Camera sensor size chart
Active imaging area by format, sorted largest to smallest. Crop factor is the exact diagonal ratio against full frame; area is what actually collects photons.
| Format | Width (mm) | Height (mm) | Diagonal (mm) | Area (mm²) | Crop factor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phase One IQ4 (medium format) | 53.4 | 40 | 66.7 | 2,136 | 0.65× |
| Fujifilm GFX / Hasselblad X (med. fmt) | 43.8 | 32.9 | 54.8 | 1,441 | 0.79× |
| Full frame (35 mm) | 36 | 24 | 43.3 | 864 | 1.00× |
| Sony / Nikon / Fujifilm APS-C | 23.5 | 15.6 | 28.2 | 367 | 1.53× |
| Sigma Foveon APS-C | 23.3 | 15.5 | 28.0 | 361 | 1.55× |
| Canon APS-C | 22.3 | 14.9 | 26.8 | 332 | 1.61× |
| Micro Four Thirds | 17.3 | 13 | 21.6 | 225 | 2.00× |
| 1" type (compact, bridge) | 13.2 | 8.8 | 15.9 | 116 | 2.73× |
| Typical phone main camera varies by model | 9.3 | 7 | 11.6 | 65 | 3.72× |
| 1/1.7" type | 7.6 | 5.7 | 9.5 | 43 | 4.55× |
| 1/2.3" type (compact, action cam) | 6.17 | 4.55 | 7.7 | 28 | 5.64× |
Working with the numbers
To find the equivalent focal length, multiply by crop factor: a 25 mm lens on Micro Four Thirds frames like 50 mm on full frame. To compare noise potential between formats, divide areas — full frame gathers about 2.3× the light of Sony-class APS-C at the same exposure, before any lens-speed difference. For video work, frame rates and storage needs per format pair well with our bitrate converters and the download-time calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Why do crop factors matter beyond reach of the lens?
Crop factor describes how much smaller the frame is than 35 mm film, which changes effective focal length — but the same number also tells you relative light gathering. A Micro Four Thirds sensor has a quarter of a full-frame sensor's area, so per-pixel shot noise at equal generation is roughly twice as visible in deep shadows.
What does "1-inch type" mean? The sensor is nowhere near an inch.
It is a leftover from vidicon television tubes: the type designation described the outer tube diameter, whose imaging circle was about two-thirds of that. So a 1" type sensor has roughly a 16 mm diagonal, and every "inch-class" label since inherits the same ~2/3 fudge factor.
Is crop factor exactly 2.0 for Micro Four Thirds?
Computed from diagonals it is 2.00 (21.64 mm vs 43.27 mm). Marketing rounds Canon's 1.61 down to '1.6×' and quotes MFT as '2×'; the table shows the exact diagonal ratio.
Dimensions are nominal active pixel areas from manufacturer specifications; some models vary slightly within a format. Crop factors computed as full-frame diagonal ÷ format diagonal.