Stock photos are a great way to add visual appeal to any project. Finding the right stock photos can be tricky. These photos are used for a variety of purposes, including websites, brochures, presentations, and more. Fortunately, there are plenty of free and paid stock photo sites available online that offer high-quality images. In this blog, we will browse the best free and paid stock photo sites.
Unsplash (free & paid)
Pricing: Free, Paid ($84 per year or $12 per month)
When I first started out as a designer, Unsplash was and still is without a doubt a go-to site for stock photos. As someone just starting a business, I was on a tight budget and needed quality images. Unsplash delivered!
As of recently, Unsplash has now added a paid version called Unsplash+. Unsplash+ is a members-only exclusive content community. Members receive fresh new content monthly, royalty-free downloads, and enhanced legal protection (ya know, so you don’t get sued or anything).
Whether you choose the free plan or the paid plan, you’re bound to find the photos that match the vibes you need.
Moyo Studio (paid)
Pricing: Mockups & Bundles start at $12
Moyo Studio is the perfect mockup design toolkit for creatives. I particularly love how enhanced my web & brand design assets look after using these mockup kits, and clients are also huge fans of the presentation! Moyo created these mockups with designers and creatives in mind, and no doubt it is worth checking out if you are ready to elevate your look.
Moyo Studio offers 4 FREE Photoshop mockups when you sign up for their mailing list.
Death To Stock (paid)
Pricing: Brands ($144 per year OR $15 per month), Freelancers & Agencies ($396 per year or $49 per month), Enterprise (Custom pricing)
Death To Stock is a membership that provides authentic stock photos and videos; with unlimited downloads and a do-what-you-wanna license (literally). With creatives producing fresh images every single month, you’re guaranteed to avoid the typical, overused stock photos and videos.
To get a taste of what Death To Stock has to offer, sign up on their mailing list to get free samples sent directly to your inbox.
Pexels is a completely free stock photo website, however, that’s not all they offer! They have a plethora of professional stock videos to accompany and help you elevate your content creation process. As we all know, video is more powerful than ever now.
As a Black, woman of color, one thing I take into account when sourcing photos for myself or clients is finding photos that are diverse. Furthermore, representation will always matter. Finding stock photography of black and brown folx isn’t an easy task but Nappy makes it less of a challenge!
As Nappy states in their mission letter, “let’s tackle diversity and representation one photo at a time”.
Add these stock photo sites to your bookmarks and start creating better, quality content today…
Now that you have the best free and paid stock photo sites, creating content might be even easier! Keep in mind that stock photos are perfect when starting out, but I recommend investing in brand photography at some point in your business journey.
Have fun creating!