Nature Communications figure size & submission guidelines
The exact sizes, resolution and label rules from Nature Communications' own submission page — with the studio pre-set to match. Assemble your panels, export, and submit.
| Column widths | 88 mm (single) · 180 mm (double) — one- or two-column figures only |
|---|---|
| Maximum height | Not stated as a figure height — figures are prepared to fit the PDF page size, 210 × 276 mm |
| Resolution | Photographs & bitmapped images: TIFF at a minimum of 300 dpi · line art: vector (EPS, AI or PDF); if vector is impossible, 1,200 dpi · minimum pixel widths 1,040 px (single) / 2,080 px (double), excluding white space |
| Panel labels | Lowercase a, b, c — bold, in the same type size as used elsewhere in the figure |
| Other text | No point sizes stated — one clear sans-serif (e.g. Helvetica) at approximately the same size across all figures; the thinnest lines should be at least 1 pt |
| File formats | Line art: EPS / AI / PDF (Word and PowerPoint accepted, but placed images must also be supplied as separate TIFFs) · photographs: TIFF |
| Colour | RGB for colour photographs |
The button opens the studio with the width, export DPI and lowercase bold labels already set — the settings Nature Communications authors most often get wrong.
How it works
- Add your panels — drop in images or PDF pages; white margins are trimmed automatically.
- Arrange & label — the width, DPI and label style are already set for Nature Communications; drag panels into order.
- Export — free PNG at 100 DPI to check the layout; high-res PNG / SVG / PDF (300–1200 DPI) with a figure credit.
Pricing: free preview · Manuscript pack $7 (12 figures) · Researcher annual $79 · Lab annual $249. One credit exports one figure in any format, and re-exports of the same figure are free for 24 hours — built for revision rounds.
Specs summarised from the official source: Nature Communications — how to submit (general figure guidelines). Journals update their rules — always confirm against the current official guidelines before you submit.
More guides: All journal figure guides · How to combine graphs into one figure · Figure resolution & DPI, explained · Back to the studio