Images form a major part of the web! You can find images over every platform, be it a personal blog or a social media advertisement. The importance of copyright free images has been recognized by everyone from large corporations to individuals today!
If you are a content creator, you would relate to the struggle of finding the perfect image for your blogs, websites, YouTube thumbnails, and other creative projects.
Well, don’t worry, because in this article, I’m going to reveal 17 Best Copyright Free Image Websites where you can find high-quality photos and other assets like videos, audios, sound effects, vectors, illustrations, and more!
I will also help you understand the basics of Image Licensing and the different licenses that creators use for their work. So, let’s get started!
| Website Name | Free Image Collection | Attribution | Free Usage | Unique Features |
| Unsplash | 6 million+ | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Visual Search |
| Pixabay | 5 million+ assets | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Safe Search, Canva Integration |
| Pexels | 1 million+ | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Filter by hex code, Canva Integration |
| Flickr | Billions | Depends on License | Depends on License | Advanced filter and sort options |
| Freepik | 15 million+ assets | Required | Personal & Commercial | AI editing tools, Freepik Photo Editor |
| Canva | 3 million+ assets | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Hex code color palette, AI-generated images |
| VistaCreate | 1 million+ assets | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Good filter options |
| Vecteezy | 10 million+ | Required | Personal & Commercial | Good image collection |
| PikWizard | 1 million+ assets | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Design Wizard |
| Flaticon | 16.9 million+ | Required | Personal & Commercial | Animated icons |
| Reshot | 55k+ assets | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | N.A. |
| FoodiesFeed | 3k+ | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | N.A. |
| Burst by Shopify | 20k+ | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Create Shopify Website with image |
| Icons8 | N.A. | Required | Personal & Commercial | Background Color AI |
| Wikimedia Commons | 108 million+ assets | Depends on license | Depends on license | Variety of Licenses |
| Kaboompics | 20k+ | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Hex code palette, Free photoshoots |
| Stockvault | 145k+ | Depends on license | Depends on license | Lots of Image Collections |
| Dupe | N.A. | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Modern terminology, aesthetic images |
| PicJumbo | N.A. | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Image Categories |
| Jay Mantri | N.A. | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Minimalistic website |
| Freerange | N.A. | Not Required | Personal & Commercial | Image Editing via Pixlr |
| FreeImages | 400k+ | Required | Personal & Commercial | Good filter options |
What is Licensing?
Under Licensing, you essentially grant others the permission to use your creative assets like images, videos, audios, etc for personal or commercial purposes.
- Personal usage might include using your creative work (image, video, etc) on a blog, personal website, header image, newsletter, social media, etc.
- Commercial usage might include using your creative work on printed media like books, magazines, etc, using it for advertisements or on promotional content, or using it in any way that earns you money!
Thankfully, we have a lot of licensing types available today. So, as a creator, you can decide the degree of rights you want to provide to the users and then choose a license accordingly. Wondering how that would be useful?
Well, every license comes with specific terms and conditions of how you can use the creative asset. It also mentions the restrictions of what you cannot do. So, if a user purchases an image with a license, they can only use your stuff as per the agreements in that license.
Let us look at the types of licenses available.
Types of Licenses
There are several licenses that offer varying degrees of rights to the users. Because this article is mainly focused on beginners, I have only discussed the most popular ones below.
Commercial License
A Commercial License permits you to use any creator’s images for commercial projects like advertisements, banners, catalogues, or printing over newspapers, novels, t-shirts, etc.
Non-Commercial License
Non-Commercial License, as the name suggests, lets you use a creator’s images for anything that is not related to business or money making. Some example use cases might be personal blogs, social media, school diaries, newsletters, etc.
One-time Use License
One-time Use License covers a single client and the creative work may be used only on one website. For example, it might include images or graphics designed exclusively for a client.
If the client wishes to use it on other projects, they need to purchase the license again.
Royalty-Free License
People often confuse royalty free images with copyright free images. But let me tell you, they are not the same!
Images falling under a Royalty-Free License are copyrighted by the owner, but anyone can use them by paying a one-time fee. This essentially means that you pay for it once and keep using it forever.
For example, when you download an image from a stock image website, you don’t pay for the image. But that doesn’t mean it’s free!
The platform purchases a license from the image owner by paying a one-time fee and makes it available to a worldwide audience for free!
Copyright-Free License
Under a Copyright-Free License, the creator releases their images completely free of cost and grants permission to the users to use them in whatever way they like!
A copyright free image does not offer any restrictions and you are not even asked to attribute the creator.
