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What resolution for an A2 (420 × 594 mm) print at 240 DPI?

An A2 (420 × 594 mm) print at 240 DPI needs 3,969 × 5,613 pixels, or 22.3 megapixels. A 12 MP phone photo (4,032 × 3,024) prints at up to 12.6 × 16.8 in at 240 DPI. It needs 2× to cover A2 (420 × 594 mm), which is free.

Last updated 2026-10-05

Pixels you need

Pixels
3,969 × 5,613
Print size
16.54 × 23.39 in (42 × 59.4 cm)
Megapixels
22.3

240 DPI is plenty for inkjet prints on a wall or desk. Most people cannot tell it from 300 at normal distance.

Will your image be big enough?

  • A 12 MP phone photo (4,032 × 3,024) prints at up to 12.6 × 16.8 in at 240 DPI. It needs 2× to cover A2 (420 × 594 mm), which is free.
  • A 1024 × 1024 AI image (1,024 × 1,024) prints at up to 4.27 × 4.27 in at 240 DPI. Even 4× with a final resize falls short of A2 (420 × 594 mm), so start from a larger source or print at a lower DPI.
  • A 1920 × 1080 screenshot or video frame (1,920 × 1,080) prints at up to 4.5 × 8 in at 240 DPI. It needs 4× to cover A2 (420 × 594 mm), on Pro and still on your device.

Calculate for your image

Enter your image size. The upscale button updates to the scale you need.

A2 (420 × 594 mm) at other resolutions

DPIPixelsMegapixelsGood for
300 DPI4,961 × 7,01634.8Photos, close viewing
240 DPI3,969 × 5,61322.3Inkjet, wall prints
200 DPI3,307 × 4,67715.5Large prints
150 DPI2,480 × 3,5088.7Posters
100 DPI1,654 × 2,3393.9Banners

How to prepare the file

  1. Crop your image to the 16.54 × 23.39 shape so the lab does not cut anything off.
  2. Compare your pixels with 3,969 × 5,613. The calculator above does it for you.
  3. Upscale with the smallest scale that reaches the size, then resize to the exact pixels.
  4. Export PNG, or JPG at quality 95, and order the print at this size.

Questions

How many pixels do I need for an A2 (420 × 594 mm) print at 240 DPI?

3,969 × 5,613 pixels: 16.54 × 23.39 inches multiplied by 240 dots per inch, rounded to whole pixels.

Is 240 DPI good enough for A2 (420 × 594 mm)?

240 DPI is plenty for inkjet prints on a wall or desk. Most people cannot tell it from 300 at normal distance.

Can a phone photo be printed at A2 (420 × 594 mm)?

Yes, with 2× upscaling. A 12 MP photo of 4032 × 3024 falls short of 3,969 × 5,613 on its own.

What does DPI mean for a digital file?

Dots per inch is how many image pixels land on each inch of paper. The pixel count is what matters: the DPI field saved in a file does not change the image, the printer scales the pixels to the paper size.

Does upscaling add real detail for printing?

It adds plausible detail: sharper edges and texture instead of the soft blur of ordinary resizing. It cannot recover detail the camera never captured, such as text too small to read.

Neighbouring sizes