EXIF Viewer
Drop a photo to see what it gives away: the place it was taken, the time, the phone or camera, and every EXIF, XMP and IPTC tag inside. Your photo is read on this device and never uploaded.
Key facts
- Reads EXIF, GPS, XMP, IPTC, comments and embedded previews in JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC and AVIF photos, entirely in your browser.
Drop a photo anywhere on this card, paste one, or choose files.
lake-at-dawn.jpg
JPEG · 960 × 960 · 35 KB
Inside the file
lake-at-dawn.jpg
JPEG · 960 × 960 · 35 KB
Preview inside the file
160 × 120, 2,309 bytes
A different shape from the photo: it may still show what was cropped out. Compare the two.
Sample, made-up detailsWhat this photo reveals
This photo shows where it was taken
Taken on an Apple iPhone 15 Pro, on Thu, Mar 12, 2026 at 7:12 AM, at 46.69468° N, 12.08557° E.
46.69468° N, 12.08557° E
46° 41′ 40.8″ N, 12° 5′ 8.1″ E
- Accuracy
- about 5 m
- Altitude
- 1,496 m above sea level
- Facing
- southwest (215°)
The map above is drawn by this page. OpenStreetMap opens only if you tap it, and then sees these coordinates.
What it gives away (5)
Where it was taken (Can identify you): 46.69468° N, 12.08557° E, to within about 5 m. Anyone with the file can put it on a map.
A preview that doesn’t match (Can identify you): The small preview inside the file has a different shape from the photo, so it may still show what was cropped out.
When it was taken (Narrows it down): Thu, Mar 12, 2026 at 7:12 AM (UTC+1).
Which device took it (Narrows it down): Apple iPhone 15 Pro, back triple camera 6.765mm f/1.78.
The software used (Low risk): Example Photo Editor 4.2.
Your photos are read on this device and never uploaded. Check it yourself
Every tag in this file (66)EXIF, GPS, XMP, IPTC, comments and previews, grouped
can identify you narrows it down
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Latitude referenceEXIF GPS · GPSLatitudeRef | N |
| LatitudeEXIF GPS · GPSLatitude | 46° 41′ 40.85″ |
| Longitude referenceEXIF GPS · GPSLongitudeRef | E |
| LongitudeEXIF GPS · GPSLongitude | 12° 5′ 8.05″ |
| Altitude referenceEXIF GPS · GPSAltitudeRef | Above sea level |
| AltitudeEXIF GPS · GPSAltitude | 1496.2 m |
| GPS time (UTC)EXIF GPS · GPSTimeStamp | 06:12:30 UTC |
| Speed unitEXIF GPS · GPSSpeedRef | K |
| SpeedEXIF GPS · GPSSpeed | 0 |
| Facing referenceEXIF GPS · GPSImgDirectionRef | True north |
| FacingEXIF GPS · GPSImgDirection | 214.5° |
| Destination bearing referenceEXIF GPS · GPSDestBearingRef | T |
| Destination bearingEXIF GPS · GPSDestBearing | 214.5° |
| GPS date (UTC)EXIF GPS · GPSDateStamp | 2026:03:12 |
| Position accuracyEXIF GPS · GPSHPositioningError | 4.7 m |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Last changedEXIF · DateTime | 2026:03:14 09:41:07 |
| TakenEXIF · DateTimeOriginal | 2026:03:12 07:12:31 |
| DigitisedEXIF · DateTimeDigitized | 2026:03:12 07:12:31 |
| Time zone (last changed)EXIF · OffsetTime | +01:00 |
| Time zone (taken)EXIF · OffsetTimeOriginal | +01:00 |
| Time zone (digitised)EXIF · OffsetTimeDigitized | +01:00 |
| Fraction of a second (taken)EXIF · SubSecTimeOriginal | 512 |
| Fraction of a second (digitised)EXIF · SubSecTimeDigitized | 512 |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Camera makeEXIF · Make | Apple |
| Camera modelEXIF · Model | iPhone 15 Pro |
