Also Read: Top 5 Free Online Image Editor Like Photoshop
Free Image Hosting Sites
1. Imgur
Imgur (pronounced “image-er) is primarily used to host free images by Redditors. Imgur is free to use but that is not why I love it. I like it because it allows me to upload high-resolution images without having to sign up for a free account. Using the service is pretty simple, just upload an image and copy the shareable link. Registration is optional which means you can use it for anonymous image hosting as well. But if you are planning to use the service for the long haul, I recommend signing up. Imgur has its own community. Read: Free HQ Images You Can Use Without Linking to Source
There is a limit of 200 MB for GIF and 20 MB for other images on the platform. PNG images that are over 5 MB are converted into JPEG. You can only upload 50 images per hour, per IP. On the other hand, there is no direct link feature (you can right-click on the image and choose “Copy Image Address”) and your images will be compressed, more if you are not logged in. So, I recommend creating a free account if the quality is a priority. Luckily, you can press CTRL+V on the site, to upload images from your clipboard. They also offer a crop and blur tool to hide sensitive and private info. Verdict: Imgur has been there for a long time. Quick and easy to use with an optional signup process and mobile apps. Use it if you want to share photos on forums or social media without having to worry about them getting deleted. They never do that. Imgur: Website | Android | iOS
2. Flickr
For a long time, Flickr was the top image sharing site in the world. It is, in fact, an image sharing social media site. It is one of the oldest, and still one of the best there is. Flickr not only lets you upload and share images, there is a robust set of editing tools that you can use to edit your images. You can then organize your images into folders and albums. Flickr has an API which means it integrates with a lot of social media sites and other third-party apps like Dropbox making the sharing and backing up process easy.
You get a humongous 1 TB of free storage with smart editing tools for free. The pro plan will remove ads, offer advanced stats on your images like how many shares and likes, and a desktop uploader tool to make things even easier. There is some compression by Flickr but the quality is still high. Verdict: Flickr is very reliable and will continue to live long after we cease to exist. Good for networking and editing. You can use it to show off your artwork and photography skills. Flickr: Website | Android | iOS
3. ImgBB
ImgBB offers free image hosting with a minimalist approach. There is no limit on the number of images that you can upload as long as the size is limited to 16 MB. It offers a drag and drops functionality that simply works.
There are no bells and whistles which means the files that you are uploading will not be trimmed or compressed. There is no need to register on the site either and the images that you upload will never be deleted from the server. The site will allow you to directly link to the images that you can use on forums and message boards. It also allows HTML thumbnails which are really useful in boards. Verdict: ImgBB is an anonymous image hosting site that you can use if you want to share images on forums and message boards like 4chan without registering for the service. ImgBB: Website
4. Google Photos
Google Photos, like all Google apps, is free to use. Not only you use Google Photos to host and share images, you can also use it to automatically backup photos from your mobile devices. The backup works on autopilot and chances are, you already have a Google account. So just download and start using it. It offers a robust way of organizing photos, for example, by location, people, and date. Like Flickr, it comes with photo editing tools.
Google Photos makes it easy to share your images with others and integrates with many other sites and apps. It is reliable and won’t vanish anytime soon, like some image hosting sites. Google Photos is a great way to backup, store, organize, and share images on the fly on a number of platforms. Google offers two options. In original quality, you get limited storage of 15 GB. In high quality, you get unlimited storage, and limit of 16MP for images and 1080 for videos. I think, if you are not a pro photographer, the latter is more than enough. Verdict: Use Google Photos if you want to upload and share images privately or if you want to backup all your family photos. Google Photos also come with a lot of additional smart features like facial recognition and smart folders. It will remove duplicate photos automatically. Google Photos: Website | Android | iOS
5. Photobucket
Photobucket is an image hosting site that offers 2 GB with the free account, if you want more, you can upgrade to 10 GB by downloading their mobile apps. There is no restriction on file type or size except GIF images which cannot be more than 5 MB or 800 frames. Photobucket supports albums. Photobucket made the list because apart from allowing users to host image files for free, it also allows them to get a printed copy for a nominal price. Needless to say, it comes with editing tools you can use before giving a print.
This is good if you are looking to decorate your house and office with wall frames. Verdict: Photobucket is a good alternative if you need to store high-quality photos and want to print them. However, it pales in comparison when it comes to storage capacity. You can increase storage for a price which will allow 3rd party hosting and remove ads. Photobucket: Website | Android | iOS
6. 500x
Think Instagram but for both – amateur and professional photographers. 500x can be a joy to surf and the community is amazing to hang around. You will often see people helping each other, giving feedback on their latest pics, sharing tips and links to tutorials on the web. Needless to say, the images found on this platform are beautiful, and sometimes, breathtaking. A lot of my editor friends working for magazines and blogs surf 500x for inspiration. Join 500x if photography is your thing. Yes, you can sell your images.
The free account will allow you 20 images a week for a total of 2000 images. Pro membership will cost $20/yearly with no restrictions. Start building your portfolio. Compression is optional so you can choose what you need: quality or speed. Verdict: If you are a photographer then 500x is a community that was built just for you. You will feel right at home. There is a marketplace to sell your work. It works like a social media with individual profiles that you can follow. 500x: Website | Android | iOS
7. Postimage
While most free image hosting sites don’t allow NSFW photos (some may terminate your account after a few fair warnings), Postimage, on the other hand, allows you to host and share images of all kinds, even NSFW pictures, if that’s your thing.
You will need to register for a free account. There is a feature to set an expiry on your image which can be useful if the image is sensitive. Postimages is mostly used by members of different forums to host and share images. They have a bulk image resizer tool which is useful if you are posting images on a message board. Verdict: Postimage is a good alternative if you are into NSFW or adult content and regularly work on forums and other message boards. Postimages
Wrapping Up: Free Image Hosting Sites
If you are a photographer or work with a magazine or blog and looking for high-end quality images, 500x is the social media site that was made for photographers. If you work with adult content or forums, Postimages is a good solution. Imgur is good if you need a no hassle quick way to share an image that will break the Internet down. Think lolcats cause they always go viral! Need backup? Google Photos will allow you to host, share, and organize too. Think Instagram if you want a social media platform to share and follow other people. Also Read: Detect if the Image is Photoshop Fake or Not
