How to Remove the Background from an Image
In 30 seconds: go to iloveimg.com, pick Remove background, upload your image and click the red button. Free, no sign-up. Important: save the result as PNG, because JPG cannot store transparency.
You need a photo with no background: for a logo, for a product listing, to paste your face onto another picture, for a presentation.
This used to be a designer's job, with Photoshop and half an hour ahead. Today it takes less than a minute, it is free and there is nothing to install. Here are the steps, and at the end why plenty of people do this right and still get a white background.
Go to iLoveIMG
Go to iloveimg.com.
Careful, it is IMG, for image: it is the sister site of iLovePDF, same people, but for photos. If it comes up in another language, change it in the top right just like on the other one.
Find the Remove background tool and click it.
Upload your image
Click the red Select images button.
It is plural: you can upload several at once and it processes them all.
You can also drag them from your folder onto the red box. It takes JPG, PNG and the usual formats.
Look at the result: the checkerboard
Look at what happens without you asking for anything: the site is already showing you the result.
There is a bar in the middle of the image you can drag with the mouse:
- On the left, the photo as you uploaded it, with its background.
- On the right, the object on its own, over a grey and white checkerboard.
That checkerboard is not a new background: it is how programs draw what is empty. Look at the hole in the mug's handle too, which came out empty as well. That is a clean cut-out.
Why the white background comes back
And that emptiness is exactly what you need to know how to save, because this is where people get frustrated.
Transparency only fits in certain formats, and PNG is the main one. JPG cannot store it: it is not in its nature.
So if you open your cut-out image and save it again as JPG, the program fills that checkerboard with white, and there is your background again.
The tool did not fail: you switched to a format that cannot hold what you had achieved.
The rule is simple: if you stripped the background, always save it as PNG.
And if you need to upload it somewhere that only takes JPG, then accept it will carry a background, and pick the colour yourself instead of letting it be white by accident.
When it works well and when it does not
When it works well and when it does not:
Works very well with:
- Objects with clear edges on a plain background — the mug in the example
- People and animals
- Product photos
It struggles with:
- Loose hair and fur — the edges sometimes come out nibbled
- Objects the same colour as the background
It fails on what not even a person could cut out: glass, smoke, a net, a blurry photo.
If the result does not convince you, try a photo where the object stands out more. Almost always the problem is the original photo, not the tool.
Click "Remove background"
When you are happy with the cut-out, click the red Remove background button, bottom right.
There is nothing to configure: no marking what the background is, no painting with the mouse. It takes a few seconds, because it is preparing the final image.
Download the cut-out image
The Download file button appears and the cut-out image lands in your downloads folder, as a PNG, exactly as you just saw.
If you are going to need it for several things, keep this PNG as your original and always work on copies.
What happens to your files
This applies to all these tools.
Your image is uploaded to an iLoveIMG server so it can be processed. It is processed there and deletes itself after a few hours. The connection is encrypted.
For a photo of a product or an object there is no problem. But if it is a photo of a person, and especially if it is not you, think about it: a face is personal data and it is not yours to upload.
And if you upload it anyway, hit the bin when you are done.
And that is it: an image with no background in under a minute, for free.
Keep hold of what matters: save it as PNG, never as JPG, or the white background will be back.
Common questions
I removed the background but it turns white again when I save. Why?
Because you saved it as JPG. That format cannot store transparency: when a program saves an image with transparent areas as JPG, it fills them with white. The tool did not fail; the format simply cannot do it. Always save the result as PNG, which is how the site hands it to you, and do not convert it to JPG afterwards.
Why are the edges of the hair cut out badly?
It is the hardest part to cut out, even for a designer with Photoshop. Loose hair has thousands of fine, semi-transparent edges, and automatic cut-out simplifies them. It shows more when the hair is dark against a dark background. With a photo where the hair contrasts with the background, the result improves a lot.
Is there a limit on images or file size?
The free version has a size cap per file and processes a limited number of images in a row. For normal use — a handful of photos — you will not hit it. If your image is enormous, run it through the compress image tool on the same site first.
Can I pick a different background colour instead of transparent?
This tool gives you a transparent background, which is the most useful because afterwards you can put whatever you like behind it. To add a colour, open the PNG in any editor — even Paint or Canva — and put a layer of the colour you want underneath. That way you control the result instead of depending on what the site decides.
Can I do this from my phone?
Yes, the site works the same in a phone browser, and it makes sense because that is where the photos usually are. Bear in mind that a PNG download is considerably heavier than a JPG, so if you are short on space or data, do it on a computer.
Is it safe to upload a photo of a person?
With your own photo, that is your call. With someone else's photo, it is worth thinking about: a face is personal data and it is not yours to upload anywhere. The file travels encrypted and is deleted from the server after a few hours, but that does not change the fact that you are sending someone's image to a company. If you do it, hit the bin icon when you are done.