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons is a non-profit organization with an aim of enhancing the availability of creative resources online.
The Creative Commons Licenses are of many types, like CC0, CC BY, CC BY-SA, etc. They basically make a creative asset available for free around the world.
However, they impose certain restrictions ranging from ‘attribution required’ to ‘no modifications allowed’.
The Creative Commons license lets creators specify exactly how their works should be used. It is also a great way to bring more exposure to your photos! Their most popular version is the Creative Commons CC0 License.
CC0 means “no copyrights reserved”. So, the owner of the creative work gives up his/her copyright and makes the work available freely under public domain. These works can be used by the public however they want!
What is Attribution?
Attribution simply refers to acknowledging someone as the creator of a piece of art or creative asset. There are different ways of attributing soundtracks, logos, videos, etc.
But, if we specifically talk about image attribution, you need to mention the image URL along with its title and the name of the Author directly under where you use the image on the web!
Advantages of Copyright Free Images
There are a lot of advantages to using copyright free images for your projects. Let’s check out the most important ones.
Saves Money
Copyright free images are essentially “free”. This means that you won’t need to spend a dime on these images. Simply hit download and use them!
Diverse Use Cases
Copyright free images are not governed by any licenses. So, you are free to use them on your personal blogs, social media, advertisements, prints, and anything else you can think of.
Helps Avoid Legal Issues
Images taken from copyrighted sources might incur legal action on you. Whereas, if you use copyright free images that do not fall under any license, you are safe from any troubles in the future!
Best Copyright Free Image Websites
Now that you have understood the different licenses and their advantages, let us look at the best websites to find copyright free images for your projects.
1) Unsplash
Unsplash features an enormous collection of 6 million+ high-resolution images and illustrations for free. To search for the perfect image, you can either type your keyword in the search bar, explore their 30+ unique categories, or use the Visual Search feature to search for similar images.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 6 million+ images
The results can be sorted by license, orientation, and relevance. You can also switch to viewing Illustrations or Collections as per your entered keyword. While previewing any photo, you’ll find related images, related collections, and relevant tags.
The Unsplash+ License lets you use their images personally and commercially. However, you may not sell them with no modifications.
Finally, you can choose the image download size from small, medium, large, or original size. I loved the relevant, professional, and high-quality results for all search categories and the variety of sorting options available.
2) Pixabay
Pixabay is an all-rounder platform for finding a creative collection of illustrations, photos, videos, sound effects, vector graphics, GIFs, music tracks, and more! They have an extensive collection of over 5 million stock images.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 5 million+ images
Search results can be filtered by orientation, size, color, and published date, or sorted by latest images, editor’s choice, trending, or most relevant images. It stands out by offering options to turn on safe search and hide AI-generated content.
Finally, various download sizes are available. If you wish to edit your image, it integrates with Canva to allow seamless editing.
The images on this platform are protected under the Pixabay License. This license allows you to use their images for personal and commercial projects freely. However, you may not redistribute or resell their assets without modification.
I loved the wide range of categories and filters on Pixabay, ranging from beauty, health, education, and more.
3) Pexels
Pexels gives you access to a collection of over a million free stock images! While searching for an image, you get related keywords at the top, along with options to filter by orientation, size, or hex code.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: Millions of free images
They also have a Popular Searches section where you can get collections of images for their most searched terms. You can download your image in various sizes, like small, medium, large, original, or custom size. Similar to Pixabay, Pexels also offers integration with Canva for editing.
All assets on this platform fall under the Pexels License that permits them for personal and commercial usage. But you cannot resell them without modification or redistribute them to other stock platforms!
In my experience, the images on Pexels and Pixabay libraries were quite similar. But even with limited search options, Pexels’ high-quality images are impressive!
4) Flickr
Flickr is an online platform comprising tens of billions of free resources, including photos and videos. You can filter your results by image license, orientation, size, date, content, and color. Its Safe Search Option lets you hide any inappropriate images. However, it doesn’t work that well.
Attribution: Depends on the License
Image Collection: Billions of images
Flickr features 6 different types of licenses for their images. So, the copyright restrictions and attribution depend on the type of license selected.
Flickr stands out with its advanced sorting options, extensive collection, multiple download sizes, and a SafeSearch feature. But it lacks categories and also includes irrelevant results. Overall, if you need a versatile platform to find all kinds of images, Flickr is a great website.
5) Freepik
Freepik offers a gigantic library of 15 million assets, including images, icons, videos, PSD files, mockups, and templates. Additionally, it also includes AI tools for editing your images, including background remover, resize tool, retouch tool, reimagine tool, etc.
