How we verify
Written by the pixid.studio compliance team. Last verified: 2026-10-16. Next review: 2026-11-16.
PixID.studio checks US photo rules against official U.S. Department of State and USCIS sources, and checks retailer passport-photo prices and store availability against retailer pages. Each source has its own last-checked date, shown below. Last full review: 2026-10-16. PixID is not affiliated with any government agency. Report errors: customer@pixid.studio.
What we check
- Photo rules for a US passport, a DS-160 visa, and the DV lottery. Each rule on the source table links to the official page.
- The 100 automated checks listed on this page. A pass is not a guarantee of acceptance.
- Background removal fits a file to a format. Shoot against a real white wall. The State Department may reject a retouched background. We do not retouch the face. We do not sell a photo for you to mail to USCIS.
- Retailer prices, in the table below. A price older than 35 days is hidden.
- Whether a chain still offers the service. A closed chain is shown as no longer available, with no price.
Official rules and retailer prices are reviewed monthly. The next review is one month after the last check. We also re-check after an official notice or a confirmed correction. A value past its next review is not shown as verified.
Sources
| Source | URL | What we use it for | Last checked | Next review |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Department of State — passport photos | travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/how-apply/photos.html | Print size, glasses, background, no digital changes | 2026-10-16 | 2026-11-16 |
| State Department — visa digital image | travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/photos/digital-image-requirements.html | DS-160 file size and the 600–1200 px square range | 2026-10-16 | 2026-11-16 |
| State Department — DV lottery photo | travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/visa-information-resources/photos.html | DV entry photo: exactly 600×600 px JPEG, 240 KB or less | 2026-10-16 | 2026-11-16 |
| USCIS Policy Alert PA-2025-29 | www.uscis.gov/newsroom/alerts/new-photo-policy-helps-prevent-immigration-fraud-through-enhanced-identity-verification | No self-submitted photos from 12 December 2025 | 2026-10-16 | 2026-11-16 |
Retailer prices
Prices vary by location. Confirm at checkout. PixID’s own file is $4.99. No price is shown without a check date, and none is shown when that date is older than 35 days.
| Retailer | Price | Last checked | Next review | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walmart | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Usually prints-focused; confirm digital at store |
| The UPS Store | $15.99–$19.99 | 2026-10-16 | 2026-11-16 | Franchise price. Greensboro and Dana Point list $15.99; Charlotte lists $19.99 plus tax for two prints, and $19.99 for a digital copy. No national list price on theupsstore.com. |
| FedEx Office | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | USB digital at some locations — confirm |
| USPS | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Prints only; appointment common at acceptance facilities |
| CVS Pharmacy | $17.99 | 2026-10-14 | 2026-11-14 | Digital copy +$3.99 (select stores) |
| Walgreens | $16.99 | 2026-10-14 | 2026-11-14 | Free digital copy by email |
| Staples | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | USB ~$19.99; bundle ~$24.99 — confirm branch |
| AAA | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Member tier vs non-member; not every branch |
| Target Photo (Ezprints) | Price hidden — last check is older than 35 days | 2026-10-14 | 2026-11-14 | |
| Costco (US warehouse) | No longer available | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | Photo Centers closed Feb 2021 — no warehouse passport capture |
| Rite Aid | No longer available | 2026-09-02 | 2026-10-02 | All stores closed. Price not shown. A primary-source link for the closure is still open. |
Corrections
Found an error? Email customer@pixid.studio with the page URL and the source. We review reports and update this page and the changelog when we confirm an error.
Changelog
- 2026-10-16 — Rite Aid is marked closed and its price is not shown. A primary-source link for the closure is still open.
- 2026-10-16 — USCIS wording updated for PA-2025-29: the agency takes the photo at biometrics.
- 2026-10-16 — Dates on this page come from data/verification.json.
- 2026-10-16 — Background removal is described as format fit only. A retouched background can still be rejected.
Who maintains this
Maintained by the pixid.studio compliance team.
Limits
PixID is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the U.S. Department of State, USCIS, or any retailer. The issuing agency decides acceptance. These checks reduce common rejection reasons. They do not guarantee acceptance. Retailer prices and store availability change without notice.
100 compliance checks
The list below is the engine index. Thresholds depend on the document you select. Start with how the check families differ if you want the explanation rather than the names.
This URL is the master index of all 100 test names. The product removes a background so the file can fit a format. Shoot against a real white wall. The State Department may reject a retouched background. Removing the background does not make it compliant, and a pass is not acceptance. Read how the check families differ. Authority: U.S. State Department passport photos.
US rules this page is using
- Passport print: 2×2 in. Head 1–1⅜ in (25–35 mm) from chin to crown. Plain white or off-white. No routine eyeglasses. No digital changes. Passport photos.
- Head share of the frame: 50–69% is the visa-photo wording for head height as a share of the image. It is the same inch range, expressed as a percentage. Visa photos.
