Copyright issues can be a serious risk for brands, creators, and businesses. Using an image without proper rights can lead not just to removal requests, but fines, loss of credibility, or legal trouble.
At the same time, content creators are under pressure to publish faster, stand out visually, and maintain consistent branding. That’s why copyright-free, royalty-free, and Creative Commons images have become essential resources.
Luckily, today, dozens of high-quality platforms offer free stock photos, illustrations, vector graphics, and even 4K videos — often with no attribution required.
In this updated guide, you’ll find the best places to get free images, plus tips on how to use them safely and strategically to improve your design quality, SEO performance, and brand impact.
What "Copyright-Free" Really Means
Before downloading any image, it's important to understand licensing terms:
Common types of image licenses
- CC0 (Creative Commons Zero): Free for personal and commercial use. Attribution not required.
- Royalty-free images: Free to use once downloaded, usually without paying ongoing fees.
- Free with attribution: You can use the image, but you must credit the creator.
- Editorial use only: Can appear in blogs or news articles, but not advertisements or commercial designs.
Even on "free" platforms, individual contributors may apply specific rules. Always check the licensing section on each site.
The 15 Best Sites to Download Copyright-Free Images in 2026
1. Unsplash
Unsplash is one of the most popular stock image sites. On the website, there are high-resolution pictures taken in vertical and horizontal modes, so you can use the ones that fit your purpose better, for example, to create Instagram stories or to illustrate a blog article.
It provides you with copyright-free images of current events, fashion, food and drink, nature, and health and wellness, for instance. Besides, you will encounter wallpapers, textures and pattern images, and 3D renders too.
copyright free images Unsplash
Best for: blogs, websites, SaaS companies, social media
Pros:
- High-quality images
- No attribution required
- Strong search engine
2. Pexels
With Pexels, you have the opportunity to download thousands of copyright free images. All of the photos available on the website can be used for commercial purposes, and attribution is not required. It's a favorite among marketers thanks to its trendy visuals and large collection of vertical images and videos.
You can edit them to make flyers, banners, advertisements, landing pages, and so on. Just type what you are looking for, and find the best picture for your design creation. Another advantage of Pexels is that it also has free stock videos in full HD and 4K.
copyright free images Pexels
Best for: social media creatives, ads, YouTube thumbnails.
Pros:
- Free stock photos + videos
- Ideal for influencers and content creators
- CC0-like license
3. Pixabay
Pixabay has more than 2.6 million copyright free images, videos, and music so you have the opportunity to enhance your content. It also provides you with illustrations, vectors, and sound effects. You can create an account and download everything you need, from beautiful landscapes photos to 4K short videos.
Search for the topic related to the type of image you are interested in, and click on it. On the right side of the page will see the information about the Pixabay license, showing if it's free for commercial use and if attributions are required.
copyright free images Pixabay
Best for: graphic design, presentations, multipurpose content
Pros:
- Very diverse formats
- Commercial use allowed
- Easy to modify and adapt
4. Freerange
With more than 800,000 registered users, Freerange counts on a vast collection of photos, illustrations, and textures. All of them are licensed for commercial use and don't require any attribution. The images are divided into categories like animals, architecture, holidays, nature, sports, and transportation.
Copyright free images Freerange
Best for: images for blogs, websites, presentations, social-media posts, marketing material.
Pros:
- Good variety & quality
- No attribution required (usually)
- Free for both personal and commercial projects
5. Burst
Burst is the free stock photos developed by Shopify, which includes business-oriented photos, perfect for online stores and marketing campaigns. You will find thousands of pictures related to different topics, such as beauty, home, food, business, fitness, and fashion. There are also wallpapers, textures, and background images.
copyright free images Burst
Best for: ecommerce and product-related visuals.
Pros:
- High-quality product shots
- Created for entrepreneurs
- Free for commercial use
6. FreeImages
With FreeImages, you have the opportunity to download multiple kinds of images for personal and commercial use. The website has several picture collections of arts and design, games and cartoons, movies and music, outdoor activities, texture, and patterns.
copyright free images fre images
Best for: websites, blogs, marketing materials, and social-media.
Pros:
- Diverse collection & types of media
- Flexibility: you can modify images
- Permitted for many uses (including commercial)
7. Wikimedia Commons
Wikimedia Commons is a media file repository where you will find public domain and licensed educational media content, including pictures, videos, and audio. It has a collection with over 100 million media files contributed by volunteers and institutions like museums and libraries.
You can use and the images without having to pay anything, but it's necessary to credit the source and respect the terms specified by the author.
copyright free images WikiMedia
Best for: educational, academic, research, or public-interest use.
Pros:
- Huge & diverse media library
- Content from trusted institutions & public domain archives
- Free to use legally (when license permits)
8. Flickr
Flickr is a platform where you can create a blog of your own, and share your pictures. Some people create private pages only to keep their photos organized in one place and share them with family and friends, but you will also find several creators who put their images available for commercial and free use.
