Picovert

How to Compress Images for Notion: Faster Pages, Less Storage

By Picovert Team2026-05-015 min read

Notion is a powerful workspace, but it doesn't automatically compress images you paste or upload. A single uncompressed screenshot can be 2–4 MB, and a page with ten of those loads noticeably slowly — especially on mobile or shared workspaces where multiple team members open the same page simultaneously. Compressing your images before uploading is the single biggest improvement you can make to Notion page performance.

Why Notion Image Size Matters

Notion stores every uploaded asset in its own CDN and serves it at the original size you uploaded. Unlike some CMS platforms, Notion does not resize or re-encode images on the server side. What you upload is what every reader downloads.

  • Page load speed: large images make Notion pages sluggish. On mobile devices or slow connections, a page with several uncompressed screenshots can take 5–10 seconds to fully render
  • Storage limits: free Notion plans have limited file upload caps. Compressing images keeps you well under those limits and leaves room for more content
  • Shared team workspaces: everyone on the team downloads your images every time they open the page. Smaller images reduce bandwidth consumption for the whole team
  • Public pages: if you share a Notion page publicly, page speed affects how visitors perceive your brand. A slow-loading portfolio or documentation page creates a poor first impression

Recommended Image Sizes for Notion

  • Inline images: compress to under 200 KB. Notion renders inline images at the page content width, usually 700–900 px. There's no need to upload a 3000 px wide screenshot
  • Full-width hero or cover images: resize to 1500 px wide maximum, compress to under 400 KB
  • Screenshots: scale down to 1200 px wide and compress to JPEG quality 80 — most screenshots contain text and UI elements that look fine at this quality
  • Diagrams and charts: use PNG for clean lines and text, but run through a PNG compressor. A typical diagram PNG can be reduced from 500 KB to under 100 KB without any visible quality loss
  • Profile and icon images: resize to 256×256 px, compress to under 50 KB

Best Image Format for Notion

  • JPEG: best for photos, screenshots, and images with gradients. JPEG quality 80–85 produces excellent results at typically 10–20% of the original file size for photographic content
  • PNG: use for diagrams, charts, icons, and any image that requires transparency or has sharp text. Always compress PNGs before uploading — lossless compression can reduce them by 40–70%
  • WebP: Notion displays WebP images correctly in all modern browsers. WebP gives 25–35% smaller files than JPEG at the same visual quality — the best choice if you want the smallest possible uploads
  • GIF: Notion supports animated GIFs and displays them inline. For non-animated images, never use GIF — the file sizes are much larger than JPEG or PNG

How to Compress Images for Notion Step by Step

  1. Take your screenshot or export your image: for screenshots, avoid using full-resolution screen captures from a 4K display — those files can be 5+ MB
  2. Resize if needed: use image resizing to scale down to 1200–1500 px wide. Notion will never display the image wider than the page content column
  3. Compress the image: use image compression and target under 200 KB for inline images. For JPEG, quality 80 is almost always sufficient. Check the preview to confirm no visible quality loss
  4. Optional — convert to WebP: use the image converter to switch from PNG or JPEG to WebP for an additional 25–35% size reduction
  5. Upload to Notion: paste or drag the compressed file into your Notion page. The difference in page load speed is immediately noticeable with large pages

Compressing Screenshots Specifically

Screenshots are the most common type of image in Notion workspaces, and they're often the largest. Here's how to handle them efficiently:

  • On macOS, screenshots are saved as PNG by default. A single full-screen capture on a 27-inch iMac can be 8–12 MB
  • Convert the screenshot to JPEG at quality 85 and resize to 1200 px wide. The result is typically 80–150 KB — a 98% reduction in file size with no visible quality difference for documentation screenshots
  • For screenshots that include code blocks or text where legibility is critical, use PNG with lossless compression instead of JPEG to preserve sharp text rendering

Notion Image Compression Tips for Teams

  • Set a team policy: agree on a maximum file size for Notion uploads (200 KB is a reasonable limit). Document this in your team wiki
  • Batch compress before meetings: if you're creating a Notion page to share in a meeting, compress all images the day before so the page loads instantly for everyone
  • Use consistent dimensions: pick a standard width (1200 or 1500 px) for all images in a project. This makes pages look more consistent in addition to keeping file sizes small
  • Re-compress old pages: if you have legacy Notion pages with large images, re-upload compressed versions to immediately improve load times for the whole team

Quick Reference: Target Sizes by Image Type

  • Inline screenshots: under 200 KB, 1200 px wide max
  • Hero/cover images: under 400 KB, 1500 px wide max
  • Diagrams and charts (PNG): under 100 KB
  • Profile/icon images: under 50 KB, 256 px square
  • Animated GIFs: under 2 MB (use MP4 via embed for larger animations)

Keeping your Notion images optimized is straightforward with the right tools. Use image compression for JPEG and PNG files, image resizing for oversized uploads, and the image converter to switch to WebP for the smallest possible file sizes. Your team will notice the difference immediately.