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Free Photo sites - "The Monster List"

Getting images for free is great, and there is a lot of choice out there, but sourcing images from a free site can have its drawbacks, the license that the images are provided with is different on every site you use. Some sites prohibit commercial use of the image, most require an attribution, some require you register or signup to a newsletter to access the images, some ask that you seek permission first etc.

A word of warning: Expecting that nobody will notice if you make use of an image that you just take without permission is foolish, tools like TinEye make it free and easy to find who has used an image without permission, and stock agencies like Getty and others use paid services like picscout.com track image misuse, bill the offender, taking legal action if images are not removed. If you are using images without the correct license, someone will catch up with you sooner or later. Here's a typical forum quote "I currently have a demand from Getty images for $1200 over an image I hot-linked to in a blog entry 2 years ago."

With that in mind, here's our definitive list of resources providing free stock photos with a table of comparisons. This table only sites sites with their own custom license types, sites with Creative Commons images, Pubic Domain Images and CC0 Dedications have also been reviewed.

 
Commercial useCommercial Use Allowed
attribution linkAttribution Required
signup needed
Free Signup Required?

image resolution
Guide Resolution

number of images
Approx size of Collection
(v) = Varies ?=Approx/Guesstimate, Always confirm the license information before you use any image you find on a site listed here.

StockVault Commercial useNo attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution2000px(v) number of images139,000
Community of more than 3000 photographers sharing their photos, note: non commercial use only

Morguefile Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution3000px(v) number of images400,000?
Community of photographers sharing their photos, also contains a large selection of free work available under an attribution license. I rate this one highly.

freeimages.com (was SXC.hu) Commercial useVaries attribution linkVaries signup neededYes image resolution1500px(v) number of images380,000
StockXchange, one of the first sites to 'share' stock photos, a range of licenses, some require attribution or permission, owned by Getty images to promote their microstock site 'istockphoto'

freeimages (.co.uk) Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededYes image resolution1000px(v) number of images21,000
easy browsing and instant download, variable image quality but some good pictures to be found, and a photographer upload area with growing collection of images.

freedigitalphotos.net Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution400px(v) number of images20,000?
There's a catch - only the lowest web resolution images are free the rest cost $5

unsplash.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images?LOTS!
After initially levering CC0 licenses, this site now offers images via its own attribution free license. stylish new imagery, useful for inspiration

freepixels Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1600px(v) number of images6500
well rounded collection, good search and some really quite good stock and conceptual images on offer, resolution varies 1852x2200

 

pexels.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionVaries number of imagesLots!
Another site that started out aggregating CC0 images, and has many images sourced from other CC0 websites listed here, some images uploaded direct by photographers under a custom license, nice site, navigation and search. CAUTION: I found images from kaboompics marked as CC0 on pexels, linked to direct from the kaboompix site (but not marked as CC0 on kaboompix)


rich & wild Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution3800px(v) number of images?
similar to above but no premium option/search, a free fortnightly feed of great looking photo creativity in your inbox

Dreamstime (free section) Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededYes image resolution2700px(v) number of images100,000(?)
Another commercial provider with free archive, special link to the free images at bottom right of their homepage.

123rf (free section) Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution400px(v) number of images32,000
10's of thousands of free images accessed via the "free stock images" link on the home page.

photogen Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededYes image resolution2000px(v) number of images1,900
small collection, good search and no link needed but registration required.

imageafter Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution1600px(v) number of images5-10,000?
The place to find textures and backgrounds, plus a selection of reasonable stock photos

X imagebase.davidniblack.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution2000px+ number of images"1000's"
high quality small collection, license is a little vague "treat as PD" or creative commons attribution if you like? lots of good people photos up to 3072x2048 and some nice powerpoint backgrounds

creepyhalloweenimages Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution2000px(v) number of images100's
niche site with Halloween theme stock images and clipart

X freephotosbank Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution2000px(v) number of images6000?
convenient navigation but somewhat low in quality images

