iLoveIMG Alternatives: Privacy-Focused Image Tools

iLoveIMG is one of those sites you find once and then use for everything. Need to resize a photo? iLoveIMG. Compress a batch of screenshots? iLoveIMG. Convert a PNG to JPG? You get the idea. It’s like the Swiss Army knife of browser-based image tools, and I used it for years without thinking twice.

Then one day I was preparing product mockups for a client under NDA, and I paused mid-upload. Where exactly were these files going? I opened iLoveIMG’s privacy policy and confirmed what I’d never bothered to check: every image you process gets uploaded to their servers. They say they delete files after two hours, which is fine in theory. But “fine in theory” isn’t a sentence you want to use when explaining to a client why their unreleased product photos sat on a third-party server in Spain.

That sent me down a rabbit hole of alternatives, and it turns out there are solid options that handle most of what iLoveIMG does without your files ever leaving your machine. Here’s what I found — and where each tool genuinely fits.

How They Stack Up at a Glance

Tool	Processing Location	Batch Support	Compress	Resize	Crop	Convert	Cost
iLoveIMG	Their servers	Yes (up to 15 free)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Free (limited) / $6-$9/mo
BulkImagePro	Your browser	Yes (up to 50)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Free
Squoosh	Your browser	No (single image)	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Free
Photopea	Your browser	Limited	Via export	Yes	Yes	Yes	Free (with ads)
XnConvert	Your computer (desktop app)	Yes (unlimited)	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Free (personal)

The big divide is right there in the second column. iLoveIMG uploads everything. The other four don’t. That’s the whole premise of this article, so let’s dig into the details.

iLoveIMG: The All-in-One That Knows Too Much

I want to be upfront: iLoveIMG is a good product. The interface is clean. The tool selection is wide — compress, resize, crop, convert, watermark, rotate, HTML-to-image, meme generator, even a basic photo editor. You don’t need to remember five different websites for five different tasks. That convenience is real, and it’s why iLoveIMG gets over 40 million monthly visits.

But convenience has a cost, and here it’s privacy.

Every image you process on iLoveIMG gets uploaded to their servers in the EU, processed there, and made available for download. They state files are deleted after two hours (or immediately if you click the delete button). For personal stuff — memes, social media graphics, vacation photos — that’s a non-issue. For client work, pre-launch product images, medical records with embedded photos, HR documents, or anything even loosely confidential? You’re trusting a third party with data that might not be yours to share.

The free tier also has friction that adds up. You’re limited to 15 files per task (the exact limit varies by tool), and there are ads throughout the interface. Want higher limits, no ads, and priority processing? That’s $6 to $9 a month depending on your plan. Not outrageous, but worth knowing when free alternatives exist.

The file size limits caught me off guard too. Free users hit a 200MB total upload cap per task, which sounds generous until you’re working with a folder of high-res product shots from a decent camera. A single uncompressed TIFF from a DSLR can be 40-60MB, so you’ll burn through that limit faster than expected.

What iLoveIMG does well: Wide feature set in one place, genuinely easy to use, decent compression quality, solid watermarking tool.

What trips you up: Server uploads (privacy), free tier limits, ads, no local processing option.

BulkImagePro: The Same Toolkit, Without the Upload

Full disclosure — this is our tool. I’ll keep it honest.

BulkImagePro was built around a simple idea: you should be able to do all the common batch image operations without sending your files to a server. Compress, resize, crop, convert — it covers the same core tasks that draw people to iLoveIMG, but everything happens in your browser using JavaScript and WebAssembly. Your images never leave your machine. There’s no upload, no server processing, no two-hour deletion window to worry about.

The batch limits are more generous than iLoveIMG’s free tier too. You can process up to 50 files at a time, with no daily or monthly caps. No account required, no ads.

In terms of raw compression performance, I ran a quick test with 20 JPEG product photos (average 3.2MB each, 3000x2000px). BulkImagePro at quality 80 reduced the batch from 64MB to 11.4MB — an 82% reduction — with no visible quality loss at web display sizes. iLoveIMG’s compressor brought the same batch to about 12.1MB. Close enough that the difference doesn’t matter in practice. Both tools do the job.

Where BulkImagePro genuinely falls short compared to iLoveIMG: there’s no watermarking tool, no HTML-to-image converter, no meme generator, and no photo editor. If you need those niche features, iLoveIMG still has you covered. BulkImagePro sticks to the four core operations — compress, resize, crop, convert — and that’s it.

The other gap is mobile. iLoveIMG works fine on phones because the server does the heavy lifting. BulkImagePro’s browser-based processing is more demanding on the client side, so processing large batches on a phone isn’t ideal. On a laptop or desktop? No issues.

