Flyers · Glossary
A4 flyer size in pixels
A4 is 210 by 297 millimetres, which is a physical size, so its pixel size depends on the density you choose. At 150 pixels per inch that is 1,240 by 1,754 pixels, which is the usual working canvas for a flyer: sharp in print at normal reading distance and light enough to edit smoothly.
There is no single correct pixel size for A4, which is why the answers online disagree. What there is is a sensible one for the job.
Nuwan Madhusanka · Co-founder
3 min read · Published
| Density | Pixels | Use |
|---|---|---|
| 72 DPI | 595 x 842 | Screen only, too soft to print |
| 150 DPI | 1240 x 1754 | The practical working size for a flyer |
| 300 DPI | 2480 x 3508 | Photographic printing, large files |
Why 150 is the sensible default
A flyer is held at reading distance, closer than a poster and further than a photograph being inspected. At 150 pixels per inch the type is crisp and photographs look clean, while the canvas stays small enough to drag blocks around without lag. Three hundred is not wrong, it is simply four times the data for a difference most people cannot see on a leaflet, and it makes every operation slower.
Landscape and the social sizes
A4 landscape is the same numbers turned around, 1,754 by 1,240. The social sizes are different shapes entirely rather than rotations: a square post at 1,080 by 1,080, a story at 1,080 by 1,920, a wide post at 1,200 by 630, a cover at 820 by 312 and a header at 1,500 by 500. A design that fills an A4 page has to be laid out again for each of those, not scaled.
What the printer actually needs
Ask before you export, because shops differ. Most want a PDF at the finished size, and many are happy with 150 pixels per inch for a leaflet. Bleed is the question worth asking specifically: if your design runs colour to the edge, the shop may want three millimetres of extra image beyond the trim, and adding that afterwards means reflowing the layout.
Questions people ask
Is 300 DPI necessary for a flyer?
Rarely. Three hundred is the standard for photographic printing where somebody inspects the surface closely. A flyer is read at arm's length, where 150 is indistinguishable, and the smaller file prints faster and handles better while you are designing.
What is A4 in inches?
8.27 by 11.69 inches, which is where the pixel numbers come from: multiply by the density you want. It is close to US Letter, 8.5 by 11, but not the same, which is why an A4 design printed on Letter loses a strip at the bottom.
Can I turn my A4 flyer into an Instagram post?
Not by scaling, because the shapes are different: A4 is tall and narrow, a post is square. The content has to be laid out again for the new shape. What you can carry across unchanged is the text, the images and the colours.
Do I need bleed?
Only if your design runs colour or images right to the edge and the shop asks for it. A design with a clear margin inside every edge does not need bleed and is much more forgiving of a slightly off trim. Ask the shop first; adding bleed later means redoing the layout.
PDF or PNG for the printer?
Whichever they ask for. A PDF with a single high resolution image per page contains the same pixels as the PNG inside it, so what matters is the resolution, not the wrapper. PDF is the safer default because it carries the page size explicitly.
Make one with flyers
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Create a flyer with OneCraftRelated questions
- Instagram post and story sizesA square post is 1080 by 1080 and a story is 1080 by 1920. What the safe area is, why the crop happens, and how one design becomes both.
- What DPI should a flyer be?A flyer is read at arm's length, so 150 pixels per inch at finished size is enough. Where 300 comes from and when it is genuinely worth the file size.
- What is bleed?Bleed is extra image beyond the trim line so a slightly off cut leaves no white edge. When a flyer needs it, and when a clear margin is the better answer.
Written and checked by the OneCraft team. Last checked .