What is in a photo's EXIF data and how to remove it

What EXIF can contain

EXIF is a block of metadata stored inside the image file. It commonly records the date and time, the camera or phone model, the lens and exposure settings, the editing software and, if location was on, GPS coordinates that can point to an exact address. It often also embeds a small preview thumbnail of the photo.

Who can see it

Anyone who receives the original file can read it with a free viewer. Many large social platforms remove location data from pictures when you post, but not all sites, forums, marketplaces or messaging attachments do, and sending a file directly or by email usually keeps everything. Do not assume a platform strips it; check on a test photo first.

Strip it without changing the picture

Open Image Resizer and use the Lossless tab. For JPEG and PNG it removes metadata segments such as EXIF, GPS, Photoshop and comment blocks and leaves the pixels byte-for-byte untouched, so there is no quality loss. It never makes a file bigger than the original, and it runs in your browser.

Only JPEG and PNG are supported. A WebP or other file is reported with a message rather than silently altered. Colour profiles are kept, because removing them could change how the colours look.

Other ways to avoid sharing location

Turn off location for the Camera app in your phone's settings so new photos carry none. On an iPhone the share sheet has an Options button with a Location toggle for a single send. A screenshot of a photo also drops most of the original metadata, at a small cost in quality.

Check that it worked

Open the cleaned file's properties, or drop it into an EXIF viewer, and confirm that GPS and device fields are gone. Keep the original for yourself if you want the metadata; the cleaned copy is the one to share.