Remove EXIF and GPS Metadata From a Photo
Choose the JPEG and save the cleaned copy. The tool removes EXIF and XMP application segments—including the container that can hold GPS coordinates—plus comments and other non-rendering application data, while copying the compressed image scans, ICC colour profile and colour interpretation blocks unchanged.
A PNG or JPEG up to 50 MB. The file structure is cleaned directly; the image is never decoded, recompressed or uploaded.
Results are provided as-is, with no warranty of accuracy. The method and its sources are published below so you can check the working.
The encoded JPEG scan is copied rather than decoded and recompressed, so this operation does not introduce another lossy generation.
ICC colour profiles and the Adobe colour-transform segment remain because removing them can change how the same samples are displayed.
The result is a new file; the selected source on the device is never overwritten.
How it works
How it is done
- Identify PNG by its eight-byte signature or JPEG by its start-of-image marker, then walk the file's declared chunks or marker segments.
- Omit known text, EXIF, time and comment containers. Maximum cleanup also omits unknown non-rendering ancillary or application blocks while retaining colour and animation structures.
- Copy every retained range in its original order, including PNG image-data chunks and the complete JPEG entropy-coded scan.
- Report the complete blocks and bytes omitted, then offer a separate same-format file rather than changing the selected source.
What it assumes
- The source is a structurally complete PNG or JPEG no larger than the stated 50 MB input limit.
- Personal cleanup targets known metadata containers; it cannot prove that identifying material is absent from pixels, filenames, cloud copies or an unknown retained block.
- ICC colour profiles, PNG colour information, transparency, physical pixel size and APNG animation control are retained because removing them can alter presentation.
- Retained chunk CRCs and scan bytes are copied rather than revalidated or repaired; this is a metadata cleaner, not a damaged-image recovery tool.
Common questions
Does removing JPEG metadata reduce image quality?
No image samples are decoded or encoded. The compressed scan bytes are copied exactly, so the cleaner itself introduces no generation loss.
Why does the cleaned JPEG still contain an ICC profile?
An ICC profile controls colour rendering rather than identifying the photographer or location. Keeping it avoids changing the appearance of wide-gamut images.
Sources
The full method, worked example and every assumption behind this figure are on Image Metadata Remover.