Remove the Background from a Photo

Q: Can I compare it with the original?

Yes. Hold See the original at the top of the tool. Undo all brush strokes takes back your painting, and Put the background back returns to the plain photo.

Cut out the people in a photo, then put them on a colour, a blur, another photo, or nothing at all. The cutting out happens in your browser, so your photo never leaves your device.

Remove a Background

How to Remove the Background from a Photo

Open your photo in the photo editor. JPG, PNG and WebP work. It works best on photos of people.
In the Background tool on the left, press Remove the background. The first time, it downloads a cut-out model of about 30 MB; after that it starts straight away.
Under New background, choose See-through, Colour, Blurred (the photo's own background, softly blurred) or Photo (press Choose another photo…). Move Soft edges to blend the outline.
If the cut-out missed a part or kept too much, paint over it on the photo with Keep or Remove under Fix the cut-out, and set the Brush size.
Press the save button at the top right. A see-through cut-out saves as PNG if JPG was chosen (WebP stays WebP); with a colour, a blur or a photo behind it, it saves in the file type you chose.

Questions

Does it work on any photo?

It's made for people: portraits, selfies, group photos. On objects, products or animals the cut-out is often rough, and you'd have to fix a lot by hand with Keep and Remove. The cut-out model we use is one we may use freely, for any purpose, and it was trained on photos of people.

What does it download, and is my photo uploaded?

The Background tool says it needs a cut-out model of about 30 MB the first time, and nothing downloads until you press Remove the background. Your browser keeps it for next time; on a phone, mind your data plan. Only the model comes in. Your photo stays on your device the whole time; the privacy page explains the download.

Why did my see-through photo save as a PNG?

A JPG can't be see-through, so the editor saves a see-through cut-out as a PNG even when JPG is chosen. WebP keeps see-through parts too. Choose a colour background if you need a JPG.

Can I compare it with the original?

Yes. Hold See the original at the top of the tool. Undo all brush strokes takes back your painting, and Put the background back returns to the plain photo.