Index Card 3×5 in pixels
900 × 1500 px
at 300 DPI, the print standard · Index Card 3×5 is 76.2 × 127 mm · 1.4 megapixels
Index Card 3×5 at every resolution
A sheet of paper has no pixel size of its own. It has a physical size — 76.2 × 127 mm, or 3 × 5 inches — and a pixel count only appears once you choose how many pixels go in each inch.
| Resolution | Pixels | Megapixels | Uncompressed 24-bit | Use |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 72 DPI | 216 × 360 | 0.1 MP | 0.2 MB | Screen only — visibly soft in print |
| 96 DPI | 288 × 480 | 0.1 MP | 0.4 MB | Screen only — visibly soft in print |
| 150 DPI | 450 × 750 | 0.3 MP | 1.0 MB | Drafts, internal documents, large-format viewed from a distance |
| 200 DPI | 600 × 1000 | 0.6 MP | 1.7 MB | Acceptable for office printing |
| 300 DPI | 900 × 1500 | 1.4 MP | 3.9 MB | The commercial print standard |
| 400 DPI | 1200 × 2000 | 2.4 MP | 6.9 MB | Fine detail and small type |
| 600 DPI | 1800 × 3000 | 5.4 MP | 15 MB | Line art, technical drawings, archival scanning |
| 1200 DPI | 3600 × 6000 | 21.6 MP | 62 MB | Archival and reproduction work |
What the file size means for Index Card 3×5
At 300 DPI an uncompressed Index Card 3×5 is 3.9 MB, and at 600 DPI it is 15 MB — four times as much, because doubling the resolution doubles both dimensions. That squaring is the reason large formats become unwieldy so quickly: the same 300 DPI that produces a manageable file at small sizes produces 3.9 MB here.
If a file is going to a printer, ask what they want before choosing. 300 DPI is the safe default and 150 is often enough for anything read from more than arm's length.
Setting up the canvas
Width: 900 px
Height: 1500 px
Resolution: 300 pixels/inch
Colour: CMYK for print, RGB for screen
Bleed: 3 mm on every edge → 971 × 1571 pxThe bleed figure is the one people forget: artwork that runs to the edge must extend 3 mm past it on all four sides, so the working canvas is larger than the finished sheet.
Frequently asked questions
What is Index Card 3×5 in pixels?
There is no single answer — it depends on the resolution. At the print standard of 300 DPI, Index Card 3×5 is 900 × 1500 pixels. On screen at 72 DPI it is only 216 × 360.
What resolution should an Index Card 3×5 document be?
300 DPI for anything going to a commercial printer, which makes the canvas 900 × 1500 pixels. 150 DPI (450 × 750) is acceptable for a draft or an internal document. Large formats read from a distance can go lower — a poster viewed from two metres looks sharp at 150 DPI, and dropping to it here saves 2.9 MB of file.
How big is an Index Card 3×5 file at 300 DPI?
About 3.9 MB uncompressed at 24-bit colour — 900 × 1500 × 3 bytes. Compression brings that down a great deal for flat artwork and very little for a photograph, which is why a print-ready Index Card 3×5 PDF is usually tens of megabytes.
How many megapixels is Index Card 3×5 at 300 DPI?
1.4 megapixels. For comparison, Index Card 3×5 at 600 DPI is 5.4 MP — quadruple, because doubling the resolution doubles both dimensions.
Index Card 3×5 in millimetres, inches and points · All paper sizes · Screen resolutions