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Photo metadata viewer

See everything a photo says about itself: where it was taken, when, on which phone, and what edited it — with a plain answer on whether it’s safe to send.

I want Show metadata

Done on your device No upload, no queue, no sign-up.

Bytes sent anywhere: 0 B

Works offline after you’ve used it once.

How to use it

Your photo goes into this browser tab, has its hidden metadata read on your device, and comes back as a plain list of what it gives away. 0 bytes uploaded

  1. Add your files

    Drop one photo or a batch, straight from your phone or camera.

  2. Check the settings

    Press Show metadata. The EXIF, GPS, XMP and IPTC fields are read in this tab and sorted into where, when, who and which device.

  3. Save the result

    Read the verdict. If a photo gives away too much, one button opens the same photos in Remove Metadata to strip it, pixels untouched.

Why it doesn’t upload

The point is to find out what a photo gives away before it leaves your hands. Uploading it somewhere to check would hand over the very location and serial number you were worried about. Here the fields are read in this tab, on your device.

How to check for yourself

Worth knowing

  • Photos only, for now. Videos also record where they were filmed; Compress Video removes that on the way through. Camera raw files aren’t read yet.
  • Metadata is a claim, not proof. Dates, places and camera names can be edited or faked with free tools, so treat them as what the file says about itself.
  • No AI label doesn’t mean no AI. The marks some generators add are easy to strip, so their absence proves nothing either way.
  • The map link opens OpenStreetMap, which receives the coordinates you look up. Copying the coordinates instead sends nothing.

What a photo’s metadata can give away

Where. Phones write GPS coordinates to five or six decimal places — a few meters — along with altitude and sometimes the direction the camera faced. A photo of something you’re selling, taken at home, can carry your home address in it.

When and on what. The exact date and time, the time zone, and the make and model of the phone. Many cameras also record their serial number, which links every photo from that camera to each other and, through a warranty or a sale listing, to its owner.

Who and how. Editing apps add the author name and copyright you set years ago, captions, keywords and a history of the software that touched the file. Some AI image tools add a label or signed Content Credentials saying how the image was made. The full explanation covers which apps keep what.

Checking photo metadata on iPhone, Android, Windows and Mac

iPhone: open the photo in Photos and swipe up, or tap the ⓘ button. You see the camera, lens, settings and a map of where it was taken. Tap Adjust beside the location to change or remove it for that photo.

Android: in Google Photos, open the photo and swipe up. The details show the date, device, file size and the location on a map if one was recorded.

Windows: right-click the file → Properties → Details. The GPS section lists the latitude and longitude, and Remove Properties and Personal Information at the bottom strips them.

Mac: open the photo in Preview and choose Tools → Show Inspector, then the ⓘ tab: the Exif and GPS panes list the fields. For a batch, or a file type your device won’t show, drop them here instead.

Questions

How do I see the metadata of a photo?

Drop it here and press Show metadata: every field is listed, grouped by where, when, who and which device, with the full table underneath. Your own devices show some of it too: on an iPhone, swipe up on the photo; in Google Photos, swipe up for details; on Windows, right-click → Properties → Details; on a Mac, open it in Preview and choose Tools → Show Inspector.

Can someone find my location from a photo?

Yes, if the photo has GPS coordinates in it, which phones add whenever the camera is allowed to use location. The coordinates are exact enough to pick out a house. Many social networks remove them when you post, but photos sent as files — by email, as a WhatsApp document, through a cloud link or AirDrop — usually keep them. Remove Metadata strips them before you send.

Do screenshots have metadata?

Much less than photos. A screenshot wasn’t taken anywhere, so there’s no GPS location, but some phones and apps record the date, the device or a note saying it’s a screenshot. Drop one here to see exactly what yours carry. The bigger risk in a screenshot is usually what’s visible in it — a name, an address, a card number — which Blur an Image covers.

Can I tell if a photo was made with AI from its metadata?

Sometimes. Some AI tools write an IPTC “digital source type” saying the image was generated, and some add signed Content Credentials (C2PA) recording how it was made; this viewer shows both when they’re there. But metadata is easy to strip, so a photo without them isn’t proof it’s real.

What is EXIF data?

EXIF is the block of information a camera or phone writes into a photo when it’s taken: the date and time, the make and model, the exposure settings, and on phones usually the GPS position. XMP and IPTC are two other blocks that editing apps and photo agencies use for captions, keywords, authors and editing history.

Does removing metadata change the photo?

Not if it’s done properly. Remove Metadata deletes the hidden blocks and leaves the picture data byte for byte as it was, so there is no quality loss. Re-saving a photo in an editor also drops most metadata, but it re-compresses the picture at the same time.

Read more about this

Next steps

Often used before or after Photo Metadata Viewer. These run on your device too.