在计算机图形学中，图像缩放指的是通过增加或去掉像素来改变图片的尺寸。由于要在效率和图像质量比如平滑度和清晰度之间做折衷，图像缩放并不是个平庸的过程。当图像尺寸增大的时候，组成图像的像素也越来越大，图像看上去就变"柔和"了。而缩小图像的时候，图像就变得平滑和清晰了。

除了为了适应显示区域而缩小图片外，图像缩小技术更多的是被用来产生预览图片。图像放大技术一般被用来令一个较小的图像填充一个大的屏幕。当你放大一张图像时，你不能可能获得更多的细节，因此图像的质量将不可避免的下降。不过也有很多技术可以保证在放大图像即增加像素的时候，图像的质量不变。

In computer graphics, image scaling is the process of resizing a digital image. Scaling is a non-trivial process that involves a trade-off between efficiency, smoothness and sharpness. With bitmap graphics, as the size of an image is reduced or enlarged, the pixels that form the image become increasingly visible, making the image appear "soft" if pixels are averaged, or jagged if not. With vector graphics the trade-off may be in processing power for re-rendering the image, which may be noticeable as slow re-rendering with still graphics, or slower frame rate and frame skipping in computer animation.