Remove image metadata: pick your file type, device, or tool

Posting to Instagram? Start on Remove Instagram AI Info. Everything else below is for the file itself.

By file type

The container decides what is inside and what you get back.

• HEIC — Stays a HEIC.
• PNG — Text chunks, XMP, eXIf, and C2PA; the colour profile and pixel size stay.
• WebP — EXIF, XMP, and C2PA chunks; animated and transparent files stay intact.
• PDF — Author, title, creator app, dates, XMP history, and EXIF in scanned pages; every page is checked against the original.
• Word (.docx) — Author, company, template path, custom properties, and photo GPS; comments and tracked changes are reported.

By who you are

The same cleaner, set up for a job.

• Sellers: product images — GPS, camera serials, and AI mockup data off a 12-file listing batch.
• Photographers: Lightroom exports — Why a real photo gets an AI info label, and how to remove only the AI fields.

By device

Phone and desktop steps, and what the OS already does for you.

• iPhone — Safari steps, the Photos location switch, and rotated portrait JPEGs.
• Android — What Google Photos cannot remove, and a Chrome clean of the file itself.
• Mac and Windows — Built-in options, their limits, and a browser route tested in two engines.

By tool

If you already use a command or a generator.

• ExifTool -all= — Tested on C2PA-signed JPEG, PNG, and WebP, with the commands that keep rotation and colour.
• Bulk EXIF remover — A whole folder as one ZIP, measured on 15 mixed files.
• Batch Strip C2PA & AI Labels from Photos (ZIP) — Many photos, one ZIP, for C2PA and AI labels. Camera EXIF can stay.
• ExifTool alternative — When a browser report is easier than a terminal.
• ComfyUI — The prompt and workflow chunks in every PNG, and a whole output folder.
• Stable Diffusion / Automatic1111 — The parameters chunk and EXIF comments.
• Metadata2Go alternative — Upload remover for many file types, compared with a browser clean.
• Pics.io alternative — Free upload tool for RAW, video, and PDF, compared with a browser clean.
• exif.tools alternative — Local viewer and stripper, compared with a named C2PA pass.
• ExifCleaner alternative — Free desktop app, compared with a no-install browser clean.
• FAQ — C2PA, the Instagram AI info label, uploads, formats, and the free image.
• Compare — Remove AI Meta, MetaClean, C2PA Scrub, and ExifTool. Unchecked cells say see their site.

By what you want gone

One page per kind of data.

• C2PA and generator tags — C2PA, IPTC DigitalSourceType, and generator XMP.
• C2PA / Content Credentials — The signed manifest in JPEG, PNG, and WebP.
• EXIF and GPS — Location and camera fields. Pro returns a set as one ZIP.
• XMP and IPTC — Creator, copyright, caption, and the AI source type.
• EXIF and AI together — One pass for both layers, with a mode for each.
• Photo delivery — GPS and credentials off a client set.
• View metadata online — A viewer for GPS, camera, XMP, IPTC, and C2PA rows. Nothing uploads.
• Photo metadata — EXIF, IPTC, XMP, C2PA, and GPS: what each record is, and how to view or clear it.
• Check if image is AI — Reads C2PA and generator metadata only. Not a pixel detector.
• Strip metadata — What a strip is, which formats this cleaner handles, and how to verify the download.
• Check a photo first — Inspect before you strip.
• Check for C2PA — Is the manifest in this file?

By AI generator or editor

Each source writes different data.

• ChatGPT / DALL·E — C2PA on the download.
• Gemini / Imagen — C2PA on newer exports; SynthID is not metadata.
• Midjourney — IPTC and prompt on some downloads.
• Adobe Firefly — Content Credentials on exports.
• Photoshop Generative Fill — Credentials on the exported file.
• Copilot 'Made with AI' Watermark: Turn It Off + Clean Metadata — Microsoft’s watermark toggle first. This tool removes the metadata disclosure, not the visible mark.

By platform

What a platform label reads from the file, and what it does not.

• Instagram AI info — The Instagram owner page: clean the file before you upload.
• Facebook AI info — Feed, Pages, Groups, and Marketplace stills.
• TikTok AI label — Photo mode, carousel stills, and covers.
• Pinterest AI modified — IPTC-triggered labels and a whole board.
• LinkedIn CR icon — What the icon means and how to avoid it.
• Remove Instagram Story AI Info and AI Content — Delete the live Story, clean the still, and share it again. Video is not cleaned.
• Why Instagram AI info shows on a real photo — Editors can write C2PA or IPTC tags into a real photo. Meta may also detect it.
• Remove the 'Made with AI' Label on X (Twitter): Why It Locks — An automatic C2PA label is locked on the post. A label you applied yourself can be toggled.
• Canva AI Content Label After Background Remover — A real photo labeled after a Canva edit. Check the file. The next upload can still be labeled.
• Remove Samsung 'AI-Generated Content' Label & Metadata — Visible text needs Object Eraser or a crop. The tool removes C2PA metadata.
• Does a Screenshot Remove AI Metadata? C2PA Yes, SynthID No — A screenshot usually drops C2PA. SynthID stays in the pixels.

How to choose

1. If you do not know what is in the file, press Inspect only above. The list tells you whether you need the C2PA, EXIF, or generator guide.
2. If the file is a HEIC or came from an iPhone, read the HEIC and iPhone guides first.
3. If you have many files, the guides that mention a folder end the same way: the first image is free and Pro returns one ZIP.

Remove image metadata by opening the guide that matches the file, then use the tool on that page. One image stays free.

To read the file first, open the metadata viewer.

Questions

What metadata can be in an image?

Camera EXIF (make, model, lens, time), GPS location, XMP and IPTC fields (creator, copyright, an AI DigitalSourceType), a C2PA / Content Credentials manifest, and format-specific text such as PNG prompt or workflow chunks. The tool lists what it finds before it removes anything.

Does removing metadata change how the image looks?

For JPEG, PNG, and WebP the pixels are copied untouched; the tests on the guides compare decoded pixels and they match. JPEG rotation is preserved.

Does it upload my image?

No. Reading, removing, and re-scanning all happen in your browser tab.

What does it not remove?

A watermark inside the pixels, such as SynthID, and a label a platform decides to show on its own. It also does not edit a post that is already live.

How much does it cost?

One image is free. A one-time Pro unlock cleans unlimited images and returns a folder as one ZIP; see the pricing page.