Resolution reference
640 × 480 resolution (VGA)
Short answer
640 × 480 (VGA, 480p 4:3) is a 4:3 landscape resolution with 307,200 pixels (0.31 megapixels). The classic 4:3 standard-definition frame, still produced by older capture tools.
Key takeaways
- 640 × 480 is 4:3, landscape, 307,200 pixels (0.31 MP).
- The classic 4:3 standard-definition frame, still produced by older capture tools.
- For video, YouTube's 480p tier applies: 2.5 Mbps at 24-30 fps, about 19 MB a minute.
- Printed at 300 DPI it is 2.1 × 1.6 inches.
640 × 480 specifications
| Width × height | 640 × 480 pixels |
|---|---|
| Also called | 640x480, VGA, 480p 4:3 |
| Aspect ratio | 4:3, decimal 1.3333 |
| Orientation | landscape |
| Total pixels | 307,200 (0.31 megapixels) |
| Compared with 1080p | 0.15× the pixels of 1920 × 1080 |
| Diagonal | 800 pixels |
| Rotated | 480 × 640 |
| Encoder safe | Yes: both sides are even, as H.264 and HEVC with 4:2:0 color require |
640 × 480 compared with common resolutions
| Resolution | Pixels | 640 × 480 has |
|---|---|---|
| 720p (1280 × 720) | 921,600 | 33% as many |
| 1080p (1920 × 1080) | 2,073,600 | 15% as many |
| 1440p (2560 × 1440) | 3,686,400 | 8% as many |
| 4K UHD (3840 × 2160) | 8,294,400 | 4% as many |
640 × 480 vs 640 × 360 and 640 × 480 vs 854 × 480
640 × 480 has 33% more pixels than 360p (640 × 360). On a 15.6-inch screen that is 51 vs 47 pixels per inch, so text and fine detail look sharper at 640 × 480. A game or encoder has to process 1.33× as many pixels per frame, which costs frame rate on the same graphics card and, at equal quality, file size.
480p (854 × 480) has 33% more pixels than 640 × 480. On a 15.6-inch screen that is 51 vs 63 pixels per inch, so text and fine detail look softer at 640 × 480. A game or encoder processes only 75% as many pixels per frame, which helps frame rates and keeps files smaller.
| 640 × 480 | 360p (640 × 360) | 480p (854 × 480) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pixels | 307,200 | 230,400 | 409,920 |
| Aspect ratio | 4:3 | 16:9 | 427:240 |
| YouTube bitrate, 24-30 fps | 2.5 Mbps | 1 Mbps | 2.5 Mbps |
| Desktop space (vs 1080p) | 15% | 11% | 20% |
Where 640 × 480 is used
IBM introduced VGA with its PS/2 computers in 1987, and 640 × 480 became the baseline PC display mode for more than a decade.
- Standard-definition 4:3 video: old webcams, digital cameras, DV-era footage converted to square pixels.
- Legacy capture cards and security cameras.
- Pillarboxed (bars left and right) when shown in a 16:9 player.
Pixel density (PPI) by screen size
Pixel density is the diagonal in pixels (800) divided by the screen diagonal in inches. The last column is the distance at which a person with normal vision stops seeing individual pixels (one arcminute of visual acuity).
| Screen diagonal | PPI | Pixels blend at about |
|---|---|---|
| 11.6 inches | 69 | 4.2 ft (1.3 m) |
| 13.3 inches | 60 | 4.8 ft (1.5 m) |
| 14 inches | 57 | 5.0 ft (1.5 m) |
| 15.6 inches | 51 | 5.6 ft (1.7 m) |
Print sizes for a 640 × 480 image
| Print resolution | Inches | Centimeters | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300 DPI | 2.1 × 1.6 | 5.4 × 4.1 | Photo prints, magazines |
| 240 DPI | 2.7 × 2.0 | 6.8 × 5.1 | Inkjet photo prints |
| 150 DPI | 4.3 × 3.2 | 10.8 × 8.1 | Posters seen from a meter or more |
| 72 DPI | 8.9 × 6.7 | 22.6 × 16.9 | Screen only; too coarse for print |
Free tool:DPI and print size calculator
Video at 640 × 480: bitrate and file size
| Frame rate | Bitrate | Per minute | Per 10 minutes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24-30 fps | 2.5 Mbps | about 19 MB | about 190 MB |
| 48-60 fps | 4 Mbps | about 30 MB | about 300 MB |
Uncompressed, one 640 × 480 frame is 0.9 MB as 8-bit RGB, or 0.5 MB in the 8-bit 4:2:0 format video codecs work in. At 30 fps that is 111 Mbps of raw video, which is why every delivery format compresses it.