X freefoto.com Commercial useNo attribution linkYes signup neededYes image resolution1000px(v) number of images13000
you might want an ad blocker if you visit this long running, commercial ridden site, free for non commercial use - venerable old site that I think has been around as long as I have

freestockphotos.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution800px(v) number of images1000
very limited selection, low resolution and images contain a stamp which must be left in place or replaced with a text credit

unprofound Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution1024px(v) number of images?
creative and unusual site full of artistic PD images organized and browsed by colour

adigitaldreamer/gallery Commercial use? attribution link? signup neededNo image resolution3000px number of images1000+
high resolution but limited range of images, no license details provided

studio25.ro Commercial use? attribution link? signup neededYes image resolution0px number of images~4000
site that seems similar to the old SXC.hu, registration required to download

abstractinfluence.com Commercial use? attribution link? signup neededNo image resolution1800px(v) number of images~5000
design forum and stock photo gallery, license unclear

amgmedia.com/freephotos Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution700px(v) number of images100?
painful navigation!, and very low resolution, you might find something for a web project here

freelargephotos Commercial useNo attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1200px(v) number of images20000
a good travel/scenic location based library, non commercial use only or buy a $50 commercial license

cepolina photo Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1024px number of images5800
great navigation via category, colour and geographic location. downloads in various sizes but the maximum is 1024 pixels

bigfoto.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1200px number of images500?
you need to browse this useful but small collection manually, attribution required but can be omitted if you pay a $5 license fee

photorack.net Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution640px(v) number of images27,000
massive collection (suspiciously so?), looks like it's no longer updated, and pitiful resolution of most of the photos makes for limited application - lack of search is also annoying

fromoldbooks.org Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1800px(v) number of images2500
collection of scanned illustrations from out of copyright books, organized by title

X mayang's textures Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution2560px(v) number of images3800
Credit is welcomed, simple site with huge selection of textures and backgrounds of all kinds

X amazingtextures Commercial useNo attribution linkN/A signup neededYes image resolution1600px(v) number of images2000?
just when you thought the world did not need another texture site! these textures are repeating so they can easily be used in 3d rendering, free for personal use, $20 for commercial

aarinfreephoto Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution504px number of images950
photos are watermarked and very low res, reasonable range of subjects

freemediagoo.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution1000px number of images200?
some interesting 3d rendered images, audio, textures and flash animation, mostly very low res photos, not much use

ancestryimages Commercial useNo attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1600px(v) number of images16500
old scans of maps and books not for commercial use

holylandphotos.org Commercial useNo attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1600px(v) number of images1000's?
do check the terms, "in general 4 images can be used without permission" with a credit, images of the "holy land"

X bajstock.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution2800px(v) number of images5,000?
images from one photographer, some good conceptual images and locations in France, high resolutions

DHD Multimedia Gallery Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolutionVaries number of images35,000
very eclectic mix of images by various contributors, this site has been running for more than 15 years!

Cromavista Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution1024px(v) number of images100?
Spanish site with various architectural, creative and location photos

paulbates.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1820px(v) number of images50?
small gallery from individual photographer, flowers, sunrises and sunsets, yawn

textureking Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution1600px(v) number of images1000?
well edited collection of texture and backgrounds, nice site layout

freerangestock.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededYes image resolution2400px(v) number of images10,000
more than 2000 images in their in house catalogue + thousands of other images contributed by users

X photl.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededYes image resolution1200px number of images10,000+
amazing quality photos (professional stock level), you need to create an account to download the images, for free you can access only lower resolution images, higher resolution images are via subscription

X freewebphoto.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededYes image resolution700px(v) number of images5000
registration required and 5 image download daily limit, good quality subjects lots of conceptual subjects covered which are also available for purchase if a higher resolution is needed or web use license without attribution, free for web use only

X stickstock.com Commercial use? attribution link? signup neededNo image resolution1200px(v) number of images1000
some nice illustrations but no terms are listed, anyone can upload anything? could have the potential to be copyright infringement nightmare!

pachd.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution1024px(v) number of images1500
some nice isolated images of flowers, food, and travel locations, license for USD 1.99 if you don't want to include an attribution.

fontplay.com/freephotos Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution2624px(v) number of images5500
simply described as free photos with no further terms listed this site contains all sorts of interesting things!

