Do you know that there are actually free high quality media resources that you can use for personal and commercial purposes? Plenty of exceptional material exists online, but more often than not, they come with restrictions. In the corporate world, this can be troubling. You wouldn’t want to get sued for using a simple picture you took from the Internet!
Luckily, there are still websites that offer completely free media resources. While they are still under different licenses, many can be used for commercial purposes, with some not requiring attribution at all. Here are the 12 of the best free photos, videos, fonts and vector graphics websites.
Fonts:
You might not be aware of this, but fonts have copyright too. You can read about this in our article describing common legal pitfalls. Thankfully, there are several outstanding websites that offer free-to-use fonts. You will still be able to find quality fonts that suit your needs.
Font Squirrel
Font Squirrel is often the top choice for professional designers, and for good reason too. The site is 100% free for commercial use, which means that you can use the fonts for monetary purposes. For example, you will be able to use their fonts for your projects.
Furthermore, the fonts are high quality and completely free. Some of the fonts there contain paid versions. But these versions do not appear on Font Squirrel – they are found on the creator’s websites instead. This website also specify clearly the legal boundaries of fonts, with easy to read symbols that explain where the fonts can be used. Ultimately, Font Squirrel is the go-to website for trustworthy, commercial-free fonts.
DaFont
DaFont is one of the largest font databases online, with more than 30,000 fonts that are free to download. Compared to Font Squirrel, there are lot more fonts to choose from. Yet, many fonts are for personal use only – not for monetary or commercial purposes – so do look out for the type of permission granted. Nevertheless, DaFont has made it really simple with a line at the side that indicates where fonts can be used.
The fonts are divided into diverse categories, ranging from techno to gothic. You can even refine your search with further subcategories. With a simple click on the “Download” button, you can get the font you want easily.
FontSpace
FontSpace stands out from the rest of the competition with its unique way of previewing fonts. The website provides an option to type in any custom text with the font you are looking at. Moreover, you can even change the size of the fonts by adjusting the positions of the sliders. These are unique features that we enjoy, since you can realistically preview the font without having to download or install it first.
Photos:
A good photo can do wonders, especially at high resolutions. However, legal restrictions can be tricky in today’s age of popular photo-sharing platforms. Visit only trustworthy stock photo websites to stay clear of any possible legal trouble.
Pexels
Pexels is like Google for free high quality stock photos. They gather images from multiple free legal sources (such as Unsplash and Gratisography) around the Internet, and present them based on relevancy and quality. In short, Pexels is useful for a quick comprehensive search of a free image.
Downloading is fast and simple as well. One of the features we love is that you can specify the exact dimensions (in pixels) of the photo, saving both time and effort.
StockSnap.io
Beyond a unique website address, StockSnap.io offers one of the most intuitive user interfaces when it comes to searching for free quality stock photos. You can easily sort the photos according to the number of downloads, views, date and even how “trendy” they are. Finding the right photo is a breeze.
StockSnap.io also has a dedicated team of photographers who constantly updates the website with original photos. StockSnap.io will curate these photos and select the best ones. In fact, you can sign up for their free weekly newsletter and they will send these photos to you.
Pixabay
With more than a million photos, Pixabay is easily one of the largest free stock photo libraries. Best of all, the photos are under the Creative Commons 0 (CC0) license, which essentially means “no rights reserved.” Since all copyright rights are waived, anyone can copy, modify and distribute the photo in any way without needing attribution or permission.
Pixabay informs you about the exact statistics about each photo too. Each photo carries a small section that shows the number of likes, comments and favourites. This is an effective way to tell if a photo is popular enough. Usually, popular photos work well and they might be what you are looking for.
Videos:
Free video files are not as easy to find compared to the other forms of media. Because they are so difficult to make, creators are often reluctant to waive copyright on videos. But don’t worry, as there are still websites that provide high quality videos for free.
Videvo
Videvo is one of the largest sources of stock videos, hosting over 4000 unique video clips. These clips include High Definition (HD) videos or motion graphics that fit well for web designs.
All of the videos are 100% free – regardless of length or type. You can easily trim the videos to your desired length for no cost at all. Most of the videos are under their own Videvo license. Similar to the CC0 license – no attribution required – and you can use the videos for commercial use. The only catch is that you cannot make the same video clip available for download elsewhere. As it is unusual to let strangers have a copy of your own video (especially corporate videos), this should not be much of an issue.
FootageCrate
FootageCrate specialises in free video effects, making it one of the most unique and helpful websites. You can get a wide array of special effects, ranging from explosions to animated transitions. They come at no cost and you can add it to your videos to create more awe-inspiring impressions.
Don’t know how to incorporate these special effects? FootageCrate has you covered too. They include free, easy to understand online tutorials in their websites so you can learn and apply these effects quickly.
Mazwai
Mazwai offers some of the most beautiful, high definition (HD) videos found online that serve as excellent backgrounds. Many of them are landscape based, featuring glorious shots of nature or the sights and sounds of the bustling city. As long you credit the original creator, you can use the videos however you like.
These videos originate from a strong network of contributors, so you can get a variety of choices. There is a limited number of videos available, but they represent the best of each creator. Hence, you can be rest assured you get the top-notch videos – most of them even provide soundtracks!
Vectors:
Vector files are the basis of digital graphics. You can find them everywhere, including banners, posters and icons. You will definitely need one if you are publishing artwork (Both online and offline).
Freepik
With more than a million vector files available for download, Freepik brands itself as the leading search engine for free vectors. From logo, infographics to even name card designs, you can find that here.
With a simple layout and easy to navigate buttons, you will be able to find what you want easily. They have a special algorithm that sources the web for free graphics, which then ranks the graphics based on quality, relevance and rating. This ensures that you will get the best possible content.
1001Freedownloads
Despite its lengthy name, 1001Freedownloads offers no nonsense, fuss-free way to search for vector graphics. The site is neatly organised, with sections dedicated to popular tags and categories. You can also sort them according to popularity and date. If that is not good enough, you can also sort them based on “Editor’s Choice”. This tells you what the professional designers involved in the website would recommend. These features make 1001freedownloads a very efficient website for finding graphics.
Vecteezy
Vecteezy has one of the largest communities of contributors. In fact, some of the most popular artists in the world release free designs on this website. In addition, Vecteezy includes a free online graphic editor software programme. This means that you can make changes to the graphic on the spot without having to download it. You can customise the graphic to suit your needs, providing much more flexibility.
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