What size is legal paper?

8.5 by 14 inches, or 215.9 by 355.6 mm. The inches are the defining dimensions: Legal is a size stated in inches, so the millimeters in every table here are the conversion at 25.4 mm to the inch and not a separately published figure.

How is Legal different from Letter?

Legal is the same width and 76.2 mm (three inches) taller than Letter. A Letter outline fits inside Legal with that much spare length. A document application may reflow text after changing page size; a PDF print dialog normally scales or clips fixed page content instead.

How many pixels is a legal page?

US Legal is 2550 × 4200 px at 300 ppi, 1275 × 2100 at 150 ppi and 612 × 1008 at 72 ppi, in portrait. Enter another PPI / DPI above for a different raster canvas. These counts do not determine printer margins, physical screen size or print quality.

Is Legal used outside the United States?

US Legal is a familiar North American 8.5 × 14 inch size. Regional Legal and Folio labels can mean shorter sheets. Mexico Legal is approximately 8.5 × 13.38 inches in one Brother driver; 8.5 × 13 inches is a separate Folio / Long Bond format. Check the supplier or driver dimensions and use Custom dimensions for an unlisted regional size.

What is Legal in centimeters?

21.59 by 35.56 cm. Both figures are the inch dimensions converted, so they carry decimals that a size defined in millimeters, like A4, does not.

Legal Paper Size

US Legal is 8.5 by 14 inches, which is 215.9 by 355.6 mm. The tool above opens on Legal drawn to scale against Letter, so you can see the only difference between them: Legal is exactly the same width and three inches taller. The table below gives Legal in millimetres, centimetres, inches and pixels at 72, 150 and 300 ppi, or the resolution you choose, in both portrait and landscape.

Legal · 215.9 × 355.6 mm
Letter · 215.9 × 279.4 mm

Legal215.9 × 355.6 mm8.5 × 14 in · 2550 × 4200 px at 300 ppi

Size

Compare with

Units

PPI / DPI

Custom sides are normalized to short × long in portrait; landscape turns both sheets. PPI sets the raster canvas size; it does not set screen size or guarantee print quality.

Legal is the same width and 76.2 mm taller than Letter.

Millimeters
215.9 × 355.6 mm
Centimeters
21.59 × 35.56 cm
Inches
8.5 × 14 in
Pixels at 72 ppi
612 × 1008 px
Pixels at 150 ppi
1275 × 2100 px
Pixels at 300 ppi
2550 × 4200 px
Pixels at chosen 300 ppi
2550 × 4200 px
Aspect ratio
1 : 1.647
Area
767.74 cm² · 119 in²
Against Letter
Letter fits inside Legal, with 0 mm spare across and 76.2 mm spare down.

US contracts and legal pads, three inches longer.
Also called US Legal.
C4 is 13.1 mm wider and 31.6 mm shorter.

Paper size reference chart

Chart series

Letter, Legal, Tabloid and the ANSI engineering sizes, all defined in inches. Chart dimensions follow the chosen orientation and resolution.

North American · portrait · 300 ppi
Millimeters	Inches	Pixels at 300 ppi	Used for
215.9 × 330.2 mm	8.5 × 13 in	2550 × 3900 px	An 8.5 × 13 inch sheet; regional Folio and Legal names vary, so check the dimensions.
215.9 × 279.4 mm	8.5 × 11 in	2550 × 3300 px	The default sheet in the US, Canada and Mexico.
215.9 × 355.6 mm	8.5 × 14 in	2550 × 4200 px	US contracts and legal pads, three inches longer.
279.4 × 431.8 mm	11 × 17 in	3300 × 5100 px	US newspapers, spreads and two-up Letter.
184.15 × 266.7 mm	7.25 × 10.5 in	2175 × 3150 px	US letterheads and memos, just under Letter.
139.7 × 215.9 mm	5.5 × 8.5 in	1650 × 2550 px	US notepads, planners and half-sheet handouts.
127 × 203.2 mm	5 × 8 in	1500 × 2400 px	Small US legal pads.
203.2 × 266.7 mm	8 × 10.5 in	2400 × 3150 px	US school and government notepads.
431.8 × 558.8 mm	17 × 22 in	5100 × 6600 px	Engineering drawings, four Letter sheets.
558.8 × 863.6 mm	22 × 34 in	6600 × 10200 px	Engineering drawings, eight Letter sheets.
863.6 × 1117.6 mm	34 × 44 in	10200 × 13200 px	Engineering drawings, sixteen Letter sheets.

Compare Japanese JIS B5 with ISO B5 · Compare ARCH with ANSI drawing sheets
For an existing PDF, place four A6 pages on an A4 or Letter sheet with PDF N-up; export there, then print at actual size. To convert arbitrary artwork dimensions, use Pixels to Print Size.

A4 and Letter are not interchangeable. A4 is 5.9 mm narrower and 17.6 mm taller. Changing document page size can reflow content; print-time fit scaling changes its physical size instead. Printer margins, borderless support, bleed and accepted paper depend on the device or print service. Nominal outline fit does not guarantee clearance inside an envelope. These diagrams compare sheets to each other, not to actual screen inches.

US Legal in every unit

Nominal dimensions converted at 25.4 mm per inch. Pixel counts multiply unrounded inches by the named PPI and round to a whole pixel. Landscape swaps the sides. Printer margins, bleed and stock tolerances are separate.

Measurement	Portrait	Landscape
Millimeters	215.9 × 355.6 mm	355.6 × 215.9 mm
Centimeters	21.59 × 35.56 cm	35.56 × 21.59 cm
Inches	8.5 × 14 in	14 × 8.5 in
Pixels at 72 dpi	612 × 1008 px	1008 × 612 px
Pixels at 150 dpi	1275 × 2100 px	2100 × 1275 px
Pixels at 300 dpi	2550 × 4200 px	4200 × 2550 px

Common questions

What size is legal paper?: 8.5 by 14 inches, or 215.9 by 355.6 mm. The inches are the defining dimensions: Legal is a size stated in inches, so the millimeters in every table here are the conversion at 25.4 mm to the inch and not a separately published figure.
How is Legal different from Letter?: Legal is the same width and 76.2 mm (three inches) taller than Letter. A Letter outline fits inside Legal with that much spare length. A document application may reflow text after changing page size; a PDF print dialog normally scales or clips fixed page content instead.
How many pixels is a legal page?: US Legal is 2550 × 4200 px at 300 ppi, 1275 × 2100 at 150 ppi and 612 × 1008 at 72 ppi, in portrait. Enter another PPI / DPI above for a different raster canvas. These counts do not determine printer margins, physical screen size or print quality.
Is Legal used outside the United States?: US Legal is a familiar North American 8.5 × 14 inch size. Regional Legal and Folio labels can mean shorter sheets. Mexico Legal is approximately 8.5 × 13.38 inches in one Brother driver; 8.5 × 13 inches is a separate Folio / Long Bond format. Check the supplier or driver dimensions and use Custom dimensions for an unlisted regional size.
What is Legal in centimeters?: 21.59 by 35.56 cm. Both figures are the inch dimensions converted, so they carry decimals that a size defined in millimeters, like A4, does not.

Listed sizes are nominal trimmed dimensions, not measurements of your stock. Pixels are inches times the chosen PPI, rounded to whole pixels. Printer margins and bleed are separate.