10 Websites for Free Stock Images and How Their Licences Work

The most useful free stock image websites are Unsplash, Pexels and Pixabay, followed by smaller collections such as Burst, StockSnap and Gratisography, and licence-aware search tools like Openverse and Wikimedia Commons. "Free" does not mean "no rules", though: each site has its own licence, and some restrict selling unmodified images, using recognisable people or implying endorsement. Read the licence for each image you download — terms change, and they can differ from image to image on the same site.

Before You Download: Three Checks

1. Read the licence linked on the image page, not just the site's homepage. Some sites mix free images with paid or premium ones, and community archives like Wikimedia Commons have a different licence for every file.
2. Look for people, logos, artwork and private property. A free licence covers the photographer's copyright but usually does not guarantee that the people or brands shown agreed to commercial use. Be careful using such images in ads or on products.
3. Keep a record. Save the image page URL, the photographer's name and the date you downloaded it. If the licence changes later or someone questions your use, you have proof of what applied at the time.

The 10 Sites

1. Unsplash

A very large library of high-resolution photos, strong in lifestyle, architecture, travel and technology. The Unsplash License generally allows free commercial and non-commercial use without attribution (credit is appreciated). Restrictions include selling photos without significant modification and compiling them to build a competing service. Some images are marked Unsplash+, a paid tier with its own licence, so check before downloading.

2. Pexels

Photos and videos with good coverage of people, business and everyday scenes. The Pexels License generally allows free use without attribution. It does not allow selling unaltered copies (for example as posters or prints), showing identifiable people in a bad light, implying that people or brands endorse your product, or redistributing images on other stock platforms.

3. Pixabay

Photos, illustrations, vector graphics, video and music. The Pixabay Content License generally allows free use without attribution, with restrictions similar to Pexels: no selling unaltered content as standalone files or on physical products, no offensive use of identifiable people, and care with trademarks. Pixabay also hosts AI-generated images, which are labelled; decide whether those suit your project.

4. Burst (by Shopify)

Free photos aimed at online sellers and small businesses, with collections for product, lifestyle and business themes. Burst uses its own licence that permits commercial use; read the terms on the site, particularly for images showing people or branded items.

5. StockSnap.io

A searchable collection of photos that the site releases under Creative Commons Zero (CC0), which places no copyright restrictions on use. As with any CC0 image, CC0 does not cover trademarks or the rights of people shown in the photo.

6. Gratisography

A smaller library of quirky, humorous and unusual photos. Gratisography has its own free licence that allows personal and commercial use; it suits brands with a playful tone more than corporate ones.

7. ISO Republic

Curated photos and video clips covering lifestyle, nature and urban scenes, released under the site's own free licence. Check the licence page for the current terms.

8. Negative Space

Clean, modern photos of workspaces, technology and cities. The site has offered its photos under CC0; confirm the current terms on the licence page before relying on them.

9. Openverse

Not a stock site but a search engine for openly licensed works, including Creative Commons and public domain images from many collections. Each result shows its licence and suggested attribution text. Use the filters to limit results to licences that permit commercial use or modification if you need those.

10. Wikimedia Commons

A huge archive of freely usable media, especially strong for historical photos, maps, technical diagrams, landmarks and public domain artwork. Every file has its own licence, commonly CC BY, CC BY-SA or public domain. Many require attribution, and share-alike licences carry conditions for adapted versions. Check the licence box on each file page.

Licence Terms Explained

This table is a plain-language summary, not legal advice. The licence text on the image page is what counts.

Why Not Just Use Google Images?

Google Images shows pictures from across the web, and most of them are copyrighted. Using them without permission can lead to takedown requests or licence-fee demands. If you do search there, open Tools → Usage rights and choose Creative Commons licences, then follow the result to its source page and confirm the licence yourself; filters can be wrong.

Making Stock Photos Work for You

Avoid the obvious shots

Images like staged handshakes or people laughing at laptops are recognisable as stock at a glance. Search for specific, natural-looking scenes instead.

Check whether competitors use the same image

A reverse image search shows where else a photo appears. If a competitor uses it prominently, pick a different one.

Adapt the image to your design

Cropping, colour adjustments and consistent treatment across a page make stock images feel part of your content — as long as the licence allows modification. Mixing in your own photos helps even more. If you are using stock images in school projects or presentations, our list of free online image tools for students covers the editing side.

Preparing Stock Images for Your Website

Downloads are often several megabytes and thousands of pixels wide — far more than a web page needs.

1. Crop to the area you need with the crop tool.
2. Resize to the width your layout actually displays using the resize tool.
3. Convert to WebP for smaller files, for example with JPG to WebP.
4. Compress with the image compressor.
5. Write descriptive file names and alt text, following Google's image SEO best practices.
6. Add credit where the licence requires it, in a caption or credits section.

Our guides on optimizing images for SEO and faster loading and why WebP images make websites faster go further on file sizes and formats.

When Paid Stock Makes Sense

Paid libraries such as Adobe Stock, Shutterstock and iStock are worth considering when you need a very specific scene, extended rights for products or large print runs, or images of people with model releases for advertising. Compare licence tiers carefully; standard and extended licences cover different uses.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use free stock photos for commercial purposes?

Often yes, but it depends on the licence of the specific image. Sites like Unsplash, Pexels and Pixabay generally allow commercial use with some restrictions, while Creative Commons images may require attribution or forbid commercial use. Always read the licence on the image page before using it.

Do I need to credit the photographer?

Under the Unsplash, Pexels and Pixabay licences credit is not required but is appreciated. Images under CC BY and related Creative Commons licences require attribution in the form the licence specifies.

Can I sell a free stock photo on a T-shirt or poster?

Usually not unaltered. Several free stock licences forbid selling unmodified copies of images as prints or on physical products. Check the restrictions in the specific licence, and be especially careful with images of people, brands or artwork.

Are images found on Google free to use?

No. Google Images shows pictures from across the web, and most are copyrighted. The Usage rights filter can help you find Creative Commons images, but you still need to confirm the licence on the source page.