EXIF Viewer & Remover
See the camera, date and GPS location hidden in a photo β and strip it out.
About EXIF data
Every photo a phone or camera takes carries a block of hidden information called EXIF: the make and model, the exact date and time to the second, exposure settings, the lens, and very often the precise GPS coordinates where the shutter was pressed. Some cameras record the owner's name.
Drop a JPEG here and you see all of it. If there are coordinates, they are flagged prominently, because that is the field that causes real harm.
Removing it without damaging the photo
The usual advice is to open the photo in an editor and re-save it, which does remove the metadata β and also re-compresses the image, losing quality every time.
This tool instead cuts the metadata segments out of the JPEG's byte stream and leaves everything else untouched. The compressed image data is bit-for-bit identical to the original: same pixels, same quality, just without the hidden block. The file simply gets smaller by however much the metadata weighed.
When metadata actually leaks
Most large social platforms strip EXIF when you upload, so posting to Instagram or Facebook is generally safe. The leaks happen everywhere else:
- Marketplace listings β photographing an item at home and uploading the original is the classic way to publish your address.
- Email attachments and cloud links β no stripping happens at all.
- Messaging apps sending "original quality" β the option that preserves the photo also preserves the coordinates.
- Forums, blogs and image hosts β behaviour varies, and some display EXIF publicly by design.
- Dating profiles β a photo taken at home carries where home is.
Checking is free and takes seconds. Assume nothing strips it unless you have verified that it does.
Frequently asked questions
What is EXIF data in a photo?
A block of information the camera writes into the file: date and time, camera and lens, exposure settings, orientation, and often the GPS coordinates where the photo was taken.
Does a photo really contain my location?
If location services were on for the camera, yes β latitude and longitude accurate to within a few metres. Anyone who receives the original file can read it. This tool flags it clearly when it is present.
Does removing EXIF reduce image quality?
Not here. The metadata segments are cut out of the file and the compressed image data is left untouched, so the picture is bit-for-bit identical. Re-saving in an image editor would recompress it and lose quality.
Do social media sites remove EXIF automatically?
The big ones usually do on upload. Email attachments, cloud links, forums, marketplace listings and messaging apps sending at original quality often do not.
Is my photo uploaded to check it?
No. The file is read and parsed in your browser. Nothing is transmitted, which rather matters for a tool whose whole purpose is checking what a photo reveals about you.