UPSC photo and signature, 2026
UPSC wants a square photograph and three signatures in one image, and it is the one body whose bands are wider than everybody expects.
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Square, from 350 × 350 up to 1000 × 1000. Plain white background, face filling about three quarters of the frame.
Nothing here is uploaded. See how the page enforces it.
The square photograph, and why it catches people out
UPSC is the exception among Indian exam portals. Almost every other body wants a portrait frame taller than it is wide, so a candidate arrives at the UPSC form with a 200 × 230 photo prepared for IBPS or a 3.5 × 4.5 cm print scanned for a state commission, and the square frame rejects all of it.
What it wants is a square, at least 350 × 350 pixels and up to 1000 × 1000, as a JPG, on a plain white background, with the face taking up around three quarters of the height. Front on, both ears visible, eyes open, ordinary expression. The button above starts you at 350 × 350 because it is the floor and the smallest file, but any square in that range is accepted, and a larger one survives the size search with more detail intact.
Three signatures in one image
The signature upload is not one signature. UPSC asks you to sign three times on a single sheet of plain white paper, one below the other, in black ink, and to scan all three as one image. A single signature is a rejection, and it is a rejection nobody expects because no other major body asks for this.
The dimension published for it is loose, in the region of 350 to 500 pixels, which is why the button above pins the width at 500 and leaves the height to follow the paper. Three stacked signatures make a tall strip, and forcing that into a fixed height would squash the writing. The weight band, 20 to 100 KB, is the part that is actually enforced.
Where the published numbers disagree
Two ceilings are in circulation for the photograph, 200 KB and 300 KB, depending on which guide you read and which notification it was written against. The floor of 20 KB is consistent everywhere, and so is the signature band of 20 to 100 KB.
This page starts the photograph at 20 to 200 KB, which is the conservative reading: a file that satisfies the tighter ceiling satisfies the looser one too. If your own notification says 300 KB and you want the extra quality, type 300 into the box and run it again. Both boxes stay editable on purpose. Recent notifications have also asked for the candidate's name and the date the photograph was taken to appear on the photograph itself, so check yours for that before you resize anything.
Questions
+ Why does UPSC want a square photo when nobody else does?
It is simply the specification the Commission publishes. The practical consequence is that a photo prepared for any other exam is the wrong shape, so start from the original rather than from a file you already sized for IBPS or SSC.
+ Do I really have to sign three times?
Yes, one below the other on the same sheet, in black ink, scanned as a single image. This is specific to UPSC and it is a common reason for a form being sent back.
+ Is the photo limit 200 KB or 300 KB?
Both figures are published in different places. This page uses 20 to 200 KB, which satisfies either. If your notification states 300 KB, change the number in the box and run it again.
+ Can I upload a PNG?
No. UPSC accepts JPG and JPEG only, for both the photograph and the signature. This page always outputs JPEG.
+ Does anything leave my computer?
No. The photograph and the signature are processed by your own browser and never sent anywhere. There is no account, no queue and no size cap imposed by us.