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Pixel Art Converter

Turn a photo into retro pixel art with a limited palette.

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Drop an image here, or click to choose one

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Quick Tool Overview

The Pixel Art Converter does both halves of the effect — reducing the resolution so each pixel is a deliberate block, and reducing the palette so the colours are chosen rather than sampled. Doing only the first is why most pixelate filters look like a bad photograph instead of pixel art. Retro console palettes are included.

What it does
Converts a photo into low-resolution pixel art
You give it
A simple, high-contrast image
You get back
A palette-limited pixel version
Best for
Game mockups, avatars and retro styling
Image Tools Free, unlimited use No sign-up Runs in your browser

About the Pixel Art Converter

Real pixel art is drawn, not filtered, and no converter changes that. What this does is the honest version of the effect: reduce the resolution so each pixel is a deliberate block, then reduce the palette so the colours are chosen rather than sampled.

Both steps matter, and doing only the first is why most "pixelate" filters look like a low-resolution photograph rather than pixel art. Palettes from the era are included — the Game Boy's four greens, the NES, CGA, and a general 16-colour set — alongside an automatic palette chosen from your own image. Optional dithering recovers some tonal range at very low colour counts, and the output can be scaled back up with hard edges so it is usable at size.

Key features of the Pixel Art Converter

Palette reduction too

The limited palette is half the look, and this does it rather than leaving a low-resolution photo behind.

Retro console palettes

Game Boy, NES, CGA and a general 16-colour set, alongside an automatic palette from your own image.

Hard-edged upscale

Exports at several times the size with nearest-neighbour sampling, so the blocks stay crisp squares.

Optional dithering

Recovers tonal range at very low colour counts, in the same way period hardware did.

Honest about what it is

The page says outright this is a filter, not the craft of placing pixels by hand.

How to use the Pixel Art Converter

  1. 1

    Load a simple, high-contrast image

    Busy photographs lose everything at low resolution.

  2. 2

    Set the pixel grid

    How many blocks across. 32 to 64 is the classic sprite range.

  3. 3

    Choose a palette

    A retro console palette, or one chosen automatically from your image.

  4. 4

    Scale it back up

    Export at several times the size with hard edges so the blocks stay crisp.

Frequently asked questions

No. Real pixel art is placed pixel by pixel by an artist. This is a filtered approximation, which is a useful starting point or a stylistic effect but not the same craft.

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