Google’s Reverse Image Search is one of the best ways to discover the source for an image. It can be an online profile of someone you are trying to contact or the origin of a meme you love.
When you learn how to do a reverse image search, it will open up an alternative to the keyword search we use as a habit. You can use it at work to find related presentation templates or just better resolution versions of images. A Google reverse image search is a powerful tactic these days to combat fake news.
How to Reverse Image Search (Desktop)
There are three ways to do a Google reverse image search on a desktop. First, open Google Images in your favorite browser. In our example, we are using Chrome on Windows 10.
- Click the camera icon, then select Upload an image.
- Drag-and-drop an image from the web or your computer on the Google Image search page.
- Right-click an image and select Copy image address from the context menu to copy the URL. On the Google Image Search page, click the camera icon, paste the image URL in the labeled box, and Select Search by image.
How to Reverse Image Search (Mobile)
You don’t need an app always to do a reverse image search from an iPhone or an Android.
Use the Chrome Browser
The process is a bit different on the smartphone or a tablet because we rely on screen taps. But it’s just as simple. Try it with the Chrome browser for Android and iOS. The screenshots below are from an iPhone.
- Go to any webpage and tap on the photo, and open it in full-screen view.
- Press and hold your finger on the screen and choose Search Google for this image from the menu.
- Google displays the results with the pages where it has found the image.
Note: This reverse search feature works only on the Chrome browser on iOS and Android. It does not work on any other browser or even on the Google app.
Use the Desktop Site for the Reverse Image Search
The Google Image Search page on a mobile browser does not show the camera icon as in the desktop version. To use that method, you’ll need to switch to the desktop version on your mobile device.
- To switch to the site’s desktop version, tap on the menu button (three dots on the bottom right). Next, scroll down the menu and select Request Desktop Site. On the desktop version of the page, tap the camera icon in the search bar.
- Use the interface like the desktop version of Google Image Search. Then, do a reverse search by uploading a photo from the photo gallery on your iPhone or Android.
- You can also take a photo with the camera or browse the Files app (and any connected cloud storage site) and upload it directly for identification.
Use Google Lens for a Reverse Image Search
You can use Google Lens for many interesting searches. A reverse image search for pictures is one of them. Google Lens has a dedicated app for Android, but it’s also a feature on the Google app, Google Photos, and Google Assistant on iOS and Android.
- Open the Google app.
- Tap on the Google Lens icon next to the search bar.
- Point your camera towards a real-world object and tap on Search.
- Alternatively, tap on the Photo picker and choose a saved photo from the gallery.
- A window slides up from the bottom with all the search results.
Note: Google Lens allows you to select smaller parts of an image and do an image search. You can select an object in the picture or draw a selection box around any part of the image to start the search.
Download: Google Lens for Android (Free)
Use Other Methods to Reverse Image Search Too
Did you know that Bing also has a method to reverse search with any picture? Bing calls it Visual Search, and it works just like Google Lens on any browser. Just go to the Bing Search page and select the Camera icon. So, you have more than one choice to search for unknown images on your mobile, and these give you another way to search the web.
