Photo size and crop
Delivery app photo size requirements for restaurants
Prepare food photos for DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub, Google, and social channels without awkward crops, rejected uploads, or last-minute resizing.
Food photos fail on delivery apps for two different reasons: the image does not meet the technical upload rules, or the crop makes the dish hard to understand once the app turns it into a thumbnail.
The safest workflow is to keep a clean master photo, export channel-specific versions, and check each platform before uploading. Requirements can change, and merchant portal uploads can differ from POS or API integrations, so treat this as a practical prep guide rather than a replacement for the current help page for the upload path you use.
Quick answer
Start with a high-resolution photo of one real dish, centered with extra room around the edges. Export separate versions for each destination: DoorDash commonly expects a 16:9 landscape item photo, Uber Eats recommends 5:4 to 6:4, Grubhub menu photos are square PNGs, and Google Business Profile photos work best as JPG or PNG files that meet Google’s current size rules.
DoorDash, Uber Eats, Grubhub, and Google photo requirements
At the time of this update, official merchant guidance points in different directions. DoorDash Merchant Portal item-photo guidance lists a landscape 16:9 crop, 1400 x 800 px minimum resolution, and JPG, JPEG, or PNG files under 16 MB. DoorDash integration docs can use a lower file-size limit, so POS or API uploads should be checked separately. Uber Eats menu photos recommend a 5:4 to 6:4 crop, JPG, PNG, or GIF files under 10 MB, with width from 550 to 10,000 px and height from 440 to 10,000 px.
Grubhub menu photo guidance requires square images at least 200 x 200 px saved as PNG. Google Business Profile photos are different again: JPG or PNG, 10 KB to 5 MB, with 720 x 720 px recommended and 250 x 250 px minimum. Always verify inside the merchant tool before a large upload, especially if you are updating many items at once.
- DoorDash Merchant Portal item photo: landscape 16:9, 1400 x 800 px minimum, JPG/JPEG/PNG, under 16 MB; integrated uploads may have stricter file-size rules.
- Uber Eats item photo: recommended 5:4 to 6:4, JPG/PNG/GIF, under 10 MB, at least 550 px wide and 440 px tall.
- Grubhub menu photo: square 1:1, at least 200 x 200 px, PNG.
- Google Business Profile photo: JPG/PNG, 10 KB to 5 MB, 720 x 720 px recommended, 250 x 250 px minimum.
Make one safe master before exporting versions
Do not crop straight to the final platform size from a tight phone photo. First, create a master image with the dish centered, the full plate or package visible, and enough background around the food for different app crops.
This master does not need to be styled like an ad. It needs to show today’s plating clearly, with enough room to export delivery, Google, website, and social versions from the same source.
- Use the real menu item, not a similar dish from another day.
- Keep the dish away from the corners.
- Leave margin around tall food, cups, boxes, and plates.
- Remove text overlays, watermarks, and collage layouts before resizing.
- Save the master separately from every platform export.
Choose the crop by where the photo appears
A delivery item photo has a different job from a cover image. Item photos need fast recognition: one dish, centered, readable at thumbnail size. Cover and carousel photos can show more variety, but they still need a clean composition and food that customers can actually buy.
Square crops are useful for profiles and social posts, but a square crop can cut off a plate when a delivery app expects landscape. Landscape crops are useful for delivery cards, but they can make bowls and drinks look tiny if the food was shot from too far away.
- Use landscape when the platform expects a delivery item photo, header image, or wide app card.
- Use square for profile-style placements and channels that crop to a grid.
- Use vertical crops for stories and short-form video covers, not as your only menu master.
- Preview every export at phone-thumbnail size before uploading.
Fix crop problems before styling problems
Most bad uploads are not bad because the food is unappetizing. They are bad because the app crop cuts off the plate, the dish is too small, the image includes text, or the food sits in a busy table scene.
AI enhancement can help clean lighting, background, color, and sharpness. It should not invent a bigger portion, add a side, or change the item to fit a crop. If the original image is too tight or inaccurate, take a new source photo.
- Cut-off plate: go back to the master or source photo and add margin before exporting again.
- Tiny dish: crop closer while keeping the whole item visible.
- Busy table: simplify the background without changing the food.
- Wrong shape: export a new version instead of forcing one file everywhere.
FAQ
Photo size questions
Can I use the same food photo on every delivery app?
Use the same approved source photo, but export separate versions when the platforms expect different aspect ratios, file types, or crop behavior.
Why does my food photo look good on desktop but bad in the app?
Mobile cards often crop tighter and display smaller. The dish may be too close to the edge, too small in the frame, or hard to recognize once reduced to a thumbnail.
Should I add text, prices, or my logo to delivery app photos?
Usually no. Item photos should show the food clearly. Many platforms reject text, graphics, watermarks, borders, or logos that are not part of the actual item or packaging.