Attribution: Required
Image Collection: 15 million+ assets
While searching for images, you can filter and include/exclude AI-generated images, choose a base model, and enable/disable images with prompts. Below your chosen image, you will find similar free and premium images and related tags.
Freepik’s Free license allows using its assets for personal and commercial projects with an attribution to the owner. Its free plan gives you 10 free downloads per day.
With a Freepik Premium License, you can download unlimited images. It allows users to modify and use their assets for personal and commercial works. However, it restricts users from reselling, sub-licensing, and redistributing them on other media platforms.
Finally, you can edit your image in the Freepik Photo Editor or download it in Small, Medium, Large, or Original size. I was impressed with their image quality, advanced filter options, and relevant results.
6) Canva
Canva is a popular online designing tool that integrates with the Pexels and Pixabay image libraries. It features an enormous collection of 3 million+ free photos, videos, and graphics.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 3 million+ images
When you preview an image, you will find related tags, similar images, and a color palette for your image with hex codes. You’ll also find AI-generated images on their platform. It also allows downloads in multiple formats.
All free images on Canva fall under the Canva Free Content License that permits their use for personal and commercial purposes. But reselling, sub-licensing, and trademarking are prohibited. This license also applies to any AI-generated stock images found on their platform.
I personally liked the qualities of their images. The only downside is the lack of filter options and a direct download button to export your photos. Check out these cool Canva tips and tricks to learn how to use Canva effectively.
7) VistaCreate
VistaCreate (formerly Crello) is a graphic design platform that was previously owned by DepositPhotos. In 2021, VistaPrint acquired Crello and its parent company DepositPhotos, and rebranded the product to VistaCreate.
It features an extensive library of over 1 million free images, videos, and vectors. On the home page, you can browse through their top image searches and popular categories. Results can be sorted by trending, popular, or newest images.
Attribution: Not required
Image Collection: 1 million+ free assets
On VistaCreate, you can filter your photos by location, orientation and background, season and time of day, people, and color. Upon previewing an image, it also displays related images, tags, and more images from the same creator.
The VistaCreate License Agreement permits using the images personally and commercially. This includes email marketing, software development, social media posts, commissioned works, and up to 500k printed copies for personal use, merchandising, advertising, or printing.
Images can be downloaded in 5 different sizes: S, L, XL, Super, and EL. and multiple formats. However, there is no option to directly download your file. The free download button forwards you to DepositPhotos, which is a paid service.
You need to use the ‘Start Designing’ option and sign up on VistaCreate to download your image. I loved their image collection. However, the website is pretty slow and sluggish, which hampers user experience.
8) Vecteezy
Vecteezy is a database of millions of stock images, videos, vectors, templates, AI-generated images, and other creative assets. You can search their library via keyword or by uploading an image as an inspiration.
The images can be filtered by content, license, color, orientation, image style, no of people, age of people, etc. You can also check out their trending searches, top photo searches in alphabetical order, and popular categories of images.
Attribution: Required
Image Collection: 10 million+
For downloading your image file, you can choose between different qualities from small, medium, large, and original. The Vecteezy Free License allows you to use images freely on your personal and commercial projects but with due attribution to the creator.
The free plan of Vecteezy allows you to download 10 assets per day. Overall, I loved the image collection of Vecteezy. But it’s super slow at previewing images.
9) PikWizard
PikWizard is another popular online platform featuring over a million free stock images, PNGs, videos, and templates. The top of the page features popular categories you can explore. You can also check related keywords to search for similar images. However, it lacks filter options.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 1 million+
All images on PikWizard follow the Standard User License (which is a CC0 License). So, you can use them for personal and commercial purposes like printing, advertising, broadcasting, etc. However, selling, redistributing, or sub-licensing are not permitted.
PikWizard features a Design Wizard for editing your images. However, you’ll have to sign up on the platform to use the Design tool and export your image. You’ll also find a lot of Adobe premium images on their page, which makes it difficult to differentiate the generic ones.
10) Flaticon
Flaticon is a library of over 16.9 million free icons and stickers owned by Freepik. You also get animated icons and interface icons in their library.
Attribution: Required
Image Collection: 16.9 million+
All the assets on Flaticon follow the Flaticon license. It permits using their assets on personal and commercial projects and modifying them as you like. However, attribution is required whenever you use them.
Flaticon stickers, 2D icons, and animated icons can be downloaded in PNG format in various resolutions. Similarly, interface icons can be downloaded in PNG, SVG, and ZIP formats for Android and iOS devices.
