January 12, 2016
The Best Sites to Find Free Stock Photography Online
Need a great image for your website, blog or e-newsletter? We’ve compiled a list of great sites for you to find the best free stock photos, so you can access high quality images without paying a cent.
We’ve done our best to highlight any restrictions noted on each site, but please re-check image licences before you use them, as these rules may have changed.
Unsplash
- URL: unsplash.com
- Great for: Landscapes, objects, food, people and scenery
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Pexels
- URL: pexels.com
- Great for: A bit of everything. Pexels reposts images from other royalty free stock sites.
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Pixabay
- URL: pixabay.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Flickr
- URL: flickr.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Not all photos on Flickr are free from copyright, but you can search for different licence types, including those without copyright restrictions by modifying your search settings to indicate your preference.
Stocksnap
- URL: stocksnap.io
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Jeshoots
- URL: jeshoots.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: No, but all of the images are categorised
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Kaboom Pics
- URL: kaboompics.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Attribution is requested, but not essential, redistribution is not allowed without permission
Foodies Feed
- URL: foodiesfeed.com
- Great for: Food, drinks
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Attribution is requested, but not essential, selling and re-selling is not allowed
Jay Mantri
- URL: jaymantri.com
- Great for: Textures, landscapes and locations
- Searchable: No
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Free Images
- URL: freeimages.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: You cannot; use images for unlawful purposes, redistribute images as stand-alone files, use images in trademarks or logos, use images in conjunction with sensitive subject matter without a disclaimer, resell or distribute images where the primary value lies in the content itself (e.g. cards or posters), or use content in electronic or digital templates intended for resale. See more here.
Little visuals
- URL: littlevisuals.co
- Great for: Landscapes, scenery, architecture
- Searchable: No
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Raumrot
- URL: raumrot.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: No, but all of the images are categorised
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Some are reposted from other CC0 licensed sites, while others are licensed under CC-BY, requiring attribution.
New old stock
- URL: nos.twnsnd.co
- Great for: Vintage and historical photos
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: Medium to High
- Restrictions of Use: All images are available for personal and non-commercial use and are free of any known copyright restrictions. The site owner recommends visiting the source link to confirm any restrictions of use.
Picography
- URL: picography.co
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Public domain archive
- URL: publicdomainarchive.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None, Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence
Superfamous
- URL: images.superfamous.com
- Great for: Landscapes and architecture
- Searchable: No
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: CC-BY licence, requiring attribution
Im creator
- URL: imcreator.com/free
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Each photo is different, users need to pay close attention to restrictions noted. All are available for commercial use.
Gratisography
- URL: gratisography.com
- Great for: A bit of everything - landscapes, architecture, people, food, animals, objects
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: Cannot use images for pornographic, criminal, defamatory or degrading purposes, no redistribution on free stock photo websites or apps and no selling and/or redistribution of images is allowed.
Startup stock photos
- URL: startupstockphotos.com
- Great for: Photos of people at work
- Searchable: No
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: None
TheStocks
- URL: thestocks.im
- Great for: A bit of everything. This site showcases images from other royalty free stock sites.
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: See each image for restrictions. Many are licensed under Creative Commons Public Domain CC0 licence.
Rawpixel
- URL: rawpixel.com
- Great for: A bit of everything, but very 'un-stock' like
- Searchable: Yes
- Image Quality: High
- Restrictions of Use: See website for image restrictions. Must be signed up for a free account to download.
What are your favourite stock image sites? Tell us in the comments below!
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