How to Resize, Convert, and Create Thumbnails for Images in cPanel

If you need to resize a large photo, convert an image to a different format, or create small thumbnail versions of several images, you don't need to install any editing software. cPanel has a set of built-in image tools that work directly on the files already stored in your hosting account.

Where to find the image tools

Log in to cPanel and look for the Images section on the main dashboard (you can also type "image" into the search bar at the top of cPanel to jump straight to it). There are three separate tools here: Scaler, Converter, and Thumbnailer. Each one works the same basic way: you pick a folder, select an image (or images), and apply the change.

These tools work on image files already uploaded to your hosting account. If the image is still on your computer, upload it first using File Manager or an FTP client.

Resizing an image with Scaler

Use Scaler when you need to make a single image smaller (or larger) without opening a separate photo editor.

1. Open Scaler from the Images section.
2. Click Select File and browse to the image you want to resize.
3. Enter the new size either as a Percentage of the original or as exact Pixels for width and height.
4. If you want to keep the original file untouched, check the option to save the resized copy as a new file rather than overwriting the original.
5. Click Scale to apply the change.

By default, Scaler can overwrite the original image. Always double-check that setting before scaling a file you want to keep unchanged.

Converting an image format with Converter

Use Converter when a file is saved in a format you don't need. For example, converting a large BMP or PNG file to JPG to reduce its size, or converting an image to PNG if you need transparency.

1. Open Converter from the Images section.
2. Browse to the folder containing the image or images you want to convert.
3. Select the file type you want to convert from and the file type you want to convert to.
4. Choose whether to delete the original files after conversion or keep both versions.
5. Click Convert.

Creating thumbnails with Thumbnailer

Use Thumbnailer when you have a folder full of product photos or gallery images and need small preview versions of all of them at once, rather than resizing each one by hand.

1. Open Thumbnailer from the Images section.
2. Browse to the folder containing the images.
3. Select the images you want thumbnails for (or select all).
4. Set the thumbnail size as a percentage of the original image.
5. Click Create Thumbnails.

cPanel generates the thumbnail copies without deleting your original, full-size images, so your source files stay intact for whenever you need the larger versions again.

When to use a different approach

These tools are handy for quick, one-off image edits, but they're not a substitute for optimizing images properly before you publish a website. If you're trying to speed up page load times across your whole site, a dedicated image compression step during upload is usually a better fit than resizing files after the fact.