How to remove the background from an image (free, full resolution)

Removing the background from a photo used to mean an hour with the pen tool in Photoshop. Today an AI model finds the subject in a few seconds, and you can do it free in your browser without uploading the photo anywhere. Here’s how, how to get clean edges around hair and fur, and which format to save the cutout in.

The quick way: in your browser, in a few seconds

1. Open the background remover and drop in your photo. JPG, PNG, WebP and iPhone HEIC photos all work.
2. Choose a model: Anything for products, animals, food and objects, or People for portraits.
3. Press Remove Background. The first time, the browser downloads the model (about 42 MB, or 25 MB for People) and keeps it for next time.
4. Download the cutout as a transparent PNG.

The model runs on your own device, so the photo is never sent to a server. It also doesn’t shrink your image: the cutout comes back at exactly the width and height you started with, with no watermark.

How AI background removal works

A segmentation model looks at the image and estimates, for every pixel, how likely it is to belong to the main subject. The result is a mask: white where the subject is, black where the background is, and shades of grey along soft edges such as hair. Applying the mask to the photo’s transparency (its alpha channel) makes the background disappear while the subject’s pixels stay exactly as they were.

Models work on a reduced copy of the image, usually around 1024 px. Some online removers then hand you that small version unless you pay. Ours scales the mask back up and applies it to your full-size original, so a 4000 px photo comes back at 4000 px.

Getting clean edges around hair and fur

• Use the right model. A portrait model is trained on people and handles hair and shoulders much better than a general one. It also ignores objects, so use the general model for a product or a pet.
• Adjust the threshold. If wisps of background survive around the subject, raise the Cutout slider. If the subject is losing its own soft edges, lower it. The model doesn’t need to run again, so the change is instant.
• Feather slightly. A pixel or two of feathering softens a hard, “cut out with scissors” edge, which helps when you place the subject on a new background.
• Check at 100% zoom. Edges that look fine at screen size can show a halo when printed or enlarged.

Photos that cut out cleanly

AI handles busy backgrounds well, but you’ll get the cleanest result when:

• the subject is in focus and the background is softer or plainer than the subject;
• there’s contrast between the two: a dark jacket against a light wall, not a black cat on a black sofa;
• the whole subject is in the frame, rather than cut off at the edges;
• the lighting is even, without deep shadows merging the subject into the background.

Glass, smoke, fine mesh and very thin objects such as bicycle spokes are hard for every model, because they’re partly see-through. Expect to touch those up by hand.

Which format to save the cutout in

JPG has no transparency at all, which is why a “transparent JPG” comes out with a black or white background. If you need transparency, save PNG, WebP or AVIF. Our guide to PNG vs JPG explains the difference in more detail.

Putting the subject on a white or coloured background

Online marketplaces and ID photo services often want the product or person on plain white. After the cutout, switch Background to Solid colour, pick white or any colour, and save as JPG. The colour is painted behind the subject at full resolution, so there’s no visible seam.

Other ways to remove a background

• iPhone and iPad: in Photos, touch and hold the subject until it lifts away, then choose Copy or Share. This works on iOS 16 and later.
• Mac: in Finder, right-click an image and choose Quick Actions → Remove Background (macOS Ventura and later).
• Windows 11: recent versions of Paint have a Remove background button.
• PowerPoint and Word: select the picture, then Picture Format → Remove Background, and mark areas to keep or remove.

These are handy for a quick copy and paste. The browser tool gives you more control: a choice of model, edge adjustments, a solid-colour option and your choice of output format at full resolution.

Frequently asked questions