Why Your Images Are So Big and How to Fix Them

If your website or documents feel heavy, oversized images are often the main reason. You might see just a small picture on the page, yet the file behind it is several megabytes. Here we explain the most common causes and how to correct them using the Compress It Small image tools.

1. Images exported at camera resolution

Modern cameras and smartphones capture huge photos, often 3000–6000 px wide or more. Uploading these files directly is rarely necessary. If your blog content area is 1200 px wide, anything larger than that simply wastes bandwidth.

Use the resizer on Compress It Small to reduce images to an appropriate width before applying compression. This alone may cut sizes by 70–80 %.

2. Using the wrong format for the job

Saving every picture as PNG “just in case” is a common mistake. As explained in our “JPG vs PNG” guide, photos usually belong in JPG, while PNG is best reserved for logos, icons and transparent graphics. Switching bulky PNG photos to JPG can make an immediate difference.

3. Overly aggressive quality settings in editors

Some editors export at the maximum quality available by default. While this sounds good, the last few percentage points often add a lot of weight without visible benefit. Using a quality slider around 70–85 % for web photos is typically enough.

4. Hidden metadata and unnecessary colour profiles

Images may contain metadata such as GPS coordinates, camera settings and large colour profiles. Individually these are small, but across hundreds of images they add up. The image optimiser can strip non-essential metadata while leaving the visual content unchanged.

5. Building a sustainable habit

Rather than treating optimisation as a one-time fix, build it into your routine: capture, edit, resize, compress, then upload. Once you have a stable workflow, your pages will be lighter, faster and easier to maintain.

Many people are surprised when a single photo is 10 MB, 20 MB, or even larger. Modern devices capture extremely high-resolution images by default, which is great for quality but problematic for uploads, websites, and storage.

The Real Reasons Images Are So Large

• High resolution far beyond display needs
• Uncompressed or lossless formats
• Excessive color depth
• Embedded metadata

Resolution vs Visual Quality

Higher resolution does not always mean better quality. Most screens cannot display the full detail captured by modern cameras.

A 4000×3000 image displayed at 800 pixels wide wastes data.

Common Image Formats Explained

• JPG: Best for photos, smaller size
• PNG: Best for transparency, larger files
• WebP: Modern format with excellent compression

You can compare formats in detail in our JPG vs PNG guide.

Metadata: The Invisible Size Killer

Images often contain camera data, GPS coordinates, and editing history. Removing metadata can significantly reduce file size.

How to Reduce Image Size Properly

1. Resize to the maximum display size needed
2. Choose the correct format
3. Apply smart compression
4. Remove unnecessary metadata

Use the Compress It Small image tools to optimise images directly in your browser.

Best Practices for Different Use Cases

• Websites: Resize and compress aggressively
• Email: Aim for under 1 MB per image
• Print: Keep higher resolution but clean metadata

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Uploading raw camera images
• Using PNG for photographs unnecessarily
• Ignoring resolution limits
• Compressing multiple times incorrectly

Final Thoughts

Large images are not a problem — poor optimisation is. With the right workflow, you can keep images sharp, professional, and lightweight.

For advanced workflows, combine image optimisation with PDF compression using Compress It Small PDF tools.

The real reasons your images are huge

Most oversized images are not “mysteriously heavy”—they are heavy for predictable reasons. Once you identify the reason, the fix is straightforward.

• Too many pixels: modern phones capture very high-resolution photos; great for prints, heavy for web.
• Wrong format: saving photos as PNG can multiply file size.
• Screenshots and UI captures: large canvases and sharp edges can inflate size.
• Extra metadata: camera metadata adds some weight and may reduce privacy.

Start by selecting the right format using JPG vs PNG, then resize and compress with Image Tools.

Image size has two components: pixels and format

When an image file is “too big,” it is usually because of (1) too many pixels and/or (2) the wrong format. A 4000×3000 photo is excellent for printing, but it is overkill for a website hero image or an email attachment. The same image saved as PNG can be several times larger than JPG because PNG is lossless.

