Remove EXIF Data from Photos
Photos can reveal where and when they were taken. See exactly what’s hidden in yours, then remove it before you share.
100% Private · No uploads 100% Private: Your Photos Never Leave Your Device
How to remove EXIF data from a photo
Every photo you take can carry hidden notes: where it was taken, when, on which phone, sometimes even your name. This tool shows you exactly what each photo contains, then removes it without changing a single pixel of the picture.
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Step 1
Add your photos
Drop in JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF or HEIC files. Each card immediately lists what it found, with sensitive items like GPS location highlighted in red.
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Step 2
Review the findings
Check what would be shared if you posted the photo as it is: location, camera, date taken, owner name, serial number and more.
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Step 3
Clean them
Press Clean. The metadata is cut out of each file directly, so image quality is untouched.
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Step 4
Download and share
Save the cleaned photos one by one or as a ZIP, and share them knowing only the picture goes with them.
What is EXIF data, and why remove it?
EXIF (Exchangeable Image File Format) is a standard way for cameras to store information inside a photo file. It’s genuinely useful in your own library: it’s how your gallery knows when a picture was taken and can show it on a map. But it travels with the file. Send the original photo by email, upload it to a forum, or attach it to a marketplace listing, and anyone who downloads it can read those details with free software.
The most sensitive item is GPS location. A photo taken at home with location tagging switched on can point to your front door within a few meters. Other details, like the date and time, your phone’s model and serial number, or the owner name some cameras add, can also say more than you intended. Some big platforms strip this information when you upload, but plenty of websites, messaging apps and file-sharing services pass the original file along unchanged.
Lossless: the picture itself is never touched
Many “EXIF remover” tools work by re-saving the whole image, which strips the metadata but also re-compresses the photo and reduces its quality. ImageCocoon takes a more careful approach for JPG, PNG, WebP and GIF files: it reads the file’s structure and removes only the blocks that hold metadata (EXIF, XMP, IPTC, comments and text notes), copying the image data across byte for byte. Animated GIFs stay animated.
Two harmless things are deliberately kept: the orientation flag, so photos don’t suddenly turn sideways, and the color profile, so colors look the same as before. Neither identifies you.
HEIC, AVIF and other formats
iPhone HEIC and AVIF files use a more complex container that browsers can’t safely edit in place, so the tool re-saves those as new images (HEIC becomes JPG), which removes all metadata at the cost of a light re-compression. BMP files don’t store photo metadata at all, so they’re returned unchanged.
JPG files from some phones also hide extra images after the main picture, such as depth maps used for portrait mode or HDR brightness maps. These can carry their own metadata, so they’re removed along with it; the photo you see stays exactly the same.
Stop location tags at the source
Cleaning photos before you share them works for pictures you already have. To stop new photos from recording your location in the first place, turn off location access for your camera app. Our guide on removing location data from photos walks through the settings on iPhone, Android, Windows and Mac.
And because this tool runs in your browser, the photos you’re cleaning are never uploaded, which would rather defeat the point.
Frequently asked questions
What information does EXIF data contain?
It can include the GPS location where the photo was taken, the date and time, the camera or phone make and model, its serial number, lens and settings, the editing software used, and sometimes the owner’s or author’s name.
Does removing EXIF data reduce photo quality?
Not for JPG, PNG, WebP or GIF files. The metadata is cut out of the file and the image data is copied unchanged, so the picture is identical. HEIC and AVIF files are re-saved, which involves a light re-compression.
Will my photo turn sideways after cleaning?
No. The orientation flag is kept on purpose, because it only tells apps which way up to show the photo and does not identify you.
Do social networks remove EXIF data automatically?
Many large platforms strip location data from public posts, but you cannot rely on every site, app or messaging service doing so. Email attachments and file-sharing links usually send the original file with all its metadata.
Can I see what a photo contains without changing it?
Yes. As soon as you add a photo, its card lists everything found. You only change anything if you press Clean and download the result.
Why did my file size barely change?
Metadata is usually small, from a few hundred bytes to a few dozen kilobytes, so the file shrinks only slightly. To make a photo much smaller, use Compress Image.
Are my photos uploaded while being cleaned?
No. Reading and removing metadata happens entirely in your browser. Your photos never leave your device.