Customers praise the wide variety of photos and how easy it is to use the tools on the site. Many customers have been using the platform for several years, and still continue to renew their memberships noting that the company has everything they need in one place. One thing we would have liked was to see how the company was rated by the Better Business Bureau, but according to the BBB JumpStory doesn’t have a listing there yet. If you’re a company or larger team seeking collaboration tools and legal coverage for multiple users, an annual contract is a requirement. Pricing starts with options like 2 users and 750 images for $379 per month, or 3-10 users with 750 images for $479 per month.
Born of a pilot project with the Library of Congress, Flickr Commons has a noble mission, which is to share as many public photographs with the world as possible. And every one of them is classified as having no known copyright restrictions. Vintage Stock Photos is a wonderful photo resource for creators with a soft spot for nostalgia. You can find thousands of photos, most of which are somewhere between 40 and 80 years old, in remastered JPEG format. The standard royalty-free license is generous by industry standards, giving you unlimited web use and up to 500,000 prints or video views. If you need unlimited coverage, the Enhanced License boosts legal protection to $250,000 and adds merchandising rights.
Envato Elements offers fantastic value if you’re regularly juggling creative tasks and want endless exploration without unpredictable costs. But if your requirements skew toward specialty stock images, you’ll occasionally need another dedicated stock provider as a backup. You’ll have to complete a Captcha to down an image, but you can skip this part of the process if you sign up for a free account.
Best Free Stock Sites
A successful portrait is the culmination of a photographer’s unique perspective on their subject, effectively communicating a narrative beyond the surface. The ability to discern and portray this underlying narrative distinguishes a great portrait photographer. Discover the best portrait photography portfolio examples, built using Pixpa, to find inspiration and create your own. TJ Photography adopts a one-page design layout, displaying all best works directly on the homepage. This approach allows visitors to browse effortlessly, select images that catch their interest, and click to view full photo collections.
Typically, I evaluated stock photo sites based on their libraries, pricing, licensing, tools, and customer support. In 2025, I added the sixth parameter—AI image generators—which I previously counted towards tools and features. But in 2025, text-to-image tools are so prominent (and also important) that they now deserve their own category. One limitation worth noting is the lack of indemnity protection for AI-generated images. Unlike traditional stock photos on Freepik, which come with some legal protection ($10,000 for Premium users), AI-generated content carries no such safeguards. This is increasingly common industry-wide, but worth considering if you plan to use these images commercially.
Vintage Stock Photos
Filters like orientation, color, season, and even the number of people in the photo fine-tune your search results nicely, helping you quickly narrow in on exactly what you want. Downloading images is simple and intuitive—you can pick resolution options and see related photos instantly. The monthly rate of $16.50 gives you full access to everything available, making it easy to try different options and refine your work without cost anxiety. This flexibility is especially useful for graphic designers, bloggers, video creators, and anyone constantly needing fresh and varied materials. Shutterstock has been expanding beyond the normal remit of a stock photo library, incorporating its own editing tools.
- Additionally, the template includes custom widgets, making it easy to add personalized elements to your site, and is fully responsive, ensuring a seamless experience on any device.
- Tetiana and I both came to the conclusion that Picjumbo is a user-friendly stock photo website with a well-structured interface packed with advanced search options.
- And you can attach contracts and release forms using the integrated software.
- Meanwhile, Generate Variations offered style and composition adjustments, making stock images feel more tailored and unique.
- This is no coincidence, considering it’s the largest collection of high-quality free images with over 6 million files.
- This agency offers a competitive royalty of 33% on photos and 35% on video footage.
Strong Branding & Personalization
Adobe Stock has a library of over 100 million high-resolution images, all of which are integrated into Creative Cloud. For designers and illustrators, finding, purchasing, and using Adobe Stock’s imagery is quick and easy. In this guide, discover a list of the best websites for premium stock photos and free stock photos alike.
iStock
Some of the names are undoubtedly popular, but there are also others which are lesser-known. Pond5 is based in New York and it’s a marketplace for royalty-free media. Aside from photos, they also offer affordable stock footage, music tracks, sound effects, 3D objects and After Effects templates. Westend61 focuses on images which are highly relevant to corporate, advertising and editorial customers and it maintains a high-quality photo collection. If the photographer goes for the first option – submitting exclusive content – the commission can reach 45%, depending on the number of downloads.