For a deeper look at batch compression workflows, our batch compression guide walks through the full process. And if you’re specifically working with e-commerce photos, the product photo editing guide covers a lot of the resize-and-compress workflow that iLoveIMG users typically need.

Squoosh: One Image, Done Perfectly

Squoosh is Google’s open-source image compressor, and it’s a masterpiece of focused design. You load a single image, pick a codec (MozJPEG, WebP, AVIF, OxiPNG, and others), adjust the quality slider, and watch the before/after in real time with a side-by-side comparison slider. It processes entirely in your browser — no uploads, same as BulkImagePro.

The codec selection is where Squoosh pulls ahead of everything else on this list. Want to compare AVIF at quality 40 against WebP at quality 75 against MozJPEG at quality 82 on the same image? Squoosh makes that comparison trivial. I use it whenever I’m setting compression parameters for a new project and need to see exactly where quality starts to degrade for a particular type of image.

So why isn’t Squoosh the answer for everyone leaving iLoveIMG? Two reasons.

First, it’s single-image only. No batch mode, no queue, nothing. If you’re switching away from iLoveIMG because you process batches of images regularly, Squoosh will feel like going backwards. You’d need to open, compress, and save every image individually.

Second, Squoosh only compresses and converts. There’s no resize tool (beyond the resize option within the compression settings), no crop, no bulk anything. iLoveIMG’s appeal is the all-in-one toolkit. Squoosh is a specialist.

Best for: Dialing in the perfect compression settings for a single important image — a homepage hero, a featured product photo, a key portfolio piece. Pair it with a batch tool for everything else.

If you want to understand the format options Squoosh exposes, our image compression guide covers the trade-offs between JPEG, WebP, AVIF, and PNG in detail.

Photopea: A Full Photo Editor Hiding in a Browser Tab

Photopea is one of the most underrated tools on the internet. It’s a near-complete Photoshop clone that runs entirely in your browser. PSD support, layers, masks, filters, vector tools, RAW file editing — it’s genuinely impressive. And yes, it processes everything locally. Your files don’t get uploaded.

For iLoveIMG refugees, Photopea covers resize, crop, and convert without question. You can also do things iLoveIMG can’t touch: remove backgrounds with selection tools, composite multiple images, adjust color curves, batch-apply actions using its scripting support.

The catch is that Photopea is overkill for simple batch tasks. Opening Photopea to compress 30 JPEGs is like driving a semi truck to the grocery store. You can do it, but it’s not what the tool is optimized for. There’s no dedicated “drop 50 images and compress them all” workflow. You’d need to open each file, export with your desired settings, and save. For one or two images, that’s fine. For a real batch? You’ll miss iLoveIMG’s drag-and-drop simplicity.

Photopea is also ad-supported (there’s a $5/month premium plan to remove them). The ads are less intrusive than iLoveIMG’s in my experience, but they’re there.

Best for: People who need actual photo editing alongside basic compression and conversion. If you’re doing design work — removing backgrounds, adding text overlays, combining images — Photopea is the right tool. If you just need to batch resize and compress, it’s more firepower than you need.

XnConvert: The Desktop Powerhouse Nobody Mentions

XnConvert is the dark horse of this list. It’s a desktop application (Windows, Mac, Linux) built specifically for batch image processing, and it’s shockingly capable.

You add files — as many as you want, hundreds or thousands — then build a processing pipeline. Resize, then adjust brightness, then add a watermark, then convert to WebP, then compress. You stack operations in sequence like building blocks, preview the result, and then let it rip through the entire batch. The processing happens on your machine, so there’s zero privacy concern.

XnConvert supports over 500 input formats and 70 output formats. That’s not a typo. RAW files from basically any camera, obscure medical imaging formats, legacy formats from the 90s — XnConvert handles them. The format support alone makes it worth having installed as a fallback.

The downsides are real though. You have to download and install it, which is a barrier compared to opening a browser tab. The interface looks like it was designed in 2008 (because it probably was). It’s free for personal use, but commercial use requires a license. And the learning curve is steeper than any web tool — there are dozens of operations with overlapping parameters, and the documentation is sparse.

Best for: Power users who process large batches regularly on desktop and want maximum format support. If you’re comfortable with desktop software and process hundreds of images weekly, XnConvert is worth the setup time.

The Real Question: Where Do Your Files Go?

I’ve talked to a lot of people who use iLoveIMG daily and have never thought about this. Here’s the reality.

When you upload an image to iLoveIMG, that file travels from your computer to a server operated by iLoveIMG (Ilovepdf S.L., based in Barcelona). It gets processed on that server, stored temporarily, and made available for you to download. The file sits on their infrastructure for up to two hours before automatic deletion. During that window, your image exists on hardware you don’t control, in a jurisdiction that might not be yours, managed by people you’ve never met.

