension, then replace the initial source with a new one.

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If you don't like the change you've made, press Ctrl+Z to undo the last action.

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When printing your resized image, make sure your printer's settings aren't automatically resizing the image before printing.

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Reducing an image's size, even by a little, makes the image's file size smaller.

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