Amazon Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) sets its own resolution requirements for print interiors and covers, and those requirements can change over time. Rather than quoting a number that may go stale, this guide covers how to think about and verify image resolution for a KDP submission — and points you to Amazon's own documentation for the current, authoritative figures.
Check whether an image has enough pixels before adding it to your manuscript.
Open DPI CheckerA print-on-demand book file has two places resolution matters: the cover, generally a single high-resolution image or design file, and any images inside the interior— photos, illustrations, or diagrams placed on individual pages. Both need enough pixels for the physical size they'll print at, which is the same underlying question as any other print job, just applied across many pages at once for the interior.
Because a KDP cover wraps the front, spine, and back into a single file, and the spine width itself depends on page count, cover dimensions are less standardized than a typical photo print size. Getting the trim, bleed, and spine width right — before worrying about pixel resolution — avoids designing a cover at the wrong dimensions entirely.
Pixel dimensions — not a platform's automated approval — determine how sharp a print looks. KDP's file checker verifies your uploaded file meets technical minimums, but it can't tell you whether an individual photo you placed inside an otherwise-correct file was itself low-resolution to begin with. Check each image's own pixel dimensions before placing it, rather than only trusting the final file check.
KDP resolution, file format, and bleed requirements are documented directly by Amazon and can be updated as their print partners and formats change. Always confirm the current numbers in your KDP dashboard's formatting guidelines before finalizing a submission — this page is meant to explain the underlying resolution concepts, not to substitute for that documentation.
KDP has published resolution guidance for print interiors and covers, and it can be updated over time. Rather than relying on a fixed number here, confirm the current figure in KDP's official print quality guidelines before finalizing a manuscript.
eBook (Kindle) images are judged mainly by pixel dimensions for on-screen display rather than a print DPI figure, since there's no physical page. Print interiors and covers are the cases where DPI genuinely matters.
A passing automated check confirms your file meets the platform's technical minimums, not that every image within it is high-resolution. Low-resolution source photos placed into an otherwise correctly-sized cover file can still look soft when printed.
Yes — a cover or page that includes bleed needs pixels covering the trim size plus the bleed margin on every edge, not just the trim size alone. Use a bleed calculator to get the full bled dimensions before sizing your image.
In KDP's own print quality and formatting documentation, accessible from your KDP dashboard or Amazon's official KDP help pages. Platform requirements can change, so treat that as the source of truth over any third-party summary, including this one.
