Free tool
Pixelate or blur part of a photo
Faces are found and pixelated automatically. Hide number plates and text too, then download a censored copy with the location removed.
- Runs on your device
- Nothing uploaded
- Location removed
Edited on this device. Your photo is never uploaded.
How it works
How to pixelate part of an image
Whether it's a stranger's face, a child's school logo or a number plate, you can hide it in three steps. Pixelate, blur and black box all replace the pixels in the photo you download.
- 1
Choose a photo
Pick a photo or drop it on the box. JPEG, PNG, WebP and iPhone HEIC photos work.
- 2
Faces and text are found for you
Faces are detected on your device and pixelated automatically. Tap Find text to pixelate names, numbers, signs and number plates too. Drag boxes over anything else.
- 3
Download the censored copy
The covered pixels are replaced in the saved photo, and its location and other hidden details are removed.
Pixelate, blur or black box?
- Use Black box for text, numbers and addresses. Pixelated or blurred text can sometimes be guessed back, especially if it's short.
- Pixelate works well for faces and number plates. Turn the strength up for small or distant ones.
- The saved photo is a new image with the pixels replaced. Nothing underneath can be peeled back, unlike a sticker in some apps.
- Face detection can miss small, side-on or partly covered faces. Check the whole photo and drag boxes over any it missed.
- Find text looks for any lettering, in any language: names, numbers, signs, number plates and printed symbols on clothes. Very small, angled, curved or handwritten text can be missed, so check before you share.
- Check the edges of each box before you share. Reflections, shadows and backgrounds can still give things away.
Without a tool
Other ways to censor a photo
Your devices can cover parts of a photo too, usually with a drawn shape. They often keep the location in the saved copy.
On iPhone
Open the photo, tap Edit, then Markup, and draw a filled shape over the area. On iPhones with Apple Intelligence, Clean Up can also pixelate a face when you brush over it.
On a Mac
Open the photo in Preview, choose Markup, draw a rectangle over the area and set its fill to black. Then export a copy.
On Windows
Open the photo in Paint, choose a rectangle with a solid fill, draw it over the area, and save a copy.
Why this tool
Censor a photo without handing it over
Your photo stays on your device
Most online blur tools upload your photo first. This one edits it in your browser, and the page can't connect to the internet while it works.
Really replaced, not covered
Each box changes the pixels in the saved file. There's no hidden original layer for someone else to remove.
Location removed too
The censored copy comes out without its GPS location, date or phone details, so the photo can't give away where it was taken.
Check what else a photo gives away
The photo location finder shows where a photo was taken, when, and on what phone.
Where was this photo taken?Some photos shouldn’t be shared at all
VaultShield keeps private photos and videos encrypted on your iPhone, behind a lock of their own.
See the photo vaultFAQ
Questions about censoring photos
More free tools: metadata remover, HEIC to JPG, or see all tools.
Choose your photo, then drag a box over the part you want to hide, like a face or number plate. Pick Pixelate and set the strength, then download the censored copy. You can add as many boxes as you need.
Yes. When you open a photo, faces are detected on your device and pixelated straight away. The detector can miss faces that are very small, side-on, blurry or partly covered, so check the photo and drag a box over any it missed. Tap Find faces to look again.
Yes. Tap Find text and any lettering it finds is pixelated on your device: screenshots and documents, signs and number plates, and printed characters or symbols in other languages, like Chinese on a shirt. For names, addresses and numbers, switch those boxes to Black box, because pixelated text can sometimes be read back. Very small, angled, curved or handwritten text can be missed, so check the photo and add boxes by hand where needed.
No. The photo is edited by your browser, on your device, and never sent to any server, ours or anyone else's. The page blocks itself from connecting to the internet, so it still works in airplane mode after it loads.
Not exactly, because the original pixels are replaced in the saved file. But for text, especially short words and numbers, people can sometimes guess what was there from the blocks or the blur. Use a black box for anything written.
A solid black box. It leaves nothing to guess from. Make sure it fully covers the text, including any part of the letters that sticks out.
Choose the photo here, drag a box over the face and pick Blur or Pixelate. Or use Markup in the Photos app to draw over it. On iPhones with Apple Intelligence, the Clean Up tool can also pixelate a face.
Yes. The downloaded copy has no GPS location, date, phone model or other hidden details, as well as the areas you covered.
Yes. Tap Whole photo to cover everything, then choose the strength. That works for pixel-art style effects as well as hiding a whole picture.
The censored copy is saved at full size where your browser allows it. JPG photos are saved at high quality, and PNGs stay PNG. iPhone HEIC photos are saved as JPG so they open anywhere.