In this article
Attach a photo the usual way and Telegram re-encodes it before it leaves: smaller, lighter, good enough to look at on a phone. That is the right default for almost everything you send.
It is the wrong default when the file is going to be edited, printed or archived. Send as File is the other path — the bytes arrive exactly as they left, with everything that was in them.
What you will be able to do
- check_circle Send a photo or video without it being re-encoded.
- check_circle Decide which of the two paths a given file should take.
- check_circle Know what an uncompressed file carries that a compressed one does not — including the part you may not want to send.
- check_circle Work within the size limits, and use Saved Messages as storage.
The option is in the menu on the media tray, not in the gallery — which is why it is easy to have used Telegram for years without meeting it.
raw_on Two different things happen to your file
On the compressed path the image is resized and re-encoded, and most of the metadata the camera wrote is discarded. What arrives is a new file that looks like the old one. It is small, it previews instantly in the chat, and for a photo someone is going to glance at that is exactly what you want.
On the file path nothing is done to it at all. The same bytes arrive at the other end, so the resolution, the colour profile and the metadata are all still there, and the recipient can open it in an editor and carry on as if it had come off the card.
The cost is that it stops behaving like a photo in the chat. It arrives as a document with its original filename, and the recipient downloads it rather than seeing it inline. On a phone with limited storage, that is a real imposition, and it is why this should not be your default.
Which path should this file take
Four situations. The default is right for the first one and wrong for the next two, and the fourth is where the limits start to matter.
speed Something to look at and move on from
folder It is going into an editor, a print job or an archive
location_on The recipient is not someone you know
storage The file is enormous
Short version: compressed unless the file has a job after it arrives.
table_chart What each path actually preserves
| Compressed (default) | Send as file | |
|---|---|---|
| Pixels | Resized and re-encoded | Untouched, whatever the original was |
| Camera metadata | Dropped | Kept, location included |
| Colour profile | Normalised | Preserved |
| In the chat | Inline preview, opens instantly | A document to download |
| Size ceiling | Not something you run into | 2 GB free, 4 GB with Premium |
| Formats | Images and video only | Anything, including RAW files no viewer would open |
settings Sending as a file
- Attach as usual The paperclip, then select the photos or videos.
- Open the menu on the media tray The three dots in the corner of the selection screen, not the gallery's own menu.
- Choose Send as File The selection is sent untouched. On desktop the same choice appears as an option when you drop files into the window.
- Or send it from the file browser instead Attaching through File rather than Gallery skips compression from the start.
This page is the switch and when to use it. The curriculum step covers the wider picture: how Telegram stores and streams what you upload, what quality means at each stage, and how to keep originals reachable long after the conversation has moved on.
At a glance
- 1Send as a file
Files arrive uncompressed and keep full detail.
- 2Location stays in
Files keep photo location data; compressed photos drop it.
- 3Size limits
Up to 2 GB per file, or 4 GB with Premium.
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