| Focal lengthEXIF · FocalLength | 6.76 mm |
| Sensor typeEXIF · SensingMethod | One-chip colour area |
| Focal length (35 mm equivalent)EXIF · FocalLengthIn35mmFilm | 24 mm |
| Lens rangeEXIF · LensSpecification | 2.2–9 mm f/1.8–2.8 |
| Lens makeEXIF · LensMake | Apple |
| LensEXIF · LensModel | iPhone 15 Pro back triple camera 6.765mm f/1.78 |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Shutter speedEXIF · ExposureTime | 1/120 s |
| ApertureEXIF · FNumber | f/1.8 |
| Exposure programEXIF · ExposureProgram | Normal program |
| ISOEXIF · ISO | 64 |
| Shutter speed (APEX)EXIF · ShutterSpeedValue | 6.907 |
| Aperture (APEX)EXIF · ApertureValue | 1.66 |
| Brightness (APEX)EXIF · BrightnessValue | 5.12 |
| Exposure compensationEXIF · ExposureBiasValue | 0 EV |
| MeteringEXIF · MeteringMode | Pattern |
| FlashEXIF · Flash | Off, did not fire |
| Exposure modeEXIF · ExposureMode | Auto |
| White balanceEXIF · WhiteBalance | Auto |
| Scene modeEXIF · SceneCaptureType | Standard |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| OrientationEXIF · Orientation | Upright |
| Horizontal resolutionEXIF · XResolution | 72 |
| Vertical resolutionEXIF · YResolution | 72 |
| Resolution unitEXIF · ResolutionUnit | Inches |
| YCbCr positioningEXIF · YCbCrPositioning | Centred |
| ComponentsEXIF · ComponentsConfiguration | Y Cb Cr |
| Colour spaceEXIF · ColorSpace | Uncalibrated |
| Width (Exif)EXIF · PixelXDimension | 960 |
| Height (Exif)EXIF · PixelYDimension | 960 |
| CompressionEXIF preview · Compression | JPEG |
| Horizontal resolutionEXIF preview · XResolution | 72 |
| Vertical resolutionEXIF preview · YResolution | 72 |
| Resolution unitEXIF preview · ResolutionUnit | Inches |
| Preview lengthEXIF preview · JPEGInterchangeFormatLength | 2,309 bytes |
| Embedded previewEXIF · IFD1 thumbnail | 160 × 120 JPEG, 2,309 bytes, a different shape from the photo |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| SoftwareEXIF · Software | Example Photo Editor 4.2 |
| Composite imageEXIF · CompositeImage | Composite |
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Exif versionEXIF · ExifVersion | 2.32 |
| Flashpix versionEXIF · FlashpixVersion | 1.00 |
| Scene typeEXIF · SceneType | Photographed directly |
| Interoperability indexEXIF · InteroperabilityIndex | R98 |
| Interoperability versionEXIF · InteroperabilityVersion | 1.00 |
How this works: Method, 5 sources, Checked against 5 worked examples,
How this works
Method
The photo is read in the browser without being decoded: the file’s segments (JPEG), chunks (PNG, WebP) or items (HEIC, AVIF) are walked to find the EXIF, XMP and IPTC blocks, and every EXIF tag is decoded as the Exif standard defines it. The location comes from the GPS block, or from XMP when there is none, and is drawn on a world outline built into the page, so no map service is asked. Removing metadata rewrites the file without those blocks and copies the picture’s bytes unchanged, then reads the new file again to check.
Sources
How it’s tested
5 worked examples for this page are checked by automated tests before every release: given the inputs, the tool must show the expected answer.
Changes
- First published: a plain-language summary of what a photo reveals, its location on a built-in map, every EXIF, XMP and IPTC tag, and a remover that keeps the picture byte for byte.
