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7 free stock media websites for images, videos & icons
The power of visuals – why you need to use images, videos & icons
Visual content is critical to the success of digital marketing. Videos, images and icons can make our content more compelling, more appealing, easier to understand and more shareable. According to Search Engine Journal, web content that contains visuals gains an average of 94% more views than text-only content. It’s vital, therefore, that your web pages, blog posts, marketing emails and social media posts use images and videos.
The case for stock media
Using your own photos and video is great and it's essential when sharing visuals of your products, premises and staff. However, if you’re regularly creating content, you will likely need to supplement this with additional images and video. These visuals can add interest and appeal to your content and if you only limit yourself to media you can generate yourself, you’ll probably run out of usable content pretty quickly! That’s where stock imagery can help.
Stock imagery websites contain vast libraries of searchable photos, illustrations, videos and icons. You’ll need to check license types for the provider or media item you want to use, but it’s easy to find plenty of great content that can be used, even for commercial use.
Free stock media sites
If you're looking for high-quality free stock media then check out the following websites. Some have entirely free media libraries, whilst some offer a combination of free and paid-for content, but all have extensive free resources. Here are some of our favourites and why we love them!
1. Unsplash
Website: Unsplash.com
Media type: Images / photos
Why we love it: Our top pick for high-quality, beautiful photographs.
Unsplash features high-quality photographs with clear licensing information and easy downloads. The search, category and related images functions work well to help you navigate between images. If you sign up (for free) you can like and curate images into collections.
2. Pixabay
Website: Pixabay.com
Media type: Images / photos / illustrations / vectors / videos / music
Why we love it: A great resource for illustrations and vectors.
Pixabay has a wide choice of media available and simple licensing information. To download larger image sizes you’ll need to sign up (for free).
3. Pexels
Website: Pexels.com
Media type: Images / photos / videos
Why we love it: Simple, clean navigation and high-quality imagery.
A vast library of photos and videos that’s easy to navigate and search. If you sign up (for free) you can like and curate images into collections as well as keep track of your download history.
4. freepik
Website: freepik.com
Media type: Images / photos / illustrations / vectors / templates / fonts / mockups / background / text effects
Why we love it: The search function is excellent and has additional filters for colour, orientation, style etc.
Freepik has one of the most diverse stock media libraries with many different media types available, including fonts. Whilst there is a huge free library, some media is only purchasable via a monthly plan.
5. Iconfinder
Website: Iconfinder.com
Media type: Icons / illustrations / 3D illustrations
Why we love it: A huge library of icons and the ability to search by license. A great resource for 3D illustrations too!
Iconfinder offers free and paid-for media on a range of license types. However, the advanced search function makes it easy to search for free media.
6. Vecteezy
Website: Vecteezy.com
Media type: Images / photos / illustrations / vectors / videos
Why we love it: High-quality media and advanced filter options, including the ability to specify the number of people, age of models, style, orientation and more.
Vecteezy has some particularly strong search and filter features, including the ability to filter using a colour wheel or by hex colour code. A mix of free and paid media, but free media is clearly labelled.
7. Canva
Website: Canva.com
Media type: Images / photos / illustrations / vectors / videos / fonts / templates / mockups
Why we love it: It’s easy to combine different media types into designs using Canva’s templates and media library.
Canva is a little different to the other resources as it’s a graphic design platform and the media libraries are provided for use within Canva. However, for anyone creating content you’ll find Canva a really useful tool for easily creating eye-catching visuals from social media posts to presentations, flyers, posters and more.
Paid-for stock media sites
If you can't find what you're looking for on a free stock media site there are several websites where you can purchase stock media, including Shutterstock, Bigstock and iStock. Most offer a choice of purchasing individual media or monthly subscription plans
Using media in your web design & digital marketing
Stock media can enhance your digital marketing output and add to your website's design. However, sometimes we all need some additional help. Our Exeter web design team can go the extra mile in creating appealing web layouts that your customers will love. To find out more about our web design packages and how we could give your website a refresh,
contact us in Exeter today.
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We’re a website design and digital marketing agency based in Exeter. We help businesses grow online and have over 20 years of experience in Web Design. We offer several inbound strategies, including paid search and SEO. In addition, our content team can help with copywriting and email campaigns.