Each photo page shows its license. You can check whether it’s "All Rights Reserved", a Creative Commons license, or public domain
Because thousands of photographers worldwide use Flickr, you get a wide variety of subjects — travel, street, nature, events, abstract, art, etc. — often more "authentic" than typical stock-photo libraries.
copyright free images Flickr
Best for: people who are looking for variety, photos with "real-world" visuals and not polished stock-photo look.
Pros:
- Large and diverse community — many styles, real photos
- Flexible licensing — possibility of free / CC-licensed images
- Access to archival, historical and culturally significant photos
9. FreePik
FreePik provides you with high-quality photos, illustrations, vectors, templates, mockups, backgrounds, text effects, and fonts. You can use them to create banners, business cards, flyers, posters, infographics, and schedules, for example.
The platform also offers an online editing tool, Wepik, which enables you to customize the Freepik templates, and doesn't require previous experience with design.
copyright free images FreePik
Best for: designers who need vectors and editable files
Pros:
- Very large library
- Ideal for web & graphic designers
- Free plan + premium option
Note: Many assets require attribution.
10. Vecteezy
With Vecteezy, it gets easier to create your design projects since you can count on free vectors, videos and images as well. Search by category and download what you need, the website is constantly updated and you can use the media files for commercial purposes.
copyright free images Vecteezy
Best for: scalable graphics: logos, icons, illustrations, infographics, web graphics, and print materials.
Pros:
- Wide variety of asset types (vectors, photos, PNGs, videos)
- Scalable & editable vector graphics
- Flexible licensing depending on your needs (Free vs Pro vs Pro-Extended)
11.Life of Pix
The Life of Pix platform is a community of photographers where they can share their work with the world, and create online portfolios. Beyond that, they also put their photos to be used for free. You can create an account, follow your favorite photographers, and download free-copyright images and videos.
Free copyright images Life of Pix
Best for: artistic and photography-focused projects
Pros:
- High-quality landscape and nature images
- New images weekly
- No copyright restrictions
12.StockSnap
StockSnap has copyright free images added daily to its website. You can find high-resolution photos of nature, trips, art, and people, and use them as you wish.
free copyright images StockSnap
Best for: editorial content and lifestyle blogs.
Pros:
- No copyright restrictions
- Modern photography style
- Easy-to-navigate categories
13. Foodiesfeed
If you are creating a project specifically focused on food, the Foodiesfeed website is the perfect place to find the images you need. As the name suggests, it's specialized in food pictures, which are divided into several categories such as meat, pizza, healthy, cake, and drinks as well. Download them in full resolution and enjoy.
copyright free images FoodieFeed
Best for: food bloggers, restaurants, recipe creators
Pros
- Perfect for menus & food blogs
- Realistic photos
- Mostly free
14. Gratisography
Are you looking for creative, out-of-the-box copyright free images? The Gratisography website has a vast collection of them in collections like amusing animals, funky food, artsy architecture, and goofy grownups.
free copyright images Gratisography
Best for: quirky, creative, humorous brands
Pros:
- Distinctive style
- Great for standout visuals
- Free for commercial use
15. PicJumbo
Created in 2013, PicJumbo has become a reference when it comes to stock photo websites. Used by millions of people around the world, including bloggers, designers, and marketers, you can enjoy thousands of free images as well. Type the subject you are looking for and select the best picture for your project.
copyright free images PicJumbo
Best for: small businesses, presentations, marketing campaigns, professional-quality photos with strong composition.
Pros
- No attribution needed
- Good variety
- Premium bundle available
How to Choose the Best Free Image for Your Project
There are several aspects that must be taken into consideration when choosing an image. You should always keep on mind what your objective is, and analyze how the image can help you achieve the desired results. Pay attention to:
- Relevance: the image must support the message you wish to convey.
- Consistency & branding: use similar styles, tones, and color palettes.
- Uniqueness: avoid overused stock photos, since that can reduce credibility.
- License clarity: always confirm if the creator requires attribution.
How to Optimize Images for SEO (Must-Do)
1. Compress before uploading
Large image files can slow down a page speed, interfering negatively on its performance. Therefore, its recommended to tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh to reduce the file size.
2. Rename your files
Instead of IMG_2837.jpg use file names including your content main keyword.
3. Write descriptive alt-texts
Alt-texts are great for SEO because they help Google understand your image and improve accessibility as well.
4. Use responsive images
Images must be optimized to look good both on desktop and mobile devices to provide great user experience. Use techniques like max-width, so the image will expand or shrink to fit the screen.
5. Add captions when relevant
They can boost engagement and help with semantic understanding.
6. Lazy-load images
By setting up lazy-load Images, they will only load as the user scrolls down. This saves bandwidth and speeds up initial page load.
