Best free photo stock sites: 10 places to grab stock photography for your website and blog
If you’re looking for the best free photo stock sites to grab some images to fill in gaps on your website or blog, you are in the right place. I have some amazing resources that I personally use, love, and recommend as a web designer. But first, a quick disclaimer…
Use stock photography sparingly!
Branded photography is powerful, especially as a service provider. Having photos of you and your work builds instant trust and helps people connect with your personality. If you can’t afford a full photography session, book a mini session or at least get someone to take a few clear photos of you that are professional and showcase your personality.
Having said that though, stock photography can absolutely have a place within your website and blog posts—if you use it strategically and sparingly.
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Are the best free photo stock sites really free?
Yes and no. You can’t just copy and paste a photo from anywhere and use it on your website or blog. That could easily lead to legal trouble for you and your business.
There are many stock photography sites that require you to pay for the right to use a picture, but there are also some really great free photo stock sites that offer amazing, free to use stock images.
As with anything, you need to make sure that you read each site’s rules.
4 legal terms you need to know before using free stock images
Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. The information in this post is for informational purposes and does not constitute legal advice in any way. I am not liable for any damages resulting from using the information in this article. Please consult a lawyer for advice on your unique situation.
1. Public domain
Public domain is the space where no intellectual property rights exist. This means that works in the public domain may be used without any restrictions whatsoever.
2. Royalty-free stock image
A royalty-free stock image means that it is free from having to pay royalties on its use. It does not mean that an image is copyright-free or free to use.
A royalty-free license, in relation to stock photos, gives the buyer of an image a certain amount of rights to use an image in specific ways for a one-time, flat fee.
You are being given the right to use the photo in certain ways. You are not being given the ownership of the photo itself.
3. Creative Commons
A Creative Commons (CC) license is one of several public copyright licenses that enable the free distribution of an otherwise copyrighted “work.”
The creator is giving other people the right to use and share the work that they have created.
Creative Commons Zero (CC0) is the “no copyright reserved” option in the Creative Commons toolkit. This effectively means that the creator is relinquishing all copyright and similar rights that they hold in a work and dedicating those rights to the public domain
4. Attribution
If you are using an image that has not been published under the Creative Commons Zero (CC0) license then you must give attribution (proper credit) to the creator.
Every site that I am covering in this post has a terms of service area where it tells you exactly how you can use their images. Many of them allow use without attribution, but some do require it (or require it with certain images) if you are not paying for it, so do your homework before putting them on your website.
Okay now that the legal stuff is out of the way, let’s get into the 10 best free photo stock sites
10 websites with beautiful, free stock photos
1. Pexels
This is my top go-to site when I need a free, high-quality stock photo for a web design project.
Pexels provides really nice and completely free stock photos licensed under the Pexels license to empower creators.
All the photos on the site are hand-picked from photos uploaded by their users or sourced from free image websites.
Advanced Search Options: You can filter your stock photography search by photo orientation, number of people in the photo, date uploaded, hex code color, etc.
Fun Feature: One of my favorite search features on this site is the “Leaderboard.” Clicking on this menu link allows you to explore the photos of users with the most views of photographs uploaded in the last 30 days.
Check out the Pexels FAQs to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
2. Unsplash
When I am looking for a stock photo that is a little more niche or artistic, I tend to go to Unsplash first. It’s great for finding specific, artistic, and unique imagery for projects
Advanced Search Options: You can do a keyword search, browse collections, or search by suggested curated categories to find photos and illustrations that are perfect for every niche.
Fun Feature: I love to search the trending searches and trending topics options. These pop up when you click into the search bar. They are great for inspiration when you are not quite sure what type of image you want to use.
Check out the Unsplash license details to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
3. Pixabay
This is the first site that I discovered when I started blogging back 2013. It has grown a lot since then, but it is still one of the best free stock photo sites for copyright-free images.
According to Pixabay’s website FAQs, All contents are released under the Pixabay License, which makes them safe to use without asking for permission or giving credit to the artist – even for commercial purposes.
Advance Search Options: You can sort your search by editor’s choice, latest, or trending, as well as by orientation, size, color, and publish date.
There are a ton of different content options on Pixabay, so you can also search for illustrations, vectors, videos, music, sound effects, gifs, etc.
Favorite Feature: You can now also filter based on Content Type, which allows you to choose if you want to see only authentic images or AI generated photos.
Check out the Pixabay license details to get full details. You can see there what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
4. Vecteezy
Vecteezy is a creative marketplace offering photos, videos, vector graphics, illustrations, and more. The site includes millions of resources that are free to download, as well as some premium assets that require a Pro subscription or download credits.