Best stock photo site for WordPress users
The built-in client galleries streamline proofing and delivery, making it simple to share images, track client activity, and sell prints or digital downloads – all with zero commission fees. PikWizard is a user-friendly stock photo website that boasts a rich collection of royalty-free pictures and videos for both personal and business usage. It allows searching for the required material using keywords, tags, or similar content. For example, when I searched for images of a “girl reading,” I found many high-quality options that met my requirements. The images were sharp and detailed, making them ideal for thorough editing. Freepik provides a wide range of resources, including images, videos, vectors, AI-generated visuals, icons, fonts, and more, complemented by highly detailed filtering options.
- For food bloggers and content creators in the restaurant space, Foodiesfeed is a must-have.
- Select a Clean, Minimalist Design – Choose a template that highlights your images without distractions.
- White space, simple typography, and a consistent color palette contribute to a professional look.
- All of the photos must be in the RGB color space and utilize the highest available image resolution without artificially enlarging it.
- The ability to discern and portray this underlying narrative distinguishes a great portrait photographer.
- Offering photos, graphics, GIFs, videos, audio and fonts, it’s a great free option for creatives, allowing for an easy and optimised search function that can be refined to your requirements.
The right platform saves hours of searching while providing images that enhance your work without legal concerns. The online library is designed to make it easy to find the images you’re looking for, with categories and an easy-to-use search function. Images are individually priced depending on the license required, while subscription plans are also available. You don’t need deep best stock photography sites pockets, a background in photography, or weekly brand photoshoots to incorporate quality imagery into your online presence.
By uploading to Fotolia you also get the chance to be featured in their premium collection, which is hand-curated and contains high-quality images that are absolute eye candy. Offset was created by Shutterstock in September 2013, and it prioritizes high-end images from more experienced photographers. You can choose to purchase a photo license from Dreamstime through credit packages or subscriptions (monthly and annual).
Conclusion: The Best Stock Photo Sites
Joya’s work focuses on human stories that connect people and the planet, presented through a stylized documentary lens. Tom Davidson, a Manchester-based fashion photographer, presents his portfolio with a classic grid gallery on the homepage, highlighting his expertise in portraiture. Tom’s approach is characterized by a natural and understated style, capturing genuine moments that resonate with contemporary audiences. Navigation is simplified with an Instagram icon for social media access and an “Add To Cart” option to facilitate potential sales. Portrait photography is an exercise in revealing the essence of an individual.
Ever since stock sites arrived on the global market, this offer has been on the table. Whether you’re a budding entrepreneur launching a brand new startup, or a well-established business aiming to rebrand your company for a fresh, … Most designers and photo fans, even casual ones, have heard the name Getty Images before.
Start your 15-day free trial to try out the complete set of features without any limitation. Building trust with your subject is paramount in portrait photography. Rapport is crucial, transforming the session into a collaborative endeavor. The subject’s willingness to offer their essence, and the photographer’s ability to honor and express it, hinges on mutual trust. For portrait photographers, securing bookings is a primary objective.
Instead of offering complex prices for different numbers of downloads, JumpStory offers three ways to pay. You can choose an individual subscription, a Pro subscription if you want to add other members to your plan, and a one-time fee option. Both the Individual plan and the Pro plan can be billed yearly or monthly. For the individual subscription, you get access to JumpStory’s entire library and your own online archive to store the images.
Stock photo sites are a godsend whether you are starting your own business or need a single image to spice up a document. Even if you only need something simple, stock image websites save you a ton of time and effort. BigStock has a lot of red flags, but its reputation especially leads us to conclude that this stock photo company is one of the worst options out there. With limited photos, limited information about the photos, and an unusual downloadable client, it’s definitely not the best choice for easy use or confident photo browsing.