Looking for that perfect image for your Facebook post or a snappy graphic for a flyer? These are some of the best free commercial-use stock photography websites I’ve come across.
Why can’t I just use images from Google in my business marketing materials?
You may not be aware but photos, illustrations, videos and sounds may be subject to copyrights and specific usage restrictions. Grabbing images from a quick Google search a may be inviting a cease and desist order and large fines. Not a pleasant thing to be dealing with when you used an image on 10,000 copies of your newest business brochure.
Stock photography and other media types can be offered under a variety of license agreements, some allowing usage without the need to pay royalties or license fees. It is important to review all licensing terms as these can differ greatly. Some licensing agreements can requiring attribution, restrict usage to personal or editorial use only and even limit reproduction quantities.
Pixabay
My personal favorite commercial-use stock photography website is currently Pixabay. They feature commercial-use, royalty-free photos, illustrations, vector graphics, film footage and music. There terms of use give great flexibility for usage in your business marketing materials.
What is allowed đź‘Ť
- All content (e.g. images, videos, music) on Pixabay can be used for free for commercial and noncommercial use across print and digital, except in the cases mentioned in “What is not allowed”.
- Attribution is not required. Giving credit to the artist or Pixabay is not necessary but is always appreciated by our community.
- You can make modifications to content from Pixabay.
What is not allowed đź‘Ž
- Don’t redistribute or sell Pixabay content on other stock or wallpaper platforms.
- Don’t sell unaltered copies of content, e.g. don’t sell an exact copy of a stock photo as a poster, print or on a physical product.
- Don’t portray identifiable people in a bad light or in a way that is offensive.
- Don’t use content with identifiable persons or brands to create a misleading association with a product or service.
Create a free account and download royalty-free stock photography here: https://pixabay.com/
Adobe Stock
Do you have a subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud?
Your subscription may include access to thousands of free stock images, vector graphics and videos.
They also have trial accounts that give a few freebies for a few downloads.
Login to your Adobe account and filter content by “free” here: https://stock.adobe.com/
Unsplash
Unsplash is another great website that gives you access to download tons of free stock photos without any commercial-use restrictions.
What is permitted đź‘Ť
- All photos can be downloaded and used for free
- Commercial and non-commercial purposes
- No permission needed (though attribution is appreciated!)
What is not permitted đź‘Ž
- Photos cannot be sold without significant modification.
- Compiling photos from Unsplash to replicate a similar or competing service.
Create a free account and start downloading free stock photos and more here: https://unsplash.com/
StockSnap
Stock on this website is offered under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication meaning works are public domain and can be copied, modified, distributed even for commercial purposes.
View website here: https://stocksnap.io/
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