Passport Photos Near Me
Every drugstore claims to do passport photos. Not every branch actually does. Here is how to check a specific location before you leave.
The short answer
Use the USPS or Walgreens store locator. Of the chains we tested, they are the only ones whose locator can filter for passport photo service at a specific branch. For the rest, you call.
Why “near me” is the wrong question to ask Google
Searching “passport photos near me” gives you a map of stores that generally offer the service. That is not the same as a store that will actually take your photo this afternoon.
The service is offered at the chain level but delivered at the branch level. A CVS two miles away lists passport photos on its website while its photo counter is unstaffed until Thursday. A Post Office that accepts passport applications may not take passport photos at all. The gap between “this chain does passport photos” and “this building will hand me a photo today” is where the wasted trip lives.
So the useful question is narrower: which locators let me confirm a specific branch before I go?
What we found testing the store locators
On 3 August 2026 we loaded the public store locators for USPS, Walgreens, CVS, and Walmart and read every filter control each one exposes, searching ZIP 10001.
USPS has the most precise filtering of anyone. Its locator does not have one passport filter, it has four, and they are separate on purpose:
- Passport Photo
- Digital Passport Photo
- Passport Appointments
- Passport Walk-In
That distinction is the useful part. Passport acceptance (an agent reviewing and sending your application) and passport photo are different services, and plenty of Post Offices do one but not the other. Filtering for “Passport Appointments” and assuming a photo comes with it is exactly how people end up at a counter that cannot photograph them.
Walgreens has a real filter too. Its locator carries a “Passport Photos” checkbox, separate from the broader “Photo Department” option, so you can narrow to branches that specifically list the service.
CVS does not. Scanning its locator landing page for any passport- or photo-related filter control returned nothing. You can find a CVS near you; you cannot ask the locator which CVS does passport photos. That one requires a phone call.
Walmart we could not verify. Its store finder blocked our automated request, so we have no finding either way, and we are not going to guess at one.
The two-minute check before you drive
Filter the locator, if the chain has one
USPS: tick Passport Photo, not just Passport Appointments. Walgreens: tick Passport Photos. For CVS, Walmart, and the rest, skip to step 2.
Call the specific branch, not the 1-800 line
The national number confirms the chain offers the service. Only the branch knows whether its counter is staffed today.
Ask three questions
Do you take passport photos today? Is the photo counter staffed right now? Is the printer working? The last two are what actually sink the trip.
The third question sounds excessive until it happens to you. A store with a broken photo printer stays listed as offering passport photos, because the service is recorded at the chain level and nobody updates a webpage when a printer jams.
When the trip is worth it anyway
Going in person is the right call in a few real situations:
- You want someone else to be responsible for it. Staples and a few others attach a rejection guarantee to the photos they take. If your application gets bounced on photo grounds, that is their problem to redo, not yours.
- You have no smartphone or no printer access, and the store is genuinely convenient.
- You are already going there. If a passport acceptance appointment is booked at a Post Office that also does photos, doing both in one stop is strictly better than two trips.
If none of those apply, the drive is the expensive part. A store photo runs roughly $8 to $18 for two prints depending on the chain, and that is before the travel time and the second trip when the counter turns out to be closed. For what a store charges for two photos you can produce a sheet of six at home and print it at the same chain’s photo counter for about $0.35, with no dependency on whether the passport-photo station is staffed.
For a full price-by-retailer breakdown, see the passport photo cost guide — this page is about confirming a location, not comparing prices.
Related
- Passport Photo Cost Guide — what each retailer charges
- Cheapest Passport Photo Options — ranked by total cost
- Where to Print Passport Photos — printing a sheet you already made
- US Passport Photo Requirements — the official specs
Frequently Asked Questions
Which store locators let me filter for passport photo service?
USPS and Walgreens. We tested the public store locators for USPS, Walgreens, CVS, and Walmart in August 2026. USPS has four separate passport filters, including one specifically for Passport Photo. Walgreens has a Passport Photos checkbox. CVS's locator landing page has no passport or photo filter at all, so you have to call the branch.
Why does the USPS locator have four different passport filters?
Because USPS does several different passport things, and not every Post Office does all of them. Passport Photo, Digital Passport Photo, Passport Appointments, and Passport Walk-In are filtered separately. A Post Office that accepts your passport application does not necessarily take the photo, which is the single most common wasted trip.
What should I ask when I call a store?
Three things: do you take passport photos today, is the photo center staffed right now, and is the printer working. The second and third questions matter more than people expect. Photo counters are often staffed only part of the day, and a store with a down printer will still be listed as offering the service.
Is the photo counter open the same hours as the store?
Usually not. Pharmacy and photo counters commonly close earlier than the store itself, and some locations only staff the photo counter during weekday business hours. A 24-hour Walgreens does not mean 24-hour passport photos.
Do I need an appointment for just a passport photo?
For the photo alone, generally no. Appointments at USPS are for passport application acceptance, which is a separate service from the photo. If you are doing both in one trip, book the acceptance appointment and confirm that branch also does photos.
Or skip the drive entirely
Take the photo on your phone, get a compliant 4x6 sheet for $1, and print it at any of these stores for about $0.35.
Create Your Photo -- $1Works on any phone or computer