Posting 640 × 480 to social platforms
How the frame lands in each common shape, either fitted whole with bars or scaled up to fill and cropped:
| Target frame | Fit with bars | Fill and crop |
|---|---|---|
| 9:16 (TikTok, Reels, Shorts), 1080 × 1920 | 1080 × 810 picture, 58% of the frame is bars | Keeps 42% of the picture (crops the width) |
| 16:9 (YouTube), 1920 × 1080 | 1440 × 1080 picture, 25% of the frame is bars | Keeps 75% of the picture (crops the height) |
| 4:5 (feed portrait), 1080 × 1350 | 1080 × 810 picture, 40% of the frame is bars | Keeps 60% of the picture (crops the width) |
| 1:1 (square), 1080 × 1080 | 1080 × 810 picture, 25% of the frame is bars | Keeps 75% of the picture (crops the width) |
Free tools:Crop video to 9:16Crop video to 16:9Crop an image to 4:5
How to resize to 640 × 480
- In an editor, set the sequence or export frame size to 640 × 480; if the source has a different shape, choose scale to fill (crop) or scale to fit (bars) rather than stretch.
- With FFmpeg, exact size:
ffmpeg -i in.mp4 -vf scale=640:480 -c:a copy out.mp4 - With FFmpeg, keep the whole picture and add bars:
ffmpeg -i in.mp4 -vf "scale=640:480:force_original_aspect_ratio=decrease,pad=640:480:(ow-iw)/2:(oh-ih)/2" -c:a copy out.mp4 - Upscaling a smaller source to 640 × 480 makes the file bigger without adding detail; scale down from a larger master when you can.
| Scale | Size | Pixels |
|---|---|---|
| 25% | 160 × 120 | 19,200 |
| 50% | 320 × 240 | 76,800 |
| 75% | 480 × 360 | 172,800 |
| 150% | 960 × 720 | 691,200 |
| 200% | 1280 × 960 | 1,228,800 |
Same 4:3 shape:2048 × 1536
Check a file against 640 × 480
Extension and MIME type are labels, not proof of the container. Dimensions and duration come from this browser's media reader. The frame rate is measured by playing the first frames muted; a file faster than your screen's refresh rate reads low. This does not detect codecs, bitrate, corruption or platform upload compatibility. Files and measurements are not sent anywhere.
Frequently asked questions
Is 640×480 4K?
No. 4K UHD is 3840×2160 (8,294,400 pixels); 640×480 has 307,200, 4% of that. By its 480-pixel short side it falls in YouTube's 480p quality tier.
What aspect ratio is 640×480?
4:3, a width-to-height ratio of 1.3333.
What bitrate should a 640×480 video use for YouTube?
YouTube recommends 2.5 Mbps at 24-30 fps and 4 Mbps at 48-60 fps for its 480p tier (SDR). That is about 19 MB per minute at standard frame rates, before audio.
How does 640×480 compare with 1080p?
It has 15% of the pixels of 1920×1080 (307,200 vs 2,073,600). Encoding time and file size at equal quality scale roughly with pixel count.
What is 640×480 resolution called?
640 × 480 is also called VGA, 480p 4:3. The classic 4:3 standard-definition frame, still produced by older capture tools.
How many megapixels is 640×480?
307,200 pixels, which is 0.31 megapixels. A 12-megapixel phone photo (4032 × 3024) has 39.7× as many.
How big can I print a 640×480 image?
At 300 DPI, the usual photo-print target, 2.1 × 1.6 inches (5.4 × 4.1 cm). At 150 DPI, fine for posters viewed from a distance, twice that: 4.3 × 3.2 inches.
Sources and how we checked
- YouTube Help: Recommended upload encoding settings (checked 2026-10-05)
Pixel counts, ratios, PPI, print sizes, data rates and platform fits are computed from the width and height. Device figures are the makers' own; bitrates are YouTube's recommendations. Reviewed October 6, 2026 by the Koldflux team.