allfreeimages.net Commercial use? attribution link? signup neededYes image resolution2624px(v) number of images1200
some useful conceptual stock subjects as well as the usual architecture and landscapes

sunipix.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution600px(v) number of images1000?
mostly nature and location / landmark images plus a few concepts like biology and finance, only available at low resolution

freestockphotos.biz Commercial useYes attribution linkVaries signup neededNo image resolution2400px(v) number of images15,000
large collection of categorised images, with additional collections of PD, Creative commons and other license types, main collection does not require attribution but link is appreciated.

rgbstock.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededYes image resolution3000px(v) number of images100,000
large collection of user contributed images, registration required for download

littlevisuals.co Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionzip files number of images?
sadly no longer updated, an archive of existing images downloadable as zip files

magdeleine.co Commercial useVaries attribution linkVaries signup neededNo image resolutionVaries number of imagessmall
nicely curated collection of images, varying licenses (attribution and CC0) search, but limited pool of images to choose from

picjumbo.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionLarge number of images~1000s
growing collection of usable images with a basic search tool

getrefe.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution? number of images~?
mostly rubbish don't waste your time

stokpic.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededOpt image resolutionvaries number of images~350
browse some of the images of subscribe for regular images delivered to your inbox

kaboompics.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution5000 (varies) number of images17400
nice photo collection, with a few categories presented in a blog style

barnimages.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images1000
photo collection from various photographers, includes both free and upselling to a premium collection

bara-art.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images300
great looking website with some very nice images, some very appealing landscapes and nature photography

en.freejpg.com.ar Commercial useVaries attribution linkNo signup neededVaries image resolutionvaries number of images10,000(!)
site claims to have 10,000 images, from search this seems unlikely, looks like a PD collection with few extra contributed images mixed in under various licenses. nicely put together

foodiesfeed.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images?
nice food photos collection presented as a blog

hiresstock.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images~500
another nice collected presented in the form of a blog feed

photostockeditor.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images150
photo editor tool website, with a small collection of nice work, no categories or search :(

goodstock.photos Commercial useYes attribution linkOpt signup neededNo image resolution4000 number of images500
sparsely populated categories and no search, nice images

highresolution.photography Commercial use? attribution link? signup needed? image resolutionvaries number of images?
all fir coat, no nickers. when I visited I found a nice looking site with broken links, some pointing to flickr profiles of various photographers, might as well have gone find the images myself (did I miss something

stockfreeimages.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededYes image resolutionvaries number of images1.5M
lots of free stock photos, these are the images rejected from the dreamstime collection.

designerspics.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolutionvaries number of images150?
simple clean site, search and categories, but limited by image collection size

photober.com Commercial useYes attribution linkYes signup neededNo image resolution<1000px number of images1000
nice collocation of commercial style stock, let down by small image size

trunklog.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution2000 number of images~160
very nice collection of inspiring insta style travel and landscape photos

X noblweb.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution2500 number of images~200
some nice sunny stock images and iconic locations, browse for something, no search or categories

titania-foto.com Commercial useYes attribution linkNo signup neededNo image resolution4500+ number of images~550
reasonable size collection of objects, landscapes, nature, the usual free stock fodder

 

stockadelic free photo search

Stockadelic: Search through the top free photo websites with a Single Click

 

 

 

More Free Image Sites:
Our Creative Commons site directory (free use images with an attribution, simplified licenses)

NB: Always confirm the license details before you use the images, all of the sites listed here clearly display their terms of use which must be followed but sometimes things change since we reviewed the terms. Commercial use usually means that you can use the images in advertisements NOT that you can create products for sale using the images - This is possible but in almost all cases you will need to contact the provider or buy an 'extended license'.

 

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stock photo resource book

Free Resource Book listing the best of Free and Paid Stock Photo Libraries

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Disadvantages of Free Sites

Although free sites are great, there is a good reason that most of the images on them are free, they are usually not up to the same quality as those on paid sites. They might be only be suitable for use as a small online images.

Just like with PD images it's often hard to find an image suitable for your needs unless your requirements are for simple non conceptual images like landscapes, flowers, nature or travel.

As a simpler and safer alternative you can look at microstock libraries (quality images, huge selection, easy search and priced from $1).

 

Free Photo Search Services

Missing a Site / Add Listing
Think we have missed a site from the list? then let us know, but be sure that it's not already listed in our PD image sites or Creative Commons free image sites directories.


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