I loved the extensive library of icons and stickers for all categories. You can use them on your social media profiles, branded content, brochures, apps, websites, and more.
11) Reshot
Reshot is a platform for finding free icons and illustrations. It features a diverse range of 40k+ icons and 15k+ illustrations. Under your selected icon, you can check out related icons and tags as well.
Attribution: Not Required
All the assets are protected with a Reshot Free License, which allows you to use it on personal and commercial projects without requiring attribution. However, reselling, trademarking, or building a similar product is prohibited.
Reshot icons can be downloaded in SVG format, and illustrations can be downloaded as vector or PNG files. Overall, if you need icons for your website, app, logo, event, marketing, or any other use case, Reshot is your go-to platform!
12) FoodiesFeed
FoodiesFeed features 3000+ tempting food images generated by Midjourney. You’ll find the perfect food photos on this website, from healthy foods to drinks, pizza, coffee, or dessert. The top of the page houses popular food categories to narrow down your search.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 3k+
All the images on FoodiesFeed are available under the CC0 (Creative Commons Zero) License, which allows you to use them for free on personal and commercial projects.
I personally loved their collection of catchy and mouth-watering food photographs! If you wish to design restaurant menus, food blogs, recipe apps and books, or food ads, banners, and social posts, this is the ideal website!
13) Burst by Shopify
Burst by Shopify is a copyright-free image platform where you’ll find a collection of 20k+ high-quality stock images. You can start by typing in your search query or check out one of their popular categories or photo collections.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 20k+
The interface of the website is modern and minimal. However, you don’t get any sorting or filtering options. It also doesn’t feature related categories or tags for finding similar images.
All the images on Burst fall under the “Burst Some Rights Reserved” License, which lets you use them for commercial and non-commercial uses. But selling, claiming ownership, or replicating the image to compete with Burst is prohibited.
You can download your images in 2 qualities – Low Resolution and High Resolution. You can also create a website on Shopify with your selected image if you wish to. Overall, their photo collection, though limited, looks very professional.
14) Icons8
Icons8 is a library of free photos, icons, illustrations, music, and 3D models. When you search for a photo via keyword, it displays lots of related tags, similar photos, and related categories under your images.
Attribution: Required
To filter your search results, Icons8 allows you to select a photo source, and type of photo, and get photos with transparent backgrounds. You can choose from multiple image dimensions and download your image.
All the free images on Icons8 fall under the Universal Multimedia License. It permits the use of free images for unlimited personal projects and 1 commercial project.
I liked its Background Color AI by Background Remover. You can select any color from the palette or enter hex code and it’ll be applied as background. However, it is not accurate at identifying objects right now.
15) Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons or Wikicommons is an online library of over 108 million free assets, including images, videos, sounds, 3D models, etc. Anyone can contribute to this platform and license their media with different licenses like Creative Commons, GFDL, Public Domain, etc.
Attribution: Depends on License
Image Collection: 108 million+
As you search images for your keyword, you can filter the entries by topic, location, type, author, license, or source. You also get a variety of resolutions to download your file in. The most commonly used licenses on Wikimedia Commons are:
- CC0 (no rights reserved, no attribution required)
- CC BY 4.0 (some rights reserved, attribution required)
- CC BY-SA 4.0 (some rights reserved, attribution & sharing alike required)
Overall, their library is enormous! You can find a diverse range of images for all categories on this platform.
16) Kaboompics
Kaboompics is a collection of high-quality and artistic images focused on creatives and professionals. It features 20k+ images in its library and is run by Karolina Grabowska, a talented photographer.
The top categories of images are mentioned at the top of the page. You can check them out for a diversity of creative photos. Under the search bar, you’ll also find a color palette bar to search images by specific color. You also get downloadable hex code color palettes for all images.
Attribution: Not Required
Image Collection: 20k+
Finally, images can be downloaded in full size or with a custom width. The Kaboompics License allows you to use all its images for free with no attribution. However, a photo must be significantly modified if you want to sell it.
Kaboompics stands out by offering a free photoshoots tab where you can check out all photos taken in a single shoot. This is great for streamlining your pictures for a specific project.
17) Stockvault
Stockvault offers a collection of 145k+ free assets submitted by users. This includes stock photos, textures, and illustrations. You’ll find popular categories of images mentioned at the top of the page.
Attribution: Depends on License
Image Collection: 145k+
The images can be sorted by name, date, size, or by most downloaded, liked, or viewed. Under each image, you get multiple tags to find similar images. They also have 250+ collections focused on concepts or events, like Father’s Day, fresh fruits, urban scenes, Halloween, etc.
