Top 3 Free Stock Photo Sites
Over the years, I’ve done my fair share of combing through both paid and free stock photo websites. And by “fair share” I mean countless, thousands of hours! Recently there has been an uptick in brands wanting to avoid the “cheesy” or “forced” look of traditional stock photos and as any designer probably knows, it’s always a toss up whether your client will have a stock photo account or not. Luckily, my top 3 favorite free stock photo sites take care of both of those problems (usually)!
Don’t get me wrong, paid stock photo sites hold their own in the industry and are a must-have for some types of clients and/or projects. They are especially useful if you need a high-resolution, commercial-use, professional photo of a specific item on white/transparent backgrounds or of a specific professional tradesperson doing a specific pose. The upside of traditional stock photo websites and subscriptions is that they provide hundreds or thousands of photos that you can filter through very minutely depending on your search.
That said, I still personally prefer the look and feel of non-traditional stock photos - crisp, clean, and professional, yet casual, attainable, and relatable. Here are my top three favorites...
Unsplash:
What I love about it: Unsplash is hands-down my favorite free stock photo website to use for my own projects, as well as client projects, because the photos are beautiful. Not only do they not have the usual “cheesy” stock photo vibe, but there are SO MANY photos available on the site. That said, if you are looking for something super specific (a roofing expert on top of a yellow house, for example) you are unlikely to find that on any free stock photo site. You can, however, find these kind of trade-specific photos on some other free stock photo sites outlined below. Unsplash is great if you need natural looking professional photos that are focused more around services, lifestyle, and emotional cues. Great for website assets, social media imagery, and brochures.
Personal or Commercial use license? Commercial! See this page for more details about their licensing.
Can you sell products with the assets? But if you plan to sell something using the image (poster, t-shirt, sticker, etc), it must be significantly modified - see this article for examples.
Pixabay:
What I love about it: Pixabay is one of the free stock photo sites I will head to if I need a trade-specific photo (ie, roof work) but I can’t find it on Unsplash. The photos on Pixabay also tip-toe the line between natural and professional, and standard stock photos. These photos tend to be bright, clean, and professional like your “cheesy” stock photos but they don’t usually go over the top with the posed models, which gives businesses a nice balance between the causal vibe of Unsplash and the overdone vibe of some larger paid stock photo sites. Great for website assets, ads, and brochures.
Personal or Commercial use license? Commercial! See this page for more details about their licensing.
Can you sell products with the assets? Similar to Unsplash, you will need to modify images before using them on a product to sell, however their licensing information is not as detailed as Unsplash’s on this front.
Pexels:
What I love about it: This is a great site for casual yet professional photography and video. The aesthetic of the images is very similar to Unsplash and perfect for lifestyle brands, brands providing an interpersonal service (such as coaching/mentoring), or brands selling lifestyle products to a younger demographic. This is not a site I use very often, but that’s really only because I forget to go check it while working. The photos are beautiful and the Discover section has a great variety if you’re simply looking for inspiration for your next project, holiday post, or ad campaign moodboard. Great for website assets, social media imagery, blog post content, and print ads.
Personal or Commercial use license? Commercial! See this page for more details about their licensing.
Can you sell products with the assets? Just like Pixabay, you will need to modify images before using them on a product to sell and their licensing information is not super detailed on this front.
Honorable Mention
What I love about it: I love to use these resources for ideas when it comes to vectors and icons! It can also be a good stock photo resource if you’ve been unsuccessful finding what you’re looking for on the other sites. That said, these sites aren’t really free if you want to have non-attribution rights to use the photos/vectors/etc. As a free user of Freepik and Flaticon, you “must include the attribution line "Designed by Freepik" a link referring to www.freepik.com next to the image or in the footer of the website.” as outlined in their usage guidelines and website. This is why I tend to only use this site as a last resort, for minor elements, or for inspiration purposes only.
Personal or Commercial use license? Yes, if you attribute the creator (Freepik) next to the photo. Non-attribution requires purchasing a subscription.
Can you sell products with the assets? It depends… Their usage guidelines are pretty detailed and it seems to come down to whether you have a paid subscription as well as how you intend to use the resource. You can find examples on this page, however once you get into purchasing vector assets for products, I suggest looking at other sites such as Creative Market or hiring a professional designer.