How to Blur a Specific Part of an Image (Free, Online)

Sometimes you only want to blur one part of a photo — a face, a licence plate, a house number, or sensitive text in a screenshot. Blurring the whole image defeats the purpose. This guide shows you how to blur just the part you choose, for free, in your browser, painting over the area exactly like an eraser tool.

When you need to blur part of an image

Privacy is the most common reason. Before posting a photo online, you might want to hide a stranger's face, a car number plate, a street address, or a name badge. When sharing screenshots, you often need to blur email addresses, usernames, account numbers, or other personal details. Journalists blur faces to protect sources, and sellers blur their address on photos of documents.

How to blur a specific area step by step

Step 1: Open the selective blur tool. Your image is processed in your browser, so it never gets uploaded anywhere.

Step 2: Upload your photo by dropping it in or clicking to select.

Step 3: Choose your effect — smooth blur, pixelate (mosaic blocks), colour fill, or a solid black bar for redaction.

Step 4: Adjust the brush size, then click and drag over the area you want to hide, just like painting. Use undo if you make a mistake.

Step 5: Download your edited image as a JPG.

Blur vs pixelate vs black bar: which to use?

Smooth blur looks natural and is good for softening backgrounds or faces. Pixelate creates the classic mosaic-block effect you see on TV when hiding identities — it is very effective and clearly intentional. A solid black bar is the strongest option, completely covering the area, and is the standard for redacting documents. Colour fill lets you cover an area with any colour you choose.

Is blurring truly private?

With a browser-based tool, yes. The entire process happens on your own device using the Canvas API. Your photo is never uploaded to a server, so there is no risk of your private images being stored or seen by anyone. This is especially important when the whole point is to protect private information.

Make sure your blur is strong enough

For genuine privacy, use a strong blur or pixelate setting, or a black bar. A very light blur can sometimes be partially reversed by software. When hiding truly sensitive information like a licence plate or a password, use the black bar or a heavy pixelate to be completely safe.