Websites with free to reuse images

The number of websites that offer images is constantly increasing.

Many of these websites offer a combination of free and paid images, some websites search multiple stock photo sites at the same time.

Many websites are set up as platforms with social media features: members are allowed to rate the images, follow authors or collections, create and save their own collections of images and of course share their own photos with CC0 on the platform.

Below you will find a small selection of useful websites (in alphabetical order) with a large selection of free royalty-free images.

The choice is yours.

CC Search is the search engine of the non-profit organization Creative Commons, responsible for the CC licenses.

• the beta version dates from 2010, this second improved and final version has just been released (2019),
• the collection has expanded to 300 million photos from sources such as Flickr, 500px, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Rijksmuseum and several other heritage institutions,
• the search function is simplified,
• filter functions are only available after entering a search term,
• you can filter by target (what do you want to use the image for), specific CC license, source of origin, and the maker.
• information about the image is divided into 3 tabs: Attribution, Info, and Share.

Handy: the Attribution tab offers, in both text and HTML, a source reference, which you can copy and paste directly into your own document or website.

Reference to the source and creator is a prerequisite for use of all materials released under CC licenses!

EveryPixel is a search engine for paid and free images.

• searches 29 paid and 22 free stock photos websites, including shutterstock.com, istockphoto.com (paid) and pixabay.com, unsplash.com, skitterphoto.com (free)
• you can search the paid and free collections separately or simultaneously,
• you can search by image by uploading a file or pasting URL, to search for similar images,
• you can filter the results by color, orientation, image type, author, etc.,
• the prices of the different websites are shown with the paid images, you can choose the most attractive format and price yourself.

Pexels is a platform for images with CC0.

• all photos are hand-selected from photos uploaded by users or from free stock photos websites, such as Pixabay, Gratisgraphy or Little Visuals,
• searchable by color, size, etc.
• separate collections to browse, such as Windows, Office Life, or From High Above.

Pixabay is a platform where copyright-free images and videos are shared.

• all content is released under CC0,
• the platform also provides paid professional photos from shutterstock.com, as an alternative choice,
• you can choose from photos, illustrations, vectors (cliparts) and videos,
• you can filter by size, orientation, color, and different categories (similar to Skitterphoto).

Skitterphoto was founded in 2014 by amateur photographers from the Netherlands.

• all photos on Skitterphoto are in the public domain using Creative Commons CC0.
• you can search the collection by keyword or browse the categories:

- animals                                   - architecture
- business finance                    - culture and art
- decoration / seasonal            - food and drink
- industry                                  - miscellaneous
- music                                     - nature and landscapes
- people                                    - sport
- technology                             - textures / wallpapers
- transport                                - travels