COVER SIZING NOTES / 2026-10-22
Crop the margins, or resize the whole cover?
Can I resize a paperback cover PDF without stretching it?
A proportional resize preserves shapes only when the target width and height have the same scale factor. Cropping instead changes the page boundary while keeping retained artwork at its original scale. Neither operation can change only the spine width or add missing bleed artwork.
Free check and preview. Export: USD 9 + applicable tax. Paid exports open after payment-provider approval.
Two operations, two different results
| Remove outer margins | Resize proportionally | |
|---|---|---|
| Artwork scale | Unchanged | Everything scales together |
| Page proportions | May change as edges are removed | Must stay the same |
| Useful for | Unwanted symmetric outer space | A small whole-page size mismatch |
| Cover Fit limit | 0.5 inches per edge | ±10%, matching scale factors within 0.01% |
| Manual review | Check nothing necessary was cropped | Check spine, text size and image quality |
Compare the scale factors
Divide target width by original width, then target height by original height. For a 10 × 7.5 inch page resized to 10.5 × 7.875 inches, both factors are 1.05. Shapes stay proportional. These numbers illustrate the operation; they are not a recommended KDP template.
A 10 × 7.5 inch page resized to 10.5 × 7.5 inches would have factors 1.05 and 1.00. That would widen the artwork without increasing its height. Cover Fit rejects that transformation.
Why a spine change is different
If your page count changes, the required spine width can change while the front and back panels keep the same dimensions. Scaling the whole page changes those panels too. Cropping the outside edges does not move the spine folds. Return to your editable layout and a fresh official template for this task.
Review beyond the numbers
Proportional scaling preserves shapes, but it also changes type size, line thickness and effective image resolution. Cropping leaves the retained scale alone, but may discard needed content. Matching the canvas is one check in preparing a printable cover, not a guarantee that Amazon will accept it.
Diagnose an expected-versus-actual size error or work through the synthetic margin example.
Compare your PDF with the expected size →