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Blur the background of a photo

Portrait-mode blur for any photo, made on your device at full size.

Blur the background of a photo and keep the person or object sharp, like portrait mode. It is free, needs no account and adds no watermark, and your files are not uploaded: everything runs in your browser on your device. The first run downloads the cut-out model and the WebAssembly engine that runs it (about 42 MB in all) to your browser, and after that the tool works offline.

Drop photos to blur the backgroundor click to choose files. Batches welcome.

    The first photo downloads the cut-out model and its WebAssembly runtime (about 42 MB in all, once). After that first download it is cached and works offline. If part of the subject goes missing, try Keep more; if bits of background stay, try Keep less.

    Working…

    Done

    Your files are processed on this device and never sent to a server. Reload the page to clear everything from memory.

    A blurred background is what makes a phone’s portrait mode, or a fast lens on a real camera, look professional: the subject stands out and a messy room, a crowd or a car park behind them fades into soft colour. Photographers call the look shallow depth of field. A lens gets it optically; this page gets it by finding the subject first and blurring everything else.

    The subject is found by a segmentation model running in your browser, the same one behind the background remover. Everything outside it is blurred and the sharp subject is laid back on top, with soft edges so hair and shoulders blend into the blur rather than looking cut out. Strength sets how far the blur reaches, relative to the photo’s size, so a 5 looks the same on a small image and a 48 megapixel one.

    It is useful for profile pictures and staff photos taken in the office, product shots on a busy desk, and for hiding what is behind you, such as house numbers, whiteboards or other people, while keeping a natural photo instead of a flat colour. For hiding a face or a number plate itself, use the blur image tool instead, which blurs the areas you mark.

    How it works

    1. Drop the photos, or tap to pick them. The first one downloads the cut-out model and its WebAssembly runtime once (about 42 MB in all).
    2. Keep Blur, set the strength, and pick JPG, PNG or WebP.
    3. Download the photos with the blurred background at full size, or all of them in one zip.

    In your browser, not on a server

    ISNet, an open image segmentation model, runs in a web worker through onnxruntime-web compiled to WebAssembly. Your photo is shrunk to 1024 × 1024 in memory, the model marks every pixel as subject or background, and that mask is scaled back up and applied to the original pixels on a canvas, so the cut-out keeps full resolution. The model and runtime are served from this site, downloaded once and cached.

    Compared with upload-based tools: Your photo can show people, rooms and documents you would rather not upload. Here the full-size cut-out is made on your device, with no credits, no watermark and no copy of your photo on anyone’s server.

    Verify it yourself. Give the page a short while after your first run to save itself for offline use, then turn off Wi-Fi or switch to airplane mode and run the tool again. Or open your browser's developer tools (F12, or Cmd-Option-I on a Mac), pick the Network tab, and watch it while you convert. The panel above does the same count for you.

    Questions

    Does it work on photos not taken in portrait mode?

    Yes. The blur is added afterwards to any photo, from any camera or screenshot, as long as there is a clear subject to keep sharp.

    Why is there a soft halo around the person?

    At very high strength the colours of the subject blend a little into the blur right next to it, the way they do with a real lens. Lower the strength for a subtler look.

    What strength should I use?

    Around 3 gives a gentle, natural softening that still shows where the photo was taken, like a phone at a distance. 5 is the typical portrait-mode look. 8 to 10 turns the scene into smooth colour, which works for headshots and product photos where only the subject matters.

    Is this the same as a real lens blur?

    Close, not identical. A lens blurs by distance, so the floor right behind someone stays sharper than a wall far away, and bright lights turn into round discs. This blurs the whole scene evenly, which is what most portrait modes on phones do in practice and looks right for most people photos.

    Can I use it for video calls or a profile picture?

    For a still profile picture, yes: blur the background, then crop it square with the crop tool. Live video backgrounds are handled by the calling app itself; this page works on saved photos.

    Can I blur only part of the background, such as a sign?

    This page blurs everything except the subject. To blur particular areas and keep the rest sharp, use the blur image tool and drag over what to hide.

    Is the file uploaded anywhere?

    No. There is no server in this process. The page is a static file and the work is done by code running inside your browser tab. Give the page a short while after your first run to save itself for offline use; then you can turn off Wi-Fi and it still works.

    More image tools

    Remove background

    Cut out people, pets and products at full resolution. The photo never leaves this device.

    Add text to GIF

    Write a caption on every frame of an animated GIF and drag it where you want it. Done on this device, and the GIF is not uploaded.

    Merge GIFs

    Join several animated GIFs end to end, in the order you choose. They are put together on this device, and the GIFs are not uploaded.

    GIF maker

    Your pictures turned into one looping GIF, put together on this device, with no watermark.

    Other conversions

    Guides