- DS-160 file: square JPEG from 600×600 to 1200×1200 px, 240 KB or less. Digital image requirements.
- DV lottery file: exactly 600×600 px. Not the DS-160 range.
- USCIS: since 12 December 2025 the agency takes the photo. Do not mail one you took.
Other countries stay on their own guides. This page does not repeat those sizes.
How the numbers map to the five groups
Checks 1–20 cover head and face geometry: height in frame, centering, tilt, safe zone. 21–40 cover eyes, inter-pupillary distance, red-eye, gaze. 41–60 cover background RGB, uniformity, edges, and “no pattern.” 61–80 cover output width/height, JPEG, DPI, file size, and document-specific size. Check 80 is informational: USCIS photographs you at the biometrics appointment. 81–100 cover lighting, expression, sharpness, and “single face in frame.” A pass is not a guarantee of acceptance. For prose explanations, read compliance anatomy.
Why publish an explicit list at all?
Government and outsourcing portals give error codes or silence, not photography lessons. Naming checks aligns with our product: the same families of errors that get auto-rejected online — head ratio, background, megabytes, glare — are what we surface before you pay. Compare: cost of “free” photo editors (what they skip).
Server-side validation and privacy
Heavy CV runs on our side so the rule bundle stays consistent; see why server-side checks. Choose a destination in Countries or Create photo, then use this list to cross-check what the report refers to.
Head & face
- 1 Head height within document range
- 2 Head height ≥ minimum required
- 3 Head height ≤ maximum allowed
- 4 Face fill ratio in spec
- 5 Crown to chin measurement
- 6 Head width ratio acceptable
- 7 Face aspect ratio
- 8 Head centering vertical
- 9 Head centering horizontal
- 10 Face area in frame
- 11 Chin visibility
- 12 Forehead visibility
- 13 No excessive headroom
- 14 No insufficient headroom
- 15 Face bounding box in safe zone
- 16 Jawline fully visible
- 17 Hairline not cropped (unless bald)
- 18 Head tilt within tolerance
- 19 Face rotation angle
- 20 Biometric frame compliance
Eyes
- 21 Left eye position (pixel-accurate)
- 22 Right eye position (pixel-accurate)
- 23 Eyes in upper half of image
- 24 Inter-pupillary distance in range
- 25 Eye alignment horizontal
- 26 Both eyes open
- 27 No red-eye artifact
- 28 No glare on glasses
- 29 Eye level within spec
- 30 Pupil visibility
- 31 Iris visible (no obstruction)
- 32 Eye-to-frame distance
- 33 Gaze forward
- 34 No squint or closed eyes
- 35 Eyebrow visibility
- 36 Eye region contrast
- 37 No shadows over eyes
- 38 Left/right eye symmetry
- 39 Eye size proportion
- 40 Eyes meet ICAO 9303 spec
Background
- 41 Background R channel (exact)
- 42 Background G channel (exact)
- 43 Background B channel (exact)
- 44 Background uniformity
- 45 No background shadows
- 46 White point compliance
- 47 Edge color consistency
- 48 No texture or pattern
- 49 Background fill complete
- 50 Hair/ear edge clean
- 51 No stray pixels
- 52 Document-specific background tone
- 53 Contrast vs face
- 54 Corner samples within spec
- 55 Center sample within spec
- 56 No gradient (unless allowed)
- 57 RGB variance threshold
- 58 Luminance uniformity
- 59 State Dept background rule
- 60 ICAO background requirement
Dimensions & output
- 61 Output width (px)
- 62 Output height (px)
- 63 DPI value
- 64 Aspect ratio
- 65 File size in range
- 66 Resolution ≥ minimum
- 67 Resolution ≤ maximum (if cap)
- 68 JFIF/EXIF DPI set
- 69 Pixel dimensions exact
- 70 No upscaling beyond limit
- 71 Color depth (24-bit)
- 72 JPEG format compliant
- 73 Compression within spec
- 74 Document-specific size
- 75 Print size at DPI
- 76 Head size in mm (derived)
- 77 Frame geometry
- 78 Crop bounds valid
- 79 DS-160 dimension rule (if US visa)
- 80 USCIS: informational only, photos are captured at ASC
Lighting & quality
- 81 Face brightness mean
- 82 Face brightness P95
- 83 Face brightness P99
- 84 No underexposure
- 85 No overexposure (forehead)
- 86 Even lighting left/right
- 87 No harsh shadows
- 88 Contrast sufficient
- 89 No green cast
- 90 Skin tone natural
- 91 Color balance
- 92 Sharpness adequate
- 93 No motion blur
- 94 Neutral expression
- 95 Mouth closed
- 96 No teeth visible (unless neutral)
- 97 Ears visible (both)
- 98 No headwear (unless religious/medical)
- 99 Face unoccluded
- 100 Single face detected