Start by choosing the correct format using the decision logic from JPG vs PNG and then reduce dimensions for your actual use-case. If you need a quick, guided workflow, use Image Tools and keep your output targeted for screens.

A practical workflow for “small but sharp” images

1. Resize first: set a realistic width for the target (blog, portfolio, product listing).
2. Choose the right format: use JPG for photos, PNG for simple graphics that need transparency.
3. Compress gradually: reduce quality in small steps and check at 100% zoom.
4. Strip unnecessary data: metadata is not always huge, but removing it improves privacy and can reduce size.

After optimizing images, you can convert them into a lightweight PDF using JPG to PDF—useful for portfolios, forms, and multi-photo uploads.

Ideal image dimensions: practical ranges for blogs, portfolios, and shops

There is no single “perfect” size, but there are safe ranges that balance sharpness with fast loading. Use the smallest dimensions that still look good at your intended display size. Oversized images slow down pages and waste bandwidth, especially on mobile.

Blogs and articles

• Featured/hero image: ~1200–2000px wide (choose based on your theme’s layout)
• In-article images: ~1000–1600px wide (often enough for full-width content)
• Thumbnails: ~300–600px wide (depending on card/grid design)

Portfolios

• Project previews: ~1200–1800px wide, keep file size controlled for smooth scrolling
• Detail shots: ~1600–2400px wide only when users will zoom

Shops and product listings

• Listing images: ~800–1200px wide (fast grid browsing)
• Product detail images: ~1200–2000px wide (balance clarity with load time)

After choosing dimensions, compress using Image Tools and validate that your final file sizes are reasonable (typically a few hundred KB for most use-cases). If you are embedding these images into PDFs for submissions, convert with JPG to PDF.

File-size targets and how to hit them reliably

For many sites, image file size matters as much as image dimensions. As a practical starting point:

• Thumbnails: often 50–150 KB
• Standard in-article images: often 150–400 KB
• Large hero images: often 250–600 KB (depending on complexity)

To hit these targets without guesswork, resize first, then compress. If you compress without resizing, you often trade away quality while keeping too many pixels. For a step-by-step workflow, see how to reduce image size without losing quality.

From images to upload-ready PDFs

If your upload requires a PDF (common for portals and forms), do not paste huge photos directly into Word and export. Instead, compress the images first, then combine them into a clean document using JPG to PDF. If the final PDF is still heavy, run as the last step.

For portal limits and submission workflows, see PDF upload limits explained.

Real-world examples: choosing the smallest output

When you optimize an image for the web, you are balancing three things: perceived sharpness, load time, and compatibility. The most common failure mode is compressing aggressively while leaving the image at a huge pixel size. The better approach is to decide the maximum display width first (for example, the width of your content column) and resize to that. Once the image is at the right dimensions, compression becomes far more effective and quality holds up better.

A practical workflow is: resize → choose format → compress → verify. Use Image Tools to do the resizing and compression, then preview the image at 100% zoom. If the image contains text (screenshots, UI), keep quality slightly higher than you would for a photo. If the image is a photo, JPG will often be smaller; if you need transparency or crisp edges, PNG may be better—see the JPG vs PNG breakdown.

If your final goal is an upload to a form or a submission portal, convert optimized images into a PDF using JPG to PDF. That creates a single clean document and lets you do a final size pass with PDF Compressor. This is especially useful when a portal accepts one file but you have multiple photos or screenshots to include.

Finally, do not ignore naming and context. Search engines and accessibility tools benefit from descriptive alt text and filenames. Users benefit from images that load instantly. Those small signals add up, especially across many pages and posts.

• Need exact page-size guidance? Use ideal image sizes for blogs and shops.
• Need a step-by-step reduction workflow? Read reduce image size without losing quality.
• Need to understand why images are huge? See why your images are so big.

