How to Make an Image Transparent without Photoshop

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You may think you need Photoshop to remove the background of an image and make it transparent. However, that’s not required. This article shows you how to make an image transparent with apps you are already using.

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How to Make an Entire Image Transparent in Word or PowerPoint

Windows

Sadly, neither Word nor PowerPoint will let you directly adjust the transparency of an image. However, the workaround is to add a shape and fill it with the required picture, then change the transparency of the image as shown below.

  1. Launch Microsoft Word.
  2. Click on the “Insert” tab in the menu and select “Shapes.”
  3. Choose “Rectangle” from the list.

  1. Draw a shape of a similar size to your image.

  1. The shape will be selected, and you will see the “Shape” format tab. If that doesn’t happen, double-click on the image.
  2. Under the “Shape Format” tab, click on “Shape Outline” and choose “No outline.”

  1. Right-click on the picture and choose “Format Shape” from the menu.

  1. The “Format Shape” sidebar will open.
  2. Under the “Fill” tab, choose “Picture or texture fill.”
  3. Select your image.

  1. With the image added inside the shape, use the Transparency slider on the right side under the “Format picture” section to change the transparency.

  1. If you want to use the transparent image outside of Word, right-click on it and select “Copy” from the menu. Paste it in the desired application.

macOS

  1. Open the image in Microsoft Word.
  2. Select the image and click on the “Picture Format” tab at the top.

  1. Click on the “Transparency” option and choose the desired transparency strength from the available previews.

How to Make an Entire Image Transparent in Google Docs and Slides

Google Docs and Slides make it easy to change the transparency of the image as shown below.

  1. Add the image in Google Docs or Slides by going to “Insert → Image.”
  2. Right-click on the image and select “Image options.”

  1. The Image options sidebar will open. Expand the “Adjustments” section and change the level using the “Transparency” slider.

How to Remove the Background from an Image

This section helps you remove white or other colors from the image background, resulting in an image with a transparent background. It can be used to remove the background from logos, product images, and so on.

It’s critical to understand that images with transparent backgrounds are always in the PNG format. Make sure to save the final image in PNG format; otherwise, the background transparency will be lost if you save it in the JPG format. This isn’t necessary if you’re only changing the opacity of the image, as shown in the previous section.

How to Remove the Background from an Image in Paint 3D

  1. Open the image in Paint 3D on your Windows computer.
  2. Click on the “Magic select” tool.

  1. Select the area you want to keep using the selection box. Keep the sides close to the required area and click on the “Next” button.

  1. The Magic Select tool will automatically detect the areas inside the selection. If you find an area missing, click on the “Add” tool under the “Refine your cutout” section in the sidebar. Click on the areas you want to include in the image.

  1. Similarly, use the “Remove” tool to erase any unwanted selection done by the Magic select tool. Once satisfied, click on “Done” in the sidebar.

  1. You will see a selection box appear around the image. Drag the image outside of the existing background to the canvas using the mouse.

  1. Click on the “Select” tool and draw a selection box to select the background of your image.

  1. Press the “Delete” button on your keyboard. The background will turn white.

  1. Go to the “Canvas” tab in the top bar and enable the toggle next to the “Transparent” canvas. The white background will disappear making the background transparent.

  1. Double-click on the actual image present on the canvas to select it, then drag it onto the transparent background.

  1. You must save the image in the PNG format. For that, click on “Menu → Save as → Image.” Make sure to select “PNG (image)” in the “Save as” drop-down box. Verify that the “Transparency” box is checked and click on “Save.”

How to Remove the Background from an Image in Word and PowerPoint

Method 1: Using “Remove Background”

  1. Insert the required image in MS Word.
  2. Double-click on the image to select it. Click on the” Picture Format” tab at the top and press the “Remove Background” option.

  1. The Background remover tool will open. Click on the “Mark Areas to keep” button and the areas to keep in the image. Similarly, mark the areas to remove. Finally, click on “Keep changes.”

Your image with a transparent background will be ready.

Method 2: Using Set Transparent Color

This method is useful for removing a single solid color or making parts of an image transparent.

  1. Add the image in Word using “Insert → Picture.”
  2. Double-click the image to open the “Picture Format” tab. Click on the “Color” option.

  1. Scroll down the list of color options and click on “Set Transparent color.”

  1. Click on the colors you want to remove. The colors will be erased, making the image transparent.

How to Remove the Background from a Photo in Preview on macOS

  1. Open the image in the Preview app on macOS.
  2. Click on the “Markup” (pen) tool at the top. The toolbar will appear. Click on “Instant Alpha.”

  1. Select the portion to be removed by clicking on it and press the “Delete” button. Repeat the process if any unwanted colors are present. You may get a pop-up saying the image will be converted to PNG. Click on “Convert.”

Similarly, you can use the Instant Alpha tool in the Pages app on Mac to remove an unwanted background.

Tip: check out the best photo editors for Mac and Linux.

How to Make Image Transparent Using Online Tools

Whether you are trying to change the transparency of an image or remove the background, online tools will also come in handy. These are free tools that work on all kinds of devices.

Some of the amazing web tools that help in making image background transparent are:

Take the example of remove.bg. Open the website and click on “Upload image.” Add the image with a background you want to remove. The tool will automatically remove the unwanted background.

If the background isn’t removed correctly, click on the “Edit” button on the image preview to modify the selection. Finally, click on “Download” to save the image with a transparent background in the PNG format.

Likewise, online tools like OnlinePNGTools and Lunapic will help to change the opacity of the image: Open OnlinePGTools in a browser. Click on the grey box and add the image. The tool will automatically change the transparency and show the preview of the image in the right sidebar. Scroll down on the screen and set a new value in the “Opacity” field to adjust the transparency to your needs. Click on “Save as” in the box on the right to download the image.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Where can I find transparent images?

If you want to make a widely-used image transparent, you should look for an existing PNG image of it. Check out the best websites that offer images with transparent backgrounds.

2. How do I convert JPG to PNG?

You can use online tools like JPG to PNG, Convertico, and Online-Convert to convert images to PNG. However, please keep in mind that this will only change the image format and will not have any effect on the image transparency.

3. What is the best alternative to Photoshop?

GIMP offers features similar to Photoshop and is comparatively easy to use.

Life Without Photoshop

Similarly, learn how to watermark images without Photoshop. If you’d rather just use Photoshop, read how to make an image transparent in Photoshop.

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Mehvish Mushtaq

Mehvish is a tech lover from Kashmir. With a degree in computer engineering, she’s always been happy to help anyone who finds technology challenging. She’s been writing about technology for over six years, and her favorite topics include how-to guides, explainers, tips and tricks for Android, iOS/iPadOS, Windows, social media, and web apps.

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