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Upload size limits for Strapi Cloud

Page summary:

Non-image files are capped at 200 MB on all plans. Image files have a memory-based recommended maximum that varies by format, plan, and Media Library settings. To upload larger images, disable Responsive friendly upload and Size optimization.

Strapi Cloud applies 2 distinct limits to uploads. The first is a hard maximum file size, enforced at the infrastructure level for non-image files. The second is a memory-based recommendation for image files that depends on your CMS settings.

Maximum upload file size for non-image files​

Non-image uploads are capped at 200 MB on all Strapi Cloud plans (Free, Essential, Pro, and Scale). The cap is enforced at the infrastructure level and cannot be overridden via the strapi::body middleware configuration.

Image uploads are subject to an additional, memory-driven recommendation that is independent of the non-image cap and varies by image format.

Uploading a large image?

To upload an image larger than the recommended maximum, disable both Responsive friendly upload and Size optimization in the Media Library settings. The CMS then stores the source file as-is without in-process processing, which raises the recommended maximum (see the Processing off values in the tables below).

When Responsive friendly upload and Size optimization are both enabled in the Media Library settings, the CMS resizes the source image and generates a set of thumbnails (small, medium, large) in the instance's memory before persisting them. This processing happens in-process, regardless of the configured upload provider.

Switching to a third-party provider (Amazon S3, Cloudinary, etc.) is not a workaround. The resize and thumbnail generation step still runs inside the Strapi Cloud instance and still requires memory proportional to the source image dimensions.

Actual memory usage depends on the image dimensions, format, and your Media Library settings. The values in the following tables are a recommendation, not a hard limit. Uploads above the recommended size are likely to cause the instance to run out of memory and restart.

The recommendation depends on whether Responsive friendly upload and Size optimization are enabled in the Media Library settings:

  • Processing on: both settings enabled, with the default small, medium, and large sizes. Strapi generates the thumbnails in memory, so the safe upload size is lower.
  • Processing off: both settings disabled. The source image is stored as-is with no in-process processing, so the safe upload size is higher.

Recommended maximum image size, expressed in megapixels (MP), per format and plan:

FormatFree & EssentialPro & Scale
JPEG24 MP135 MP
PNG8 MP90 MP
WebP4 MP12 MP
TIFF16 MP125 MP
AVIF66 MP80 MP
Converting pixels to megapixels

The number of megapixels of an image is its width multiplied by its height in pixels, divided by 1,000,000. The pixel dimensions that match a given megapixel count depend on the aspect ratio. For a square image, 1 MP is roughly 1000×1000 px, 4 MP is roughly 2000×2000 px, and 100 MP is roughly 10000×10000 px.

Configuring a provider

To configure external storage such as Amazon S3 or Cloudinary, see Upload Provider Configuration for Strapi Cloud.

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