# How to compress an image to 100 KB (or 50 or 20 KB) on a Mac

Use Compress Image to Exact KB: pick the limit (100 KB, 50 KB, 20 KB or your own) and OneMacTools finds the highest quality that still fits, instead of you guessing with sliders. If the form also has a minimum, set that too.

## Steps
1. Open OneMacTools › Compress Image to Exact KB and drop in the photo.
2. Choose the target, for example Under 100 KB. If the form says between 20 and 50 KB, set the minimum as well.
3. Choose JPEG unless the form asks for something else.
4. Click Compress. The file lands in Downloads › OneMacTools with its size in the result.

## If it can't get small enough
A large photo can't always reach 20 KB without looking bad. Turn on making the picture smaller, and OneMacTools scales it down as well as compressing it. For ID and exam photos with a fixed size in pixels, Exam Photo Resizer and Passport Photo Maker do both at once.


## Questions
**Why do websites limit photo size in KB?**
To keep uploads quick and storage small. Government, exam and job portals often ask for 20–100 KB.

**Will the photo still look sharp?**
OneMacTools searches for the highest quality that fits, so it looks as good as that size allows. Very small limits on big photos need the picture made smaller too.

**Is the photo uploaded anywhere?**
No. It's compressed on your Mac.

Source: https://www.onemactools.com/guides/compress-image-to-100kb-on-mac (updated 2026-10-14)