Finding high-quality, free images for your website or blog can be a challenge. Using copyrighted images without permission puts you at risk of receiving a DMCA takedown notice or lawsuit. However, there are many sources online for free public domain and CC0-licensed images that you can use without worry.
In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll share 16 of the best sources to find free public domain and CC0 images for commercial and non-commercial use.
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What Are Public Domain and CC0 Images?
Before jumping into the free image sources, let‘s first understand what public domain and CC0 images are.
Public domain refers to creative works like photos, illustrations, videos, etc. that are not protected by copyright. This means there are no restrictions on using public domain content – you can use it for commercial purposes without needing to ask permission or provide attribution.
Reasons an image may be public domain include:
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The copyright expired due to age. For example, images published in the U.S. before 1924 are in the public domain.
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The image was produced by the U.S. government. Works created by federal government agencies are not subject to copyright protection.
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The author dedicated their work to the public domain.
CC0 stands for Creative Commons Zero. CC0 is a public dedication license that allows creators to waive all copyrights and related rights for their work.
CC0 is useful for new works where the creator wants to completely give up rights to the content. Like public domain works, CC0 images can be used for any purpose without attribution.
So in summary, both public domain and CC0 images offer full flexibility of use without worrying about copyright issues. Now let‘s look at places to find them!
16 Sources for Free Public Domain & CC0 Images
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Pexels
Pexels offers a massive library of over 2 million public domain photos you can use completely free. Their photos are high quality, featuring a range of categories like nature, people, technology, and more. You can browse photos by category or search for specific keywords.
Pexels is one of my favorite go-to sites for finding gorgeous free images for blogs and websites. The photos are professionally shot, making them perfect for sprucing up your content.
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Unsplash
Unsplash is another top source with over 2 million free high resolution photos. Their images are shared under the Unsplash license, which is similar to CC0 with no restrictions on use.
Unsplash offers a nice search feature to find photos within specific topics. You can also browse by tags and collections. The photos are contributed by their community of photographers.
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Pixabay
Pixabay provides over 2 million free stock photos, vectors, illustrations, and videos. Their content is either public domain or licensed under Creative Commons CC0.
I appreciate that Pixabay has unique content you won‘t find elsewhere. They get over 1 million new images per month, so there‘s always something fresh. Use the search bar or browse categories to discover free photos.
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StockSnap
StockSnap curates beautiful free stock photos released under Creative Commons CC0. They offer a nice mix of categories including people, nature, textures, conceptual, and more.
StockSnap adds new photos daily, so you‘ll always find original images. You can browse shots or search for specific topics. The photos are high resolution and easy to download.
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Kaboompics
Kaboompics provides over 8,000 free stock photos under the CC0 license. Their library isn‘t as big as some sites, but the photos are high quality.
I like that Kaboompics‘ interface makes it easy to search and filter images by color, orientation, and category. You can also browse photos based on popularity and latest additions.
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Life of Pix
Life of Pix offers over 12,000 high resolution photos under the CC0 license. Their images often feature unique perspectives and interesting subjects.
You can browse shots based on tags or use the search bar to find CC0 images related to your topic. Life of Pix adds new photos each week to expand their collection.
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Picjumbo
Picjumbo provides over 1,300 free stock photos under the CC0 license. While their library is smaller than some sites, the photos are professionally shot and visually appealing.
Picjumbo has a clean interface that lets you filter images by topic, color, orientation, and more. You can also subscribe to receive new photos each week via email.
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Gratisography
Gratisography offers high resolution images for personal and commercial use. While not all images are CC0, they do allow free downloads for any purpose.
I appreciate Gratisography‘s weekly photo packs on themes like seasons, travel, conceptual, and more. You can browse shot categories or use the search bar to find relevant images.
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Negative Space
Negative Space provides over 1,200 high-quality photos that are free of copyright restrictions. Their images have a clean, modern aesthetic with visually interesting subjects and compositions.
Negative Space allows you to filter photos by color, orientation, and category. You can also subscribe to get new images delivered to your inbox every week.
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Public Domain Pictures
Public Domain Pictures offers thousands of public domain stock photos, clipart, and illustrations. All content is royalty-free for both personal and commercial projects.
You can browse their photos by category or use the search function. Public domain pictures come in a range of resolutions, making them flexible for websites, documents, posters, and more.
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Free Images
Free Images provides thousands of free photos from contributing photographers. While not all content is public domain, you can find CC0 images by using the advanced search filters.
Free Images allows you to sort by newest, most popular, or search for specific keywords. They also offer free vectors, illustrations, and videos.
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Good Free Photos
Good Free Photos offers thousands of free stock images under the CC0 license. You can browse photos by categories or search for keywords using their intuitive interface.
Good Free Photos provides high quality, unique images you can use for commercial or personal projects. New photos are added daily across a wide range of categories.
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Free Media Goo
Free Media Goo provides CC0-licensed stock photos, vectors, and videos. Their library includes over 200,000 free images you can download and use.
Free Media Goo has a nice selection of topic-based photo packs. For example, you can download bundles related to travel, business, food, nature, technology, and more.
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FreePhotosBank
FreePhotosBank offers thousands of CC0-licensed stock photos across various categories like travel, sports, business, nature, and more.
Their advanced search lets you filter images by orientation, color, popularity, or date added. FreePhotosBank is a nice option for finding public domain photos relevant to your niche.
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Creative Vix
Creative Vix provides a curated collection of CC0-licensed stock photos. While their library is smaller than other sites, the images are unique and high-quality.
Creative Vix adds new photos each month across categories like abstract, city/architecture, lifestyle, nature, tech, and more. You can browse shots or search for keywords.
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CC Search
CC Search lets you search 50+ collections at once to find Creative Commons licensed content. This includes photos, videos, music, and more.
While not all results will be CC0, you can filter specifically for that license type. CC Search makes it easy to discover a wide range of free content in one place.
Key Takeaways
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Public domain and CC0 images don‘t have any copyright restrictions, allowing you to use them for commercial or personal projects for free.
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Pexels, Unsplash, and Pixabay offer millions of high quality public domain and CC0 photos.
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Focus on sites that curate unique, professionally shot photos relevant to your niche.
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Using public domain and CC0 images enables you to make your content more engaging without worrying about copyright issues.
I hope this guide gives you an excellent starting point for sources to find gorgeous free images! Let me know in the comments if you have a favorite public domain or CC0 image site I should check out.