Compared to other free photo sites, Vecteezy stands out in terms of licensing and safety for users. The free resources do require attribution, but Vecteezy takes several steps to protect users from unwanted copyright issues.
Every Vecteezy contributor has been reviewed and approved, which helps to prevent users from uploading stolen content. Vecteezy also requires contributors to submit signed model and property releases, and images/videos that include logos or other brand trademarks are labeled for editorial use only. Additionally, you can download a copy of the license for any resources you use, including free downloads.
All of these safety precautions are standard practice at stock photo marketplaces, but they’re usually skipped by free photo sites.
Advanced Search Options: There are numerous ways to filter your photo search including by license type, AI generated, color, orientation, number of people, age of people, people composition, and image style.
Fun Feature: If you want to find images similar to one you already have, you can search by image. Just drag and drop the image in or browse files from your device and upload.
Get the full details on using Vecteezy images here. You can see there what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
5. Kaboompics
Kaboompics has an astonishing collection of pictures taken by one woman named Karolina! Her photos have been downloaded over 4 million times and have appeared on sites like BBC, CNN, Forbes, Cosmopolitan, Yahoo, iSpot, BuzzFeed, Hubspot, and The Huffington Post!
While this site has a much more limited number of images to choose from, it is still a must-visit site for unique, free stock photos.
Advanced Search Options: You can refine your search by selecting featured photos, newest photos, oldest photos, most downloaded, and least downloaded
Fun Feature: There is a color bar that you can drag your mouse along to search by color. Each image also gives you the hex colors found in each stock photo should you want to coordinate with your social media graphics or website.
Check out the Kaboompics License & FAQs to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
6. Gratisography
If you are looking for quirky, fun, one-of-a-kind stock photos, look no further. Gratisography is the perfect site for eccentric free high-res photos you won’t find anywhere else.
Advanced Search Options: With nine different categories to browse and funny collections like “Goofy Grownups,” “Funky Food,” and “Hijinks Hands” you are sure to find something that will catch your audience’s attention and make them smile.
Fun Feature: This whole site is fun, but one thing that I love about this stock photography website is that when you click on an image it shows you all the tags, categories, and collections it falls into, as well as a “View similar images” button in case you want to search comparable quirky stock photos.
Check out the Gratisography license details to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
7. Styled Stock
Styled stock offers beautiful, free feminine stock photography. If your audience is primarily female, this will be an excellent resource for you.
While this site has a much more limited selection of stock photography, the quality is excellent.
Advanced Search Options: After entering a keyword into the search bar, you can sort by relevance, popularity, or latest added.
When you click on an image, it also gives you the option to refine your search with numerous tags and related images.
Fun feature: Since it is a smaller collection, you can browse directly from images displayed on the home page and when you hover over each one, it shows you the category it is a part of.
Check out the Styled Stock license details to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
8. Startup Stock Photos
If you are looking for free tech stock photos that feature cell phones, laptops (Lots of Macs) and young professionals then this is a great site for you.
As their website states, they offer “free startup, office, and tech stock pictures ready for your next project.”
It is a very basic site compared to the others on this list. There is a simple search bar, but there are no ways to further filter your image search once the results are displayed.
Advanced Search Options: If you click on a specific image, you will have the ability to see what broad category it falls into (People, technology, etc.) then you can click on that link for similiar images.
Fun Feature: None that I could find. It is a very simple, straightforward niche site.
Check out the Startup Stock Photos Terms of Use to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
9. PicJumbo
Started by a designer/photographer in 2013, this site has grown into a massive collection of free images, backgrounds, and photos that you can use on your website, templates, blog posts or designs.
Advanced Search Options: There are several categories to browse in addition to the traditional search bar. You can also browse the ‘Best Free Images from Today’ section directly from the home page for the latest photos added.
Fun Feature: You can get new photos sent directly to your email by subscribing to their newsletter.
Check out the PicJumbo FAQs & Terms details to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
10. StockSnap.io
This is one of the best free photo stock sites that is relatively unknown to most.
They offer high-quality, attention-grabbing photos in so many niche categories that you can browse.
Advance Search Options: You can filter your stock photography search in several ways- relevance, date, trending, views, downloads, and favorites
Fun Feature: They have some really unique categories you can browse like ‘Smile,’ “Sad,’ ‘Green,’ ‘Wall,’ and ‘Cute.’
Check out the StockSnap.io license details to get full details on what you can/cannot use these photos for in your business.
Are you ready to start increasing your views?
You now know ten of the best free photo stock sites that offer you access to beautiful, high-resolution photographs at no cost to you! Start incorporating photos from these free image libraries into your website and blog posts for more impact today
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