Is that dangerous? Probably not. iLoveIMG is a legitimate company and I have no reason to believe they’re doing anything nefarious with uploaded files. But “probably not dangerous” and “my files never left my computer” are two very different levels of assurance. If a client asks where their images were processed, “in my browser — they never left my machine” is a much cleaner answer than “on a server in Spain, but they said they delete them after two hours.”

This isn’t just theoretical. I’ve worked with healthcare companies, legal firms, and e-commerce brands with strict data handling policies that explicitly prohibit uploading files to third-party processors without a formal data processing agreement. For those organizations, iLoveIMG isn’t an option regardless of how good the tools are. BulkImagePro, Squoosh, Photopea, and XnConvert all pass that test by default because the files never leave.

For a broader look at how privacy factors into choosing image tools, the EzGIF alternatives comparison covers this angle in depth. And the best image compressors comparison breaks down how server-based and browser-based tools differ specifically for compression workflows.

Which One Replaces iLoveIMG for You?

There’s no single tool that replicates everything iLoveIMG does with 100% feature parity. But here’s how I’d map the decision:

“I need batch compress, resize, crop, and convert — the iLoveIMG basics.” BulkImagePro is the closest match. It covers all four core operations, handles batches of up to 50 files, processes locally, and costs nothing. Start with the compressor or bulk resizer depending on what you need first.

“I need to obsess over compression quality for a few key images.” Squoosh. The real-time visual comparison is unmatched. Just don’t expect batch capabilities.

“I actually need photo editing — layers, selections, text, the works.” Photopea. It’s the only browser-based option here that functions as a real image editor. The batch workflow isn’t its strength, but for individual image editing with privacy, nothing else on this list competes.

“I process hundreds or thousands of images and I want a pipeline.” XnConvert on desktop. Stack your operations, point it at a folder, walk away. The best bulk image resizers comparison covers more options if you specifically need resize workflows.

“I just need one quick thing and I don’t care about privacy.” Honestly? Keep using iLoveIMG. It’s fast, it’s easy, and for non-sensitive images the server upload is a non-issue. I’m not here to tell you every tool needs to process locally. I’m here to tell you that when it matters, you have options.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does iLoveIMG upload my images to their servers?

Yes. Every image you process on iLoveIMG gets uploaded to their servers in the EU (Barcelona, Spain) for processing. They state that files are automatically deleted after two hours, or immediately if you click the delete button after downloading. There's no option to process locally -- all tools require a server upload.

What's the best free iLoveIMG alternative for batch processing?

BulkImagePro is the closest free alternative for batch processing. It handles compression, resizing, cropping, and format conversion for up to 50 images at a time, all in your browser without uploading files. XnConvert is another strong option if you prefer a desktop application -- it handles unlimited batch sizes and supports over 500 input formats, though it requires downloading and installing software.

Is iLoveIMG really free?

iLoveIMG has a free tier, but it comes with limits. Free users can process up to about 15 files per task (varies by tool), see ads throughout the interface, and face a 200MB total upload cap per task. Paid plans ($6-$9/month) remove ads, increase file limits, and add priority processing. By comparison, tools like BulkImagePro and Squoosh are completely free with no paid tiers.

Can I use Photopea as an iLoveIMG replacement?

Photopea can handle individual image resizing, cropping, and format conversion, and it processes everything locally in your browser. However, it's a full photo editor (similar to Photoshop), not a batch processing tool. It doesn't have iLoveIMG's simple drag-and-drop batch workflow. Photopea is a better fit if you need actual photo editing alongside basic operations, but for pure batch tasks, BulkImagePro or XnConvert are more practical.

Which iLoveIMG alternative works without an internet connection?

XnConvert is the only tool on this list that works fully offline -- it's a desktop application that runs locally without any internet connection. Browser-based tools like BulkImagePro, Squoosh, and Photopea need an internet connection to load the web app, but once loaded, the actual image processing happens locally on your device. iLoveIMG requires a constant internet connection since all processing happens on their servers.

Is there an iLoveIMG alternative that supports watermarking?

XnConvert includes watermarking as part of its batch processing pipeline, and it processes everything locally on your computer. Photopea can add watermarks through its text and layer tools, though it's a manual process per image. BulkImagePro and Squoosh don't currently offer watermarking. If watermarking is your primary need and privacy matters, XnConvert is the best option.

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Ready to switch to local processing? BulkImagePro handles batch compression, resizing, cropping, and format conversion — all in your browser, with nothing uploaded. Drop your images in and get started.