Pixelate & Blur

What this tool does

Hides parts of a photo such as faces, license plates or private details with pixelation, blur or a solid color. You can make several rectangle or ellipse areas. It is for still images; if you upload a GIF you are taken to the "GIF/Video Pixelate & Blur" page automatically.

Steps

1. Upload an image. (A GIF automatically moves to the GIF/Video Pixelate & Blur page)
2. Choose the "Method" (pixelate, blur or solid color) and the "Strength".
3. Choose the shape of the next area (rectangle or ellipse) and drag on the image to create it. Repeat as needed.
4. If you made a mistake use "Undo last area" or "Clear all".
5. Check the preview, choose the format and press "Download".

Settings

• Method: pixelate crushes the area into square blocks of the strength size, blur blurs with a radius of about half the strength, and solid color covers it with the chosen color. The method applies to all areas together.
• Strength (4-80): larger values hide more. The default is 20.
• Area shape: applies to areas you create next. Existing areas keep the shape they were created with.

How it works

Area coordinates are stored in original pixels so the preview and the result match. Pixelate shrinks the area to the block size and enlarges it without smoothing to get square blocks, and blur redraws the original with a Gaussian blur filter inside the area only. Solid color fills the area. The result is redrawn at the original resolution with the same settings.

Good to know

• Pixelation with a small strength can still leave the subject somewhat recognizable. For sensitive information use a higher strength or a solid color.
• JPG has no transparency so transparent areas become white.
• Your work is gone when you close the tab.