For Headshots & ID Photos
Portrait Background Remover
A professional headshot is the fastest way to look hireable, but you don't need a photographer to get one. Upload any portrait — a phone selfie, a tourist photo, a Zoom screenshot — and our AI separates the subject from the background in seconds. Hair, glasses, earrings, and skin edges stay sharp. Use the cutout for LinkedIn, a resume, a passport-style ID photo, or your team's About page. The result is a transparent PNG that drops onto any background you want, including the pure white or pale grey required by most ID-photo specifications.
or drag and drop here
Supports PNG, JPG, WEBP and other common formats
How to remove the background from a portrait
- 1
Upload the portrait
Drag in a JPG, PNG, or WEBP. Phone photos, screenshots, and webcam captures all work. For ID photos shoot against a contrasting wall first to give the AI an easier edge.
- 2
Pick the portrait model
In advanced settings switch to birefnet-portrait — it's trained for human subjects and handles flyaway hair and earrings better than the default model.
- 3
Enable Alpha Matting
Turn Alpha Matting on for sharper edges around hair and skin. This is the difference between a usable cutout and an obvious cardboard-cutout look.
- 4
Review and download
Use the compare slider to inspect the hairline and earring edges. Download as a transparent PNG or composite onto white or grey for LinkedIn / ID photos.
Built for
LinkedIn profile photo
Drop the cutout onto a brand-coloured backdrop or LinkedIn's default grey for a polished, consistent look across all your social profiles.
Resume and CV portraits
Many recruiters expect a clean white-background portrait at the top of a CV. Skip the studio visit and produce one in two minutes.
Passport, visa, and ID photos
Country requirements vary on background colour (usually pure white or light grey). Set the RGB in advanced settings for an exact match.
Team About pages
Give your company's About page a uniform headshot row, even when the photos came from different phones, locations, and lighting setups.
Pro tips
Use the birefnet-portrait model
It's trained on human subjects and handles fine hair, earrings, and glasses frames noticeably better than the default u2net model.
Turn Alpha Matting on
Hair is where most cutouts fail. Alpha Matting takes a second longer but eliminates the jagged 'cardboard' look around the hairline.
Crop close before uploading for ID photos
Most passport specs require the face to fill 70-80% of the frame. Crop in your phone's photo app first; the AI will handle the rest.
Match the backdrop to the use case
Pale grey for LinkedIn, pure white for resumes and US passports, off-white for UK passports. Composite by setting the background colour after the cut.
Avoid backlighting
Strong light behind the subject creates a dark silhouette the AI has to guess at. Shoot with the light source in front for cleaner edges.
Frequently asked questions
Will my hair look natural after cutout?
Yes if you enable Alpha Matting and use the birefnet-portrait model. Together they preserve flyaway strands, parting lines, and curl edges that the default model would over-smooth.
Can I keep my glasses, hat, or earrings?
Yes — the AI treats anything physically attached to the subject as part of the subject. Frames, jewelry, hats, and headphones all stay in the cutout.
Does it work for group photos?
Yes, the model isolates all human subjects together. If you only want one person, crop them out before uploading, or use the Return mask only option to do manual touch-ups.
Can I use this for a passport photo?
The cutout itself is suitable, but most passport applications also require specific dimensions, head-position, and expression rules. Check your country's specification and crop accordingly before printing.
What if the lighting on my face is bad?
The cutout will still work, but harsh shadows on the face don't disappear with background removal. For LinkedIn-quality results, retake the photo near a large window with the light source in front of you.
Is my photo private?
Yes. Uploads are kept in memory only long enough to process and are deleted automatically. We don't store images on disk, share them, or train AI on them.
What resolution is the output?
The same resolution as your upload. Phone photos (12+ MP) are plenty for printing a passport photo or social-media-sized headshot. Upload at the highest resolution your phone allows.
Related tools
Ready to remove some backgrounds?
Three free runs every day, then 100 credits for $4.99. No signup, no watermark.
Try the background remover