Passport & visa photo guides

Can you wear glasses in a US passport photo?

No. You cannot wear glasses in a US passport photo. Since November 2016, the US Department of State has not accepted photos with eyeglasses, except in rare cases with a signed doctor's statement that they cannot be removed for medical reasons. If you must wear them medically, there must be no glare and your eyes must be fully visible.

US baby & infant passport photo requirements

A US baby or infant passport photo must be 2 x 2 inches with a plain white or off-white background, the same size as an adult's. For children under 1, the eyes do not have to be fully open. No other people, hands, toys, pacifiers, or props may appear, and there must be no shadows on the face or background.

US passport photo with a head covering

US passport photos must normally be taken without any hat or head covering. The only exceptions are head coverings worn daily for religious purposes or for a medical reason (such as after chemotherapy). In those cases your full face must be visible from the bottom of the chin to the top of the forehead, with no shadows, and you must submit a signed statement explaining the reason.

How much does a US passport photo cost, and where to get one

A US passport photo usually costs about $10-20 in store: roughly $15-17 at pharmacies like CVS and Walgreens, about $15 at USPS post offices, and around $5-6 at warehouse clubs like Costco. You can also take a compliant photo yourself against a plain white wall and check and crop it online for less.

How to take a passport photo at home

To take a passport photo at home: stand about 0.5-1 m in front of a plain white wall in even, shadow-free light; have someone hold the camera at your eye level roughly 1.2 m (4 feet) away; face the camera straight on with a neutral expression and your mouth closed; take the photo in landscape or portrait with your head and shoulders in frame; then check and crop it against the official specification. Don't use filters, beauty modes, or AI editing — those are rejection reasons.

Passport photo size in pixels, inches, mm and cm

A US passport photo is 2 x 2 inches, which is 51 x 51 mm, 5.1 x 5.1 cm, and 600 x 600 pixels at 300 DPI (up to 1200 x 1200 px). A UK/Schengen photo is 35 x 45 mm (about 413 x 531 px at 300 DPI), and a Canadian photo is 50 x 70 mm (about 591 x 827 px at 300 DPI). Pixel size depends on the DPI: pixels = inches x DPI.

Where to get a passport photo near you

You can get a passport photo near you at most pharmacies (CVS, Walgreens, Rite Aid), US post offices (USPS), warehouse clubs (Costco, Sam's Club), and some FedEx and Walmart locations — usually as a walk-in with no appointment for about $10-20. You can also take one at home against a plain white wall and check and crop it online, which avoids a trip and the cost of retakes.

CVS vs Walgreens vs USPS vs Costco passport photos

CVS and Walgreens charge about $16-17 for a passport photo, USPS about $15, and Costco about $5-6 (membership required). All are walk-in. The trade-off is that if the photo is rejected by the government you pay again to redo it; taking your own and validating it against the spec online first avoids that.

The cheapest way to get a passport photo

The cheapest way to get a passport photo is to take it yourself at home against a plain white wall and check it against the official spec online — you avoid the $15-17 per-attempt pharmacy fee and the cost of paying again if it's rejected. Among in-store options, warehouse clubs like Costco are cheapest at about $5-6 for members.

The best online passport photo tool: what to look for

The best online passport photo tool checks your photo against the exact official government specification, crops it to the correct size, and — importantly — does not AI-edit or replace the background, because the US (as of 2026), UK and Canada reject digitally altered photos as manipulation. Look for one that measures your head size and eye position, tells you honestly what fails, only charges when the photo passes, and backs it with a refund if it's rejected.