Optimization checklist for repeatable results

When you optimize an image for the web, you are balancing three things: perceived sharpness, load time, and compatibility. The most common failure mode is compressing aggressively while leaving the image at a huge pixel size. The better approach is to decide the maximum display width first (for example, the width of your content column) and resize to that. Once the image is at the right dimensions, compression becomes far more effective and quality holds up better.

A practical workflow is: resize → choose format → compress → verify. Use Image Tools to do the resizing and compression, then preview the image at 100% zoom. If the image contains text (screenshots, UI), keep quality slightly higher than you would for a photo. If the image is a photo, JPG will often be smaller; if you need transparency or crisp edges, PNG may be better—see the JPG vs PNG breakdown.

If your final goal is an upload to a form or a submission portal, convert optimized images into a PDF using JPG to PDF. That creates a single clean document and lets you do a final size pass with PDF Compressor. This is especially useful when a portal accepts one file but you have multiple photos or screenshots to include.

Finally, do not ignore naming and context. Search engines and accessibility tools benefit from descriptive alt text and filenames. Users benefit from images that load instantly. Those small signals add up, especially across many pages and posts.

• Need exact page-size guidance? Use ideal image sizes for blogs and shops.
• Need a step-by-step reduction workflow? Read reduce image size without losing quality.
• Need to understand why images are huge? See why your images are so big.

Common mistakes that create multi‑MB images

When you optimize an image for the web, you are balancing three things: perceived sharpness, load time, and compatibility. The most common failure mode is compressing aggressively while leaving the image at a huge pixel size. The better approach is to decide the maximum display width first (for example, the width of your content column) and resize to that. Once the image is at the right dimensions, compression becomes far more effective and quality holds up better.

A practical workflow is: resize → choose format → compress → verify. Use Image Tools to do the resizing and compression, then preview the image at 100% zoom. If the image contains text (screenshots, UI), keep quality slightly higher than you would for a photo. If the image is a photo, JPG will often be smaller; if you need transparency or crisp edges, PNG may be better—see the JPG vs PNG breakdown.

If your final goal is an upload to a form or a submission portal, convert optimized images into a PDF using JPG to PDF. That creates a single clean document and lets you do a final size pass with PDF Compressor. This is especially useful when a portal accepts one file but you have multiple photos or screenshots to include.

Finally, do not ignore naming and context. Search engines and accessibility tools benefit from descriptive alt text and filenames. Users benefit from images that load instantly. Those small signals add up, especially across many pages and posts.

• Need exact page-size guidance? Use ideal image sizes for blogs and shops.
• Need a step-by-step reduction workflow? Read reduce image size without losing quality.
• Need to understand why images are huge? See why your images are so big.

How to keep images sharp on phones and laptops

When you optimize an image for the web, you are balancing three things: perceived sharpness, load time, and compatibility. The most common failure mode is compressing aggressively while leaving the image at a huge pixel size. The better approach is to decide the maximum display width first (for example, the width of your content column) and resize to that. Once the image is at the right dimensions, compression becomes far more effective and quality holds up better.

A practical workflow is: resize → choose format → compress → verify. Use Image Tools to do the resizing and compression, then preview the image at 100% zoom. If the image contains text (screenshots, UI), keep quality slightly higher than you would for a photo. If the image is a photo, JPG will often be smaller; if you need transparency or crisp edges, PNG may be better—see the JPG vs PNG breakdown.

If your final goal is an upload to a form or a submission portal, convert optimized images into a PDF using JPG to PDF. That creates a single clean document and lets you do a final size pass with PDF Compressor. This is especially useful when a portal accepts one file but you have multiple photos or screenshots to include.

Finally, do not ignore naming and context. Search engines and accessibility tools benefit from descriptive alt text and filenames. Users benefit from images that load instantly. Those small signals add up, especially across many pages and posts.

• Need exact page-size guidance? Use ideal image sizes for blogs and shops.
• Need a step-by-step reduction workflow? Read reduce image size without losing quality.
• Need to understand why images are huge? See why your images are so big.