What is the maximum canvas size in Procreate?

It depends on the iPad. Procreate's help center lists a maximum longest edge of 16,384 pixels on most recent models, and a total pixel limit from 33 megapixels on old iPads up to 134 megapixels on the newest. The New Canvas screen shows a Too large warning when you go past your iPad's limit.

Why is my .procreate file hundreds of megabytes?

Usually because of the time-lapse. Procreate stores the recording as video inside the .procreate file, and a long painting session adds far more data than the layers do. Turning off time-lapse recording for a canvas, or exporting a copy without it, makes the file much smaller. More layers and bigger canvases add to it too.

What does Photoshop's not compatible error mean?

It usually means the PSD is over the format's limits of 2 GB or 30,000 pixels on a side, or that the file isn't really a PSD. Files beyond those limits need the PSB format. toPSD checks the limits and writes a PSB automatically when a canvas is too big for a regular PSD.

Why does toPSD say my browser ran out of memory?

The conversion happens inside the browser tab, which keeps your file private but limits it to the memory your device has. A large canvas with many layers can exceed what a phone or a small laptop allows. Closing other tabs usually helps; otherwise convert on a computer with more memory.

Is there a file size limit on toPSD?

No fixed limit, because nothing is uploaded. Upload-based converters often cap free files at 1 or 2 MB, which no real Procreate file fits. toPSD reads the file on your computer and decodes layers tile by tile, so the only limit is your device's memory.

Procreate file too large? Limits and what to do

The limits, in one place

Where	Limit	What happens past it
Procreate canvas	Longest edge up to 16,384 px and a total of 33 to 134 megapixels, depending on the iPad model	The New Canvas screen says Too large; the canvas can’t be made
Procreate layers	Set by the iPad’s memory and the canvas size	Procreate refuses to add more layers
PSD file	30,000 px per side and 2 GB	Photoshop reports the file as not compatible; PSB is needed
PSB file	300,000 px per side	Big enough for any Procreate canvas
Browser memory (toPSD)	Whatever the device has free	toPSD shows “Your browser ran out of memory” and stops cleanly

Procreate’s numbers come from its maximum canvas size article, which lists each iPad model; the PSD numbers are Adobe’s format limits.

Why the .procreate file is so big

A painting of a few thousand pixels can be a 400 MB file, and the layers are not the reason. Procreate records a time-lapse video of every stroke and stores it inside the .procreate file as a set of MP4 segments. Hours of painting become hundreds of megabytes of video. The layer tiles are compressed and usually take a fraction of that.

Ways to shrink the file:

Turn off time-lapse recording in Actions > Video before you start, if you don’t need the replay.
Export a PSD instead of a .procreate file when the recipient doesn’t need the recording; it holds the layers without the video.
Merge or delete layers you no longer need.

If you have the big file and want the video out of it, toPSD saves the time-lapse as an MP4 for free, joining the stored segments into one video in your browser. See the time-lapse guide.

Big canvases and PSD

A regular PSD can’t be wider or taller than 30,000 pixels or larger than 2 GB. Procreate’s largest canvases stay under the pixel limit, but a canvas with dozens of full-size, detailed layers can pass 2 GB, because a PSD stores every layer’s pixels. Photoshop then refuses the file with “not compatible with this version of Photoshop”.

toPSD checks both limits while it writes the file. When a canvas is too big for a regular PSD, it writes a PSB (Photoshop Large Document) instead, and the download ends in .psb. Photoshop opens PSB files the same way it opens PSDs, and so do Photopea and GIMP. The PSD problems page covers the other causes of that error.

Converting a large file in the browser

toPSD works inside the browser tab, which is how your artwork stays on your computer. It decodes each layer tile by tile and releases memory as it goes, so most files convert without trouble on an ordinary laptop. The limit is the device:

Phones and tablets have the least memory. A 16,000 pixel canvas with many layers may not fit.
Chromebooks and small laptops with 4 GB sit in the middle.
Desktop and laptop computers with 8 GB or more handle nearly everything.

When the tab runs out, toPSD shows “Your browser ran out of memory. Close other tabs or try Chrome, then drop the file again.” Do that first. If it still fails, convert on a computer with more memory and move the PSD through a cloud drive.

If you only need to look at the artwork, the free flat PNG from the converter is far smaller than the layered file and opens anywhere.

If the file won’t open at all

A file that fails before any size message appears is a different problem: an unfinished download, the wrong file type, or real damage. The won’t open guide walks through those. For problems after the PSD is in Photoshop, see Procreate to Photoshop.