Compress a PDF to 200 KB
200 KB is the most common cap on a single scanned document, and it is a size a properly scanned page fits in without looking bad.
Runs in your browser — nothing uploadedAlready set to 200 KB
Where 200 KB comes from
- Bank KYC uploads and account-opening forms, which often allow 200 KB per document.
- Government exam portals, where 200 KB is the usual allowance for a certificate or mark sheet.
- Insurance and loan applications that accept a scan but not a phone photo.
What actually fits in 200 KB
Worked out from what this tool produces, not from a rule of thumb. Where a row says no, it says what to do instead.
| What you have | Fits in 200 KB? | What it takes |
|---|---|---|
| Up to 6 pages of text | Comfortably | The lossless pass, with the text left selectable |
| One scanned page, greyscale | Easily | Around 150 dpi — the usual recommendation, and it looks it |
| Two scanned pages, greyscale | Yes | Around 120 dpi |
| One scanned page in full colour | Yes | Colour costs roughly twice what greyscale does at the same clarity |
| A certificate with a seal or watermark | Yes | Fine detail in a seal is the first thing to soften — check it before sending |
200 KB per document is not 200 KB for the application. Portals usually apply the limit per file, so a four-page requirement is four separate 200 KB files, not one.
A greyscale scan at 150 dpi is the sweet spot for this size: small enough to fit with room to spare, sharp enough that a clerk can read a stamped date.
Questions
- Should I scan in colour or greyscale?
- Greyscale, unless the colour carries information — a coloured seal, a signature in blue ink that has to be distinguishable from a photocopy. Greyscale roughly halves the size at the same readability, which at 200 KB is the difference between one page and two.
- Can I merge several certificates and still stay under 200 KB?
- Two scanned pages, yes. Beyond that the per-page share gets too small to stay readable. If the portal takes one file per document, keep them separate — it is both smaller and what they asked for.
A different limit?
Every one of these opens the same tool with a different number in the box. If the limit you were given is not here, open Compress PDF and type it in.