What should I use as a watermark?

Use your website URL, business name, or copyright notice. A website URL is more useful than just a name because anyone seeing the watermark can find you directly. For photographers, your Instagram handle or portfolio URL works well.

What opacity should a watermark be?

30-50% opacity is the standard range. At 30%, the watermark is visible but does not detract from the image. At 50%, it is clearly visible and harder to ignore. Avoid 100% opacity as it covers your image content and looks unprofessional.

Can watermarks be removed?

Corner watermarks can be removed by cropping. Centre watermarks and tiled watermarks covering the whole image are much harder to remove without damaging the photo. For maximum protection, use a diagonal tiled watermark across the entire image at 30-40% opacity.

How to Add a Watermark to Photos Free Online (Protect Your Images)

Sharing photos online without a watermark means anyone can download, repost, or use your work without credit. A well-placed watermark makes your photos identifiable as yours and deters casual theft. Here is how to add one free, in minutes, without downloading any software.

Why Watermark Your Photos

Copyright protection: A watermark makes it clear the photo is yours and discourages unauthorized use.
Brand recognition: Every share of your photo becomes free advertising if your name or website is on it.
Professional appearance: Portfolio and product photos with consistent watermarks look more professional than unmarked ones.
Deterrence: Most casual theft is opportunistic. A visible watermark moves thieves to an easier target.

Text vs Image Watermarks

Text watermarks are the most common. Use your name, business name, website URL, or a copyright notice. Our free watermark tool supports custom fonts, colors, sizes, opacity, rotation, and nine position options. Enable the Tile option to repeat the watermark across the entire image.

Image watermarks use a logo or branded graphic. A PNG with a transparent background works best. The logo sits over your photo at your chosen position and opacity. This looks more professional than text for commercial photographers and businesses.

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Best Watermark Settings

Position

Bottom-right is the conventional choice for subtle watermarks on portfolio photos. For maximum protection where you do not want the photo used without credit, center position or the Tile option (which repeats the watermark across the whole image) is more effective. Corner watermarks are easily cropped out.

Opacity

30-50% opacity is the standard range. At 30%, the watermark is present without being distracting. At 50%, it is clearly visible. Go higher only if theft protection is the priority over aesthetics.

Size

Large enough to read clearly when the image is displayed at normal web size. For a 1200px wide image, text at 36-48px is typically right. For a tiled watermark, smaller text (24-32px) at 30% opacity works without overwhelming the image.

Color

White at 40-50% opacity is a classic choice that works on most backgrounds. For photos with a lot of bright sky or light areas, a dark watermark with slight opacity may show up better.

What to Write in a Text Watermark

Your website URL is the most useful content. Anyone seeing the watermarked photo on social media can find you by typing the URL directly. "yourname.com" or "@yourhandle" are both effective. A copyright symbol followed by your name ("Copyright 2026 Your Name") works well for formal use.

Do's and Don'ts

Do

Use 30-50% opacity
Include your website URL
Use consistent position across all photos
Use diagonal text for hard-to-remove watermarks
Test on light and dark photos

Don't

Use tiny watermarks easy to crop
Cover the main subject with a large opaque watermark
Use the same corner position every time (predictable to crop)
Use colors that clash with your photos

The Most Protection: Diagonal Tiled Watermark

If you are sharing preview photos before a client pays, or displaying work you do not want downloaded, use the Tile option in our watermark tool with diagonal rotation (-30 to -45 degrees). This repeats your watermark across the entire image in a grid. It is much harder to remove than a corner watermark because removing it damages the underlying photo everywhere.

Keep the opacity at 25-35% for tiled watermarks so the image is still viewable while protected.

For consistent branding across a portfolio, set your watermark text to your website URL, position it bottom-right, opacity 40%, and use the same settings for every photo. Our watermark tool keeps your last settings ready for the next photo.

After Watermarking: Optimize for Sharing

Watermarked photos for web sharing should be compressed before upload. A full-size watermarked photo might be 4MB. Run it through our image compressor to bring it under 500KB without any visible change. For social media, also resize to platform dimensions first (1080px wide for Instagram, 1200px for LinkedIn).