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How to Use Google Reverse Image Search

Find out where that picture came from using your PC, Mac, laptop, or tablet

By Thomas James Wilton Thomas James Wilton Writer Tom Wilton has been a freelance filmmaker and writer since 2012. His work has appeared in Video&Filmmaker, The Big Issue, and others. He's also been a consultant for CBS. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on September 25, 2022 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email

In This Article

Expand Jump to a Section Google Reverse Image Search With Drag and Drop Google Reverse Image Search Using a Picture's URL Google Reverse Image Search From the Source Picture Sort Google Images Search Results by Time

What to Know

If using downloaded image, go to Google Images. Drag image from your device to the search page.Using a URL: Right-click online image > Copy Image Address. At Camera icon in Google Images, paste URL.Or, in Chrome browser, right-click an image > select Search Google for Image.
This article explains different ways to perform a Google reverse image search to find the origin of a photo.

Perform a Google Reverse Image Search With Drag and Drop

Using Google to reverse image search is a useful method for researching the origins of a photo found online. Whether it’s a historical picture presented with little context or an image that seems doctored, you can search the web for other instances of its use with Google Images. Here's how to reverse image search using an image you’ve downloaded to your device. Go to Google Images. ​ Locate the image file on your device. Select and drag the file to the Google Images search page. The search box will change as you place the image over it. ​ Drop the image and Google will begin to search. ​ Your results will appear in a Google Search page.

Perform a Google Reverse Image Search Using a Picture' s URL

If you've found an image online but don't want to download it, you can instead search for it by copying and pasting its URL. Find the image you want to search and right-click or control-click the image reveal the additional options menu. Select Copy Image Address to copy the picture's URL. Go to Google Images, then select the camera icon in the search bar. This will launch a URL box. Paste the image address in the box, then select Search by image. Your results will appear in a Google Search page.

Perform a Google Reverse Image Search From the Source Picture

If you're using Google's Chrome browser, this is a really simple way of performing a reverse image search for a picture you've found online. Hover over the image you want to search and either right-click or control-click to reveal the additional options menu. Select Search Google for Image. Chrome will launch a Google Images search in a new tab.

Sort Google Images Search Results by Time

As with any Google search, your results will likely be populated with a large volume of links and similar images, but knowing which results will help with your research is not always clear. Fortunately, there are a couple of things you can do to refine your results. If you anticipate you'll be selecting a lot of results or just need to compare a number of pages, it's good practice to open those links in separate tabs. To do this, right-click or control-click a link to open the additional options menu. From there, select either Open link in New Tab or Open Image in New Tab. Ordering your results using time filters is an excellent way of sorting pages to help find the earliest instances of an image appearing on the web. It’ll also help you track any changes made to the photo over time. Sorting results by Time doesn't necessarily display pages in the order they were published. The results will show only pages published within your selected time range. They will still be ranked by relevance. Perform a Google Images search and go to the results. Select Tools. Select Time. A dropdown menu will appear giving you options for filtering your results by various periods. The results will now be filtered to only include results from your chosen range. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Download an Image From Google Docs How to Search an Image on Google How to Use Facebook Image Search How to Use Google Lens on iPhone How to Search in Google Sheets What Is a Reverse Image Search? How to Do a Reverse Image Search on iPhone or Android Bing Advanced Search Tricks You Should Know 9 Best Sites for Public Domain Images 5 Best Tips for Finding People With Google How to Use Google to Find Files Online 6 Best Ways to Search for People on Facebook The Best Image Search Engines on the Web How to Search Twitter Images How to Search Your Own Tweets in Your Twitter Feed How to Open Google Docs Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies