How to Do a Reverse Image Search (Desktop and Mobile)

What Is a Reverse Image Search?

A reverse image search is the act of searching the internet with an image rather than keywords.

It helps you uncover more details about the image itself and its subject matter.

Such as:

• The original size of the image
• Alternative sizes
• Other appearances on the internet
• Visually similar images

Here’s an example of a reverse image search for an image of a Tesla Model 3:

In this article, we’ll cover how to do a reverse image search on desktop and mobile.

How to Do a Reverse Image Search on a Desktop

Performing a reverse image search on your desktop computer is simple.

Let’s look at how you can do it on any browser on your desktop.

How to Do a Reverse Google Image Search on Desktop Browsers

Open Google Images. Select the camera icon.

You’ll get two options:

1. Paste image link. This option allows you to use the URL of an image you have found on the internet.
2. Upload a file. This option allows you to upload an image from your computer to use as the search item.

Choose the search option based on your preference.

As an example, we’ll use the “Paste image link” option and hit “Search.”

Now, Google will take you to the Google Lens interface.

In Google Lens, click on the “Find image source” link at top.

Then Google will show the image’s search results page.

It will include information about the image’s size, webpages where that image is used, and other visually similar images.

How to Do a Reverse Google Image Search for Online Images

You can use Google Lens to quickly do a reverse image search for any image you see online.

This works on the Chrome browser on a desktop computer or laptop.

1. Locate the image you want to search and right-click on it.

2. Select “Search image with Google” option.

This will open up the Google Lens panel on the right side of the page:

3. Click on the “Find image source” link at top.

Then Google will show the image’s search results page.

Reverse Image Search Using Microsoft Bing

Microsoft Bing has its own reverse image search functionality called Visual Search.

Here’s how to use it:

1. Go to Microsoft Bing.

2. Click the Visual Search icon in the search bar.

You’ll get three options to conduct your reverse image search:

• Upload: This option allows you to drag an image into the box and upload it from your computer. You can upload more than one image at a time.
• URL: This option lets you search for an image by pasting its URL
• Take a photo: This option allows you to use your webcam to take a photo and use it for reverse image search

3. Choose the option that works best for you and wait while Visual Search analyzes your image.

Then Microsoft Bing will show visually similar images, pages that feature the image, and related content.

Like so:

Reverse Image Search Using Yandex

Yandex is another popular search engine that can perform reverse image searches.

Here’s how to use it:

1. Go to Yandex Images.

2. Click on the Visual Search icon in the search bar.

You’ll get two options to conduct your reverse image search:

• Upload an image file (or drag and drop)
• Enter image URL

3. Choose the option that works best for you and hit “Search.”

Then Yandex’s reverse search results will display information about image’s size, other webpages where that image is used, and other similar images.

Reverse Image Search Using Third-Party Websites

Multiple third-party websites specialize in reverse image searches.

But TinEye is one of the best options out there.

TinEye works exactly the same way as the normal Google reverse image search.

You can upload an image or add a URL to perform image searches.

And it will scan the web to find webpages where the image is used.

Like so:

A paid version gives you advanced features like custom alerts and more usage quota.

TinEye also has extensions available for some browsers.

How to Do a Google Reverse Image Search on a Mobile Device

Performing a reverse image search on a mobile device is quite similar to desktop.

On both iOS and Android devices, you can use the Google Chrome app to access the Google reverse image search feature.

Reverse Image Search on Android Phone Using Google Chrome

The entire process is almost identical to how you would do this in the Chrome browser on a desktop.

1. Go to Google Images.

2. Select the camera icon.

You’ll get two options to complete your search:

1. Search with your camera
2. Upload an image

3. Choose the search option that works best for you. Google will run a reverse search on the image and return the results:

Swipe up from the bottom to see more results:

Reverse Image Search on iPhone Using Google Chrome

The camera icon isn’t available on the search bar in the iPhone’s Chrome app by default, but two options act as a workaround.

These include:

1. Using the “long press” method.
2. Using your browser to request the desktop version of Google.

Use the Long Press Method

1. Navigate to the image you want to search.

2. Perform a “long press” (i.e., press and hold down on the image until a menu pops up). And select “Search Google for this Image.”

3. Google will run a reverse search on the image and return the results:

Use the Desktop Version of Google

1. In Chrome, go to Google Images.

2. Tap the three-dot menu at the bottom of your screen.

3. Scroll down to the menu and select “Request Desktop Site.”

The app will take you to the the desktop version of the Google Images website:

Note: You can also do this in your Safari browser by clicking on the font size icon on the left side of your URL bar.

From there, perform the same steps as you would on a desktop.

4. Select the camera icon.

5. Then paste the URL or upload the image you want to search for.

Uses for Reverse Image Search

Let’s look at four practical uses for a reverse image search:

• Find more information about the image’s subject matter. With reverse image search, you can look up what the image essentially is and uncover more information about it.
• Check for copyright violations. This can work for your own images, or you can check whether the image you have found is under copyright.
• Finding an image source to give credit. When you use someone else’s image, it’s best to give the credit where it’s due. If you don’t know the original source of the image, you can find it with a reverse image search and give them the credit.
• Build backlinks. With reverse image search, you can identify websites that have used your images without crediting your site with a backlink. Once you find those sites, send an outreach email asking them for proper attribution. Semrush’s Backlink Analytics tool monitors these links for you.