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How we verifyPricing$11.86Where to get oneMoney-back guaranteePassport Photo Cost
Short answer
In 2026 a US passport photo costs $7.64 at Walmart, $15 at USPS, $15.95 at FedEx Office, $16.99 at Walgreens, $17.99 at CVS and $19.99 at Staples. Doing it yourself is $11.86 including both the digital file and a printable sheet.
Every option, ranked by price
| Where | Price | Digital file | Compliance check | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Walmart | $7.64 | Not included | Clerk's eye | Cheapest prints, paper applications |
| At home (this service) | $11.86 | Included, plus print sheet | 9 measured checks, free | Online renewals, babies, retakes |
| USPS (Post Office) | $15 | Not included | Clerk's eye | Photo while applying in person |
| FedEx Office | $15.95 | Not included | Clerk's eye | Prints while shipping something |
| Walgreens | $16.99 | Included | Clerk's eye | Cheapest counter with a digital file |
| CVS Pharmacy | $17.99 | Not included | Clerk's eye | Walk-in convenience |
| Staples | $19.99 | Included | Clerk's eye | — |
Counter prices checked August 2026 and vary a little by location.
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✓Illustrative examples — the people shown are AI-generated.
The fees nobody quotes you
The counter price is rarely the whole price. The number on the sign covers two prints, and everything else is a separate line: a digital file if you need one for an online application, a reprint if the first attempt is refused, and the trip itself.
The digital fee is the one that catches people. CVS charges $3.99 on top of $17.99 for the prints, which turns a $17.99 passport picture into a $21.98 one. Walmart, FedEx and USPS do not sell a digital file at any price, so if your application needs an upload you are paying a second time somewhere else.
Then there is the retake. No counter measures your photo — the clerk frames it by eye — so a refused application means paying the full price again, plus the weeks you already spent waiting. That is the fee that actually hurts, and it is the one nobody quotes.
What each place charges
Walmart is the cheapest staffed counter at $7.64 for two prints, though not every store has a photo center. USPS charges $15, usually as part of a passport application appointment. FedEx Office is $15.95, Walgreens $16.99, CVS $17.99, and Staples $19.99 for a digital package.
Costco no longer offers passport photos — the photo centers closed in 2021 — which is worth knowing before driving to one.
Prices were checked in August 2026 and vary a little by location. They also move: passport photos have crept upward at every major chain over the past few years as printed-photo volume has collapsed and the service has become a staffed-counter cost rather than a footfall driver.
The cost that is usually left out
Almost every quoted price is for prints only. If you are renewing online — which is how a large share of renewals now happen — you need a digital file, and most counters either charge extra or cannot supply one at all.
CVS charges $3.99 on top for the digital copy, taking it to $21.98. Walmart, FedEx and USPS do not offer one. Walgreens is the exception among the cheap chains, including it at $16.99. Staples sells digital packages from $19.99 up to $24.99 for prints plus digital.
So the real comparison is not $7.64 against $11.86. For an online renewal it is $21.98 at CVS or a second trip somewhere else, against $11.86 for both files together.
The cost of getting it wrong
This is the number nobody quotes. A photo refused by the passport agency does not just cost another photo — it suspends your application while you send a replacement, commonly adding a month or more, and expedited processing does not protect you because the delay happens before that clock is relevant.
Roughly one in five DIY passport photos is refused, and at a counter you get one attempt judged by eye with nothing measured. If your application has a travel date attached, the expected cost of a cheap photo is considerably higher than its price.
That asymmetry — cheap to buy, expensive to get wrong — is the actual argument for checking a photo against the specification before committing, rather than the few dollars either way.
The cheapest legitimate route
If prints are genuinely all you need and there is a Walmart photo center on your way somewhere, $7.64 is good value and hard to argue with.
If you want both files, or you want to know the photo passes before you rely on it, taking it yourself and printing the sheet is cheaper: $11.86 for the digital file and the sheet, plus about 35¢ at any kiosk to print it. Order it as an ordinary 6 × 4 photo print rather than a passport photo — the kiosk is charging for staff time, not paper.
What you should not do is pay twice: a print at one shop and a digital file at another is how a $15 photo quietly becomes $25.
Check your photo against this rule — free
Upload a photo and read the full report on all eleven requirements before paying anything.
Check my photoFrequently asked
How much does a passport photo cost in 2026?+
From $7.64 at Walmart to $19.99 at Staples. USPS is $15, FedEx $15.95, Walgreens $16.99 and CVS $17.99. Doing it yourself costs $11.86 for the digital file and a printable sheet.
Where is the cheapest place to get a passport photo?+
Walmart at $7.64 for two prints, where a photo center is available. It does not include a digital file.
Why do some places charge extra for a digital copy?+
Because the print and the file are sold as separate products. CVS charges $3.99 extra; Walmart, FedEx and USPS do not offer one at all.
Is it cheaper to take a passport photo yourself?+
Usually, especially if you need both a digital file and prints — and always faster. Printing a sheet at a kiosk costs about 35¢.
Is there a fee for a digital passport photo?+
At most counters, yes. CVS charges $3.99 on top of the print price; Walmart, FedEx and USPS do not offer a digital file at all. Online you pay once and get both.
How much is a passport picture at a drugstore?+
Walgreens charges $16.99 and CVS $17.99 for two prints. Neither price includes a digital file, and neither includes a compliance measurement.
Does Costco still do passport photos?+
No. Costco closed its photo centers in 2021 and the service ended with them.
How much does it cost if the photo is rejected?+
Another photo, plus the delay — a suspended application while you send a replacement, commonly a month or more. That is the cost worth avoiding.