ImagesLesson
How to fix a low-resolution image for print
Select a picture in the editor, read its DPI, and add pixels with Upscale when it must stay that size. Writing 300 DPI into the file does not add pixels.
In short
Select the picture and read the DPI number in the toolbar along the top of the canvas. If it is under 300, click Edit image…, open Export, click Upscale, and click Use this.
A picture can look sharp on your screen and still print soft. The page is larger than the file's pixels, and the number in the toolbar is the DPI at the size the picture occupies now. Writing 300 DPI into the file does not add any pixels. A download whose name says label-only is that label and nothing more. In the editor you can read the number, add pixels with Upscale when the picture has to stay that size, and undo it before you export.
Upscale comes with the Creator, Publisher and Studio plans and spends 1 credit. Founders' Lifetime doesn't include AI features. On any other plan the row says On paid plans. On every plan you can read the DPI number and make the picture smaller until it reaches 300, which spends nothing.
Add the missing pixels#
Select the picture
Click the picture on the page. A box appears around it, and the toolbar along the top of the canvas shows the image controls, including a readout of the form ~ and then the DPI, and Edit image…. Under 300, that readout is emphasized.
Open Edit image
In that toolbar, click Edit image…. The Edit image panel opens on the right. A bar labeled Edit image also sits over the picture, with Done at its end. When the picture is short of 300, a note states the DPI, says KDP asks for 300, and tells you to open Export to upscale it, or to make the picture smaller on the page. Nothing on the page changes yet.
Open Export
In the Edit image panel, click Export. Scroll down past Format, File size and Bleed to Upscale. The factor that reaches 300 is already selected, and its label shows the pixel size that factor will make. The chip beside the button reads 1 cr. A note says Crisp detail added, never a repaint — the picture stays yours.
Run Upscale
Click Upscale. That spends 1 credit. The panel shows progress. While it runs, Cancel — you'll be refunded stops it without a charge.
When it finishes, a before-and-after appears, tagged Before and After. The shapes stay the same. The pixel size printed under the comparison is the change, and that is how you see pixels were added.
Keep the result
If the size looks right, click Use this. The picture on the page becomes the larger file, in the same frame. Then click Done on the bar over the picture. The toolbar comes back, and the readout shows the DPI of that larger file. Once the number reaches 300, it is no longer emphasized. If the result does not look right, click Try again. The page stays as it was.
Reading the Export tab#
| In the panel | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Upscale | Adds pixels. The chip beside the button is the cost |
| 1 cr | One run spends 1 credit |
| Crisp detail added, never a repaint — the picture stays yours. | The picture is sharpened, not redrawn |
| Before | Your picture, left of the line |
| After | The larger picture |
| Use this | Puts this result on the page, in the same frame |
| Try again | Throws this result away. The page stays as it was |
| Cancel — you'll be refunded | Stops a run that is still going, and you are not charged |
The comparison is a preview. The picture on the page, after Use this, is the one you will export. Read the pixel size under the comparison: the picture itself can look nearly the same, because it is the same picture with more pixels.
Put the original back#
Click Done on the bar over the picture, or Done editing at the top of the panel, to leave Edit image. The larger picture stays on the page. Press ⌘Z (Ctrl+Z on Windows) to put the picture you placed back. Try again, before Use this, leaves the page alone.
To see what writing 300 DPI into a file does, and when that file's name says label-only, use Convert Image to 300 DPI.
Common questions
Does writing 300 DPI into the file make it print sharp?
No. It changes a label. On Convert Image to 300 DPI, when the pixels are short of the print size, the headline says changing the number won't fix that, and the download name says label-only. The note beside the download button says the pixels and the compression stay the same.
Does Upscale replace the picture I placed?
No. Use this puts the larger picture on the page, in the same frame. Press ⌘Z (Ctrl+Z on Windows) and the page shows the picture you placed again. Try again, before Use this, leaves the page untouched.
How many credits does Upscale cost?
1 credit. The chip beside Upscale reads 1 cr before you click. Click Cancel — you'll be refunded while it is still running and you are not charged. Nothing lands on the page until Use this.
Can I reach 300 DPI without spending a credit?
Yes. Make the picture smaller on the page. The toolbar readout follows that size, and a smaller picture prints at a higher DPI. Upscale is the path when the picture has to stay the size it is.
What if the panel says an upscale would be inventing detail?
The Upscale button is disabled, and the row reads An upscale would be inventing detail — use a larger original, or print it smaller. Shrink the picture until the toolbar readout reaches 300, or place a file that already has the pixels.
Try it on your own book
Open a book in SmartKDP and follow the steps above. It takes about 6 minutes.