Stockvault offers images with 3 types of licenses.
- CC0 License: Available for free under the public domain
- Non-Commercial License: Use on personal projects without attribution
- Commercial License: Use on personal & commercial projects without attribution
If you wish to sell an image downloaded from Stockvault, you need to make significant modifications to it. Overall, the image collection of Stockvault is decent. However, I found the Shutterstock ads to be too intrusive.
18) Dupe
Dupe is an online inventory of free aesthetic stock photos. I love the use of modern colors and terminologies to appeal to the younger generation. The website looks really cool and fun to use!
On top of the page, you’ll find some popular categories people are searching for. You can also enter a keyword to search for specific images. The images can be sorted by relevance, popularity, or new images. You can also filter them by orientation and format.
Attribution: Depends on License
Image Collection: 145k+
The images on Dupe are downloaded in high quality by default. They are free for personal and commercial projects and don’t require attribution. However, you may not create a competing platform using their image database.
Overall, if you need some artistic and tasteful images to complement your creative projects, check out Dupe!
19) PicJumbo
PicJumbo is a collection of free photos, wallpapers, and backgrounds created by professional photographer Victor Hanacek in 2013. You can use it on your websites, social media, blogs, and more.
Attribution: Not Required
It features 15+ categories of high-quality pictures, like animals, business, nature, people, technology, etc. You can also search for a specific keyword and get relevant results with related images and tags. It also features AI-generated stock images by Midjourney in its collection.
However, you won’t find any filtering or sorting options. It also doesn’t offer multiple resolutions for downloading the images. PicJumbo images are free for personal and commercial use. However, you may not resell or upload them on other image platforms.
20) Jay Mantri
Jay Mantri is a designer based in Los Angeles. His website features breathtaking pictures of landscapes and nature. Although the collection is limited, the images are of good quality and very refined.
Attribution: Not Required
All the photos on this website can be used for personal and commercial purposes without attribution. You won’t find any search bars, filtering or sorting options, related images, etc. All you have to do is scroll through the site, find an image you link, and hit the download button!
I loved the minimalistic feel of this website. If you specifically need minimal photos of nature, skyscrapers, etc, this website is the perfect choice.
21) Freerange
Freerange is a platform offering free high-resolution stock photos and illustrations. You can check out their newest or most popular photos, search by category, or enter your keyword. Besides any image you pick, you get related keywords to find similar images.
Attribution: Depends on License
Image Collection: 145k+
You get multiple image qualities (small, medium, and full size) to download your assets. It also allows editing via Pixlr. The images are free to be used on personal and commercial projects without attribution. But you cannot offer images for sale or as part of printed products.
22) FreeImages
FreeImages is a stock platform with a vast collection of millions of images, vectors, illustrations, clip art, PSDs, and icons. You can filter your image searches by relevancy, popularity, or file type and get dozens of tags to find similar images.
Attribution: Required
Image Collection: 400k+ images
The content on FreeImages can be freely used for personal and commercial purposes. However, reselling, redistribution, and printing without modifications is not allowed.
I personally liked their diverse image categories, advanced filter options, and multiple download formats. But the quality of images available was not satisfactory. It didn’t fetch the correct image results for my query and also lacked resolution options for downloading images.
Conclusion
I hope all the above free stock photo websites would help you create better and high-resolution images for your social media posts, ads, newsletters, and blog posts. Copyright free resources are essential for every profession, be it a freelancer, a blogger, or an advertising agency!
You can also check out dedicated designing tools like Canva or Crello to design attention grabbing graphics within minutes. Placeit‘s enormous template collection can even help you design professional logos, graphics, and mockups for your brand.
Alternatively, Envato Elements can be used to find a variety of unique digital assets for your creative projects.
Anyway, which copyright free image platform is your favourite? And what do you use the downloaded images for? Let me know in the comments box below. For more such interesting posts, you can join my weekly newsletter.
This is Kripesh signing off! See you in the next article. Take care and keep learning. 🙂
Nice information. To the point.
Thanks.
Glad you liked it.
Hi, Great list. I am not used to using other people images and icons. And I want to avoid trouble and do everything legally. So yesterday I found about 10 images/icon on Pizabay I liked very much.
Just to be safe that it was OK to use them, I asked them one by one and gave a link to the landing page I wanted to use it for. Now my account is blocked. I have sent them an email and explained. It will probably work out, but just wanted to advise others that such a thing can happen.