How to Check Photo Metadata
Before you remove anything, look at it. Here is how to view a photo's metadata on every platform.
In a browser
The quickest route needs no installation: load the file into a client-side metadata viewer and read the table. Look for a tool that processes the file locally — uploading a photo to a server just to find out whether it contains your address is a poor trade.
On Windows
Right-click the file, choose Properties and open the Details tab. You get camera make and model, dimensions, capture date and, when present, latitude and longitude.
Explorer shows a curated subset. XMP blocks, vendor segments and PNG text chunks generally do not appear, so an empty-looking Details tab does not mean an empty file.
On macOS
Open the image in Preview, choose Tools, then Show Inspector, and select the tab marked with an 'i'. Sub-tabs cover General, EXIF, TIFF and GPS, with a map for geotagged photos.
For everything at once, `mdls photo.jpg` in Terminal lists the Spotlight attributes, and ExifTool shows the raw tags including maker notes.
On iPhone and Android
In the iOS Photos app, open a photo and swipe up or tap the info button: you get the device, lens, exposure, file size and a map if the photo is geotagged. Tap Adjust next to the location to change or remove it.
In Google Photos, open a photo and tap the info button for a similar summary. Both apps show a friendly subset rather than the raw tag list — a dedicated viewer shows considerably more.
Reading what you find
A long list of tags can be hard to prioritise. Three groups deserve attention, in this order:
- Location: GPSLatitude and GPSLongitude, plus altitude, bearing and GPS timestamps
- Identity: BodySerialNumber, OwnerName, Artist, Copyright, and the device Make and Model
- Timeline: DateTimeOriginal, CreateDate, ModifyDate and the time zone offset
Checking a file you were sent
Metadata is also useful in the other direction. A photo sent to you may reveal which device took it, whether it was edited and in what software, and sometimes where it was taken — useful context when a picture's provenance matters.
Bear in mind that metadata is trivially editable, so it is evidence of what a file claims, not proof of what happened.
Inspect a photo's metadata now
A metadata remover for images that shows its work: full field list first, removal second, verification third. JPG, PNG and WebP, processed in your browser.
Open Image Metadata RemoverFrequently asked questions
Why does my photo show no metadata?
Likely it was downloaded from a platform that strips metadata during re-encoding, or exported by software configured not to include it. Screenshots also start with very little.
Can metadata be faked?
Yes. Every field can be edited with freely available tools, so metadata should be treated as a claim rather than proof.
Is it safe to use an online EXIF viewer?
It depends on whether it uploads your file. A client-side viewer reads the file in your browser; a server-side one receives your photo, including whatever it was that made you want to check it.