Removes the background from a photo of a person using a small AI model that runs on your own device, or from a logo, signature or scan on one colour by colour matching. Save a transparent PNG, or put a white, blue or custom colour behind the person. Nothing is uploaded.
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A small model runs on your device and separates a person from the background, hair included. Nothing is uploaded. It was trained on people, so it works on portraits and not on objects or products; use Plain background for those when the backdrop is one colour.
How to Use
1Add one image by dropping it on the upload area or choosing it from your device.
2Choose “Photo of a person” for a portrait, or “Plain background” for a logo, signature or scan on one colour.
3For a portrait, wait for the model (the first time it is downloaded once), then pick Transparent, White, Blue, Red or a custom colour and adjust the edge clean-up.
4Click “Remove background” and download the result: a PNG for transparent, a JPEG for a solid colour.
About this tool
Updated
Two modes, for two kinds of picture
Photo of a person uses an AI model that runs on your device. Plain background uses colour matching, which is crisper for logos and scans.
A portrait has a complicated edge, hair against a wall, that only a trained model can follow, so Photo mode runs one. A logo or a signature on white has a simple edge, and colour matching cuts it cleanly without downloading anything, so Plain mode keeps that method. Pick the one that matches the picture; each page of settings appears when you choose it.
What runs on your device
A 26 MB model, downloaded once and kept by your browser. The photo itself stays on your device.
The model is MODNet, a portrait-matting network released under the Apache 2.0 licence. It produces, for every pixel, how much of it belongs to the person, and the tool uses that to cut the photo out at its own resolution rather than at the model’s smaller size, so the person keeps their detail. On our test connection the download took about 8 seconds and finding the person in a 360×450 portrait about 3 more; with the model cached, the whole run took about 4 seconds. A 3000×3750 photo took 2.5 seconds to find the person and 1.9 seconds to save, and its transparent PNG was 5.1 MB.
Putting a colour behind the person
Choose transparent for a PNG, or a white, blue, red or custom colour for a JPEG.
Many forms ask for a plain coloured background. A solid colour needs no transparency, so it is saved as a JPEG, which in our test was 28 KB for the sample portrait against 210 KB for the transparent PNG. The tool does not know what a given form requires, so read its instructions for the colour and size. Compress Image to KB and the exam and visa photo resizer can bring the result to an exact size.
Hair, edges and the old background’s colour
Hair is partly see-through, so it carries a trace of the old background. The tool removes that trace and lets you trade softness for a crisp outline.
A strand of dark hair in front of a pink wall is a blend of the two. Left alone, it shows a pink fringe once the wall is gone. We saw exactly that on a portrait shot against a pink backdrop, over a green test background, and taking the old colour out of the edge pixels removed it. The Edge clean-up slider then decides how much of the faintest haze to clear: lower keeps fine hair, higher gives a crisper outline. “Refine edges using the photo” is on by default: the model draws its outline at a small size, and this step lets the outline follow the edges in the full-size photo. On a long-haired portrait with a backpack it kept more separate strands and less haze than the model’s own outline, and it is one tick away if you prefer the softer version.
Where it falls short
It is a small model trained on people. Objects, thin parts and busy scenes are less reliable.
In our test it kept the body and the band of a drawn mug on a wooden backdrop but lost its thin handle, so check the preview before you save. It cannot do what a larger commercial model does on difficult subjects, and it will not improve a photo that is blurry or dark. If the first attempt is wrong, Plain background mode may suit a logo or product on one colour: it removes only background connected to the edge, keeps the inside of letters, and offers a tolerance slider. On a red-ring logo, 71% of the picture became transparent with the ring’s hole kept.
Features
Photo mode: a small AI model finds the person, hair included, and runs on your device
Saves a transparent PNG, or puts white, blue, red or a custom colour behind the person
Edge clean-up slider, an option that lets the outline follow the real edges in your photo, and the old background’s colour taken out of hair edges
Plain mode: colour matching with tolerance, click-to-pick colour and soft edges, for logos and scans
Works at the photo’s own resolution, up to about 16 megapixels
The model is downloaded once and kept by your browser; your photo is never uploaded
FAQ
Is my photo uploaded?
No. The model is downloaded to your browser once, and your photo is processed on your own device. The place the model comes from can see an ordinary request for the model file, not your photo.
How big is the download, and how long does it take?
The model is about 26 MB, downloaded the first time and then kept by your browser. On our test connection that took about 8 seconds, and finding the person in a portrait took about 3 more; once the model was cached the same portrait took about 4 seconds in all.
Does it work on objects and products?
It was trained on people, so portraits are what it does well. In our test it kept the body of a drawn mug on a wooden backdrop but lost the thin handle, so treat results on objects as less reliable. For a logo or a product on a plain sheet, Plain background mode often does better.
Can I put a colour behind the person, for a form photo?
Yes: choose White, Blue, Red or a custom colour. A solid background is saved as a JPEG. The tool does not know any form’s rules, so check the colour and size it asks for, then use the exam and visa photo resizer or Compress Image to KB for the size.
Why is there a light edge around some hair?
Fine hair is partly see-through, so a little of the old background shows in it. The tool takes the old background’s colour out of those edge pixels, “Refine edges using the photo” makes the outline follow the real strands, and the Edge clean-up slider trades soft hair for a crisper outline.
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