How to Find Where a Photo Was Taken

Step 1: Read the GPS location in the file

Phones and some cameras save the place where you took a photo as GPS coordinates inside the file. This is the fastest way to find the location.

1. Get the original file. A screenshot or a copy from a social network usually has no location.
2. Open Check If a Photo Has Location, or the EXIF viewer, and add the photo.
3. Click the file row. WipePic lists each field with its value. If the photo has GPS data, a small offline world map shows a dot for the place.

Your photo does not go to a server. WipePic reads it in your browser.

The coordinates show where the camera was, not always the subject of the photo. A picture of a mountain taken from a valley shows the valley. GPS can also be off by many meters, especially indoors.

Step 2: Look at the other metadata

Without GPS, other fields still help. The date and time show when the photo was taken, and the camera or phone model shows what device took it. Some files hold a text note or a place name that the owner typed. Time zone fields, when present, narrow down the region.

These fields do not prove the place. Treat them as hints.

Step 3: Use reverse image search

A reverse image search looks for the same or similar pictures online. It can lead you to the page where the photo was first posted, and that page may name the place.

• Google Lens: go to Google, select the camera icon in the search box and upload the photo. Lens can recognize landmarks and read text on signs.
• Bing Visual Search: open Bing Images, select the camera icon and upload the photo. You can crop to the part that matters.
• TinEye: upload the photo or paste its address. TinEye is best at finding older and larger copies of the same image.

Try each service, and try crops of the picture as well as the whole photo. Crop to a building, a sign or a skyline. Results show where an image appears online. They do not prove where the photo was taken. These services receive the picture you upload, and Microsoft says that photos you provide to Bing may be used to improve its image processing. Do not upload a private photo of someone else.

Step 4: Read the clues in the picture

People who verify photos for a living work from what the picture shows. Check these things:

• Text: shop names, street signs, bus numbers and the language of the writing.
• Buildings and landmarks: roof shapes, bridges, towers and the skyline.
• Roads: the side of the road that cars use, the color of road markings and the style of road signs.
• Nature: plants, mountains, coastline and the color of the soil.
• Small details: plug sockets, license plates, utility poles and street furniture.
• Light: the direction of shadows and the time of day, compared with the date of the photo.

When you have a guess, confirm it. Open a map or street-level imagery and compare the buildings, the road layout and the horizon with the photo. One matching detail is a lead. Several matching details are a confirmation.

A note on ethics

Use these methods to verify news photos, check where an image came from or learn about a landmark, and never to locate a private person without their consent.

Protect the location of your own photos

Everything above works against your photos too. If someone gets the original file, the GPS data shows where you were, and a clear background can show the rest.

1. Remove the metadata before you share an original file. Open WipePic, add your photos and select Remove Metadata. It removes the GPS location, the device details and the date. The pixels do not change.
2. Turn off location for the camera in your phone settings, so new photos do not store it. See the guides for iPhone and Android.
3. Look at the background before you post. Signs, house numbers and a view from your window can give the place away, and removing metadata does not change them.

Some platforms remove metadata when you upload. Read Do Social Media Sites Remove Photo Metadata? before you rely on that, because email and cloud links often keep it.

Sources

Google: Search with an image on Google. Microsoft: Using Bing Visual Search. TinEye: How TinEye works. Google and Microsoft pages read on November 8, 2026.