What a photo carries besides the picture
Phones and cameras write a block of facts into every photo they save. The Exif standard calls it the image’s metadata: the make and model of the device, the lens, the exposure, the date and time to the second and, when location is switched on, a GPS position, often with the altitude and the direction the camera faced. Editing apps add their own name, and some keep a history of every change.
Most of it is harmless. The location is not. A photo of a sofa you are selling, taken in your living room, carries your home’s coordinates to within a few metres, and anyone who gets the original file can put that point on a map. Sending a photo as a file, sharing a cloud link, attaching it to an email or posting it where the original is kept passes the position along with the picture.
Two leaks are less known. An embedded preview, a small copy of the photo stored inside the file, is sometimes made before a crop and never updated, so it can still show what you cut out: a face, a house number, a screen. And serial numbers, owner names and copyright lines tie a photo to one camera or one person, wherever it is posted.
This viewer reads the file in your browser, with code that runs on this page. It walks the file’s segments, decodes the EXIF, GPS, XMP and IPTC blocks and draws the position on a world map built into the page, so no map service sees your coordinates. It reads JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC and AVIF; the metadata of an iPhone’s HEIC photo is read in any browser, even one that can’t show the picture itself.
Good to know
- The Exif GPS block can hold latitude, longitude, altitude, the direction the camera faced, speed, a UTC timestamp and, since Exif 2.31, how accurate the position is in metres. Source: CIPA DC-008, Exif 3.0 (Exchangeable image file format)
- Exif 2.31 also added time-zone offsets, so a photo can record not only the local time it was taken but how far that was from UTC. Source: CIPA DC-008, Exif 3.0 (Exchangeable image file format)
- IPTC photo metadata has fields for a city, a sub-location and a country, and for the creator’s name, email and phone number. Source: IPTC Photo Metadata Standard
- On an iPhone you can stop the Camera from saving locations, or turn Location off for one share in the share sheet’s Options. Source: Apple Support: Control the location information you share on iPhone
How to see a photo’s metadata3 steps, all on your device
- Open a photo. Drop one or more photos on the card, paste one, or choose them from your device. JPEG, PNG, WebP, HEIC and AVIF all work.
- Read the summary. The card says in plain words what the photo reveals, puts the location on a map drawn by the page, and lists what could identify you, most serious first.
- Check every tag, then clean it. Every tag is listed below the card, grouped and searchable. Remove the location with one tap, or open the remover for everything and many photos at once.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is my photo uploaded anywhere?
No. The file is read by code running in this tab and never sent anywhere; the map is drawn by the page itself, with no map tiles. You can check it: open your browser’s network panel, or the privacy check at /privacy/verify, then drop a photo and watch that nothing leaves.
Why does my photo show no location?
Either location was off when it was taken, or the photo was saved again by an app that drops metadata. Screenshots are new images with no GPS, and many social and messaging apps re-save pictures without it. Photos sent as files, shared through cloud links or copied straight off the phone usually keep it.
How accurate is the location in a photo?
Outdoors, a phone’s GPS is usually right to within a few metres, and newer phones record their own estimate (shown here as “to within about N m”). Indoors and between tall buildings it can be tens of metres off. Either way it is close enough to find a street, and often a house.
What does “a preview that doesn’t match” mean?
Many files hold a small preview of the photo for quick display. If an app cropped the photo but kept the old preview, the two have different shapes, and the preview may still show what was cut away. The viewer compares their shapes and shows you the preview so you can see for yourself.
Can it read iPhone HEIC photos?
Yes. The metadata of a HEIC photo is read in every browser. Showing the picture itself needs a browser that opens HEIC, such as Safari 17 or later; elsewhere you get the full report with a placeholder instead of the image.
How do I remove the location?
Tap “Remove location and save” on the card: you get the same photo without its GPS block, the picture untouched. To remove everything, or to clean many photos at once and download them as a ZIP, use the Remove EXIF data page.