Overlay One Image on Top of Another
How do you put a logo or second image on top of a photo?
Place a logo, watermark or second image over a base photo. Adjust the layer’s position, scale, opacity, rotation and blend mode in the preview. Transparent PNG or WebP overlays are useful when the shape should appear without a rectangular background. Check the final size and contrast before export; the downloaded result combines the layers into one image.
Cost: Free to use. File size and usage limits apply.
How to overlay one image on another
Upload both images
Click Upload a background image first above the tool and select both files at once, or drop them onto the tool. Each file can be up to 200 MB. When you add two files together, the first becomes the background and the second the overlay.
Check Background and Overlay
Under Choose images, the Background dropdown sets the image underneath and Overlay sets the one on top. Both lists include earlier uploads and results from other image tools, so the slots may already be filled when you arrive. Clicking an image under Files makes it the background.
Place the overlay
Pick a corner, an edge or the centre in the 3 × 3 Anchor grid. Then drag the overlay in the preview, or use Offset X and Offset Y for exact placement.
Set size and look
Adjust Scale, Opacity, Rotation and Blend mode. The preview follows every change.
Apply, compare, download
Click Apply Overlay!; it becomes active once both images are set. Drag the slider across the preview to compare the result with the original, then click Download. To change something, click Clear result: your images and settings stay as they are.
What each setting does
Sizes and offsets are measured in pixels of the background image, not in pixels of the preview on your screen.
- Background and Overlay
- The result keeps the background's width, height and file format. Any part of the overlay that extends past the background's edges is cut off.
- Anchor
- Centre by default. The anchor lines up matching edges: top left puts the overlay's top-left corner on the background's top-left corner, bottom right lines up both bottom-right corners. Picking another anchor keeps your offsets, so reset them to 0 px if the overlay moves off the image.
- Offset X and Offset Y
- Move the overlay away from its anchor. The sliders run from -500 to 500 px. Positive X moves it right, positive Y moves it down. Dragging the overlay in the preview sets both values and can go beyond 500 px, which you need on large photos.
- Scale
- Sets the overlay's width as a percentage of the background's width, from 5% to 200%; the default is 45%. The height follows the overlay's own aspect ratio. If the target width is wider than the overlay file itself, the overlay is enlarged and looks soft.
- Opacity
- From 0% (invisible) to 100% (fully opaque), default 100%. The value is multiplied with the overlay's own transparency, so the transparent areas of a PNG logo stay transparent. As a rule of thumb, 30% to 60% keeps a watermark visible without hiding the picture.
- Rotation
- From -180 to 180 degrees, default 0. Positive values turn the overlay clockwise. A turned overlay needs a larger box with transparent corners, and corner or edge anchors line up that box with the background's edges.
- Blend mode
- normal (default) paints the overlay on top. multiply darkens, and white parts of the overlay disappear: useful for a dark logo or a scanned signature on white paper. screen lightens, and black parts disappear: useful for light effects shot on black. overlay raises contrast and suits textures. darken and lighten keep whichever pixel is darker or lighter.
Worked example: a corner logo on a 4000 × 3000 px photo
Your photo is a 4000 × 3000 px JPG and your logo is a transparent PNG of 1200 × 400 px. At the default Scale of 45%, the logo would be 1800 × 600 px and cover a large part of the picture. At 15%, it becomes 600 × 200 px.
Click the bottom-right square of the Anchor grid and set Offset X and Offset Y to -40 px. The logo now spans 3360 to 3960 px horizontally and 2760 to 2960 px vertically, leaving a 40 px margin to the right and bottom edges. At an Opacity of 70% it stays readable without dominating the photo.
If the preview shows the photo 800 px wide, every pixel you drag moves the logo 5 px. Drag for large moves and use the sliders, which step in 1 px, for the final adjustment.
What format and quality you get back
The result has the background's format and pixel size. A JPG background gives a JPG, a PNG gives a PNG, and the same applies to GIF, WebP, AVIF, BMP, TIFF, TGA and ICO. HEIC and HEIF photos are saved as PNG instead; the settings panel shows a note when this applies.
A JPG background is compressed as JPG again at roughly its original quality setting when the overlay is JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, TGA or ICO, which can add further loss. With a WebP, AVIF, HEIC or HEIF overlay, the JPG output is re-encoded at quality 92 out of 100. WebP and AVIF backgrounds are also re-encoded at quality 92. GIF holds at most 256 colours, so soft shadows and gradients in the overlay can show banding. PNG saves the composited pixels losslessly and keeps transparency.
Animated GIF and WebP backgrounds stay animated: the overlay is placed on every frame and the frame timing is kept. A still background produces a still image.
When the background is a JPG, its metadata, such as camera details and a GPS location, can carry over to the result. To remove it before sharing, open the result in Compress Image and keep Strip metadata switched on; the file is already listed there.
Formats and limits
- Input formats
- JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF, BMP, TIFF, TGA, ICO, AVIF, HEIC and HEIF, for both images
- Output format
- Same as the background; HEIC and HEIF backgrounds give PNG
- Output dimensions
- Width and height of the background
- Maximum file size
- 200 MB per file
- Files per job
- 2: one background and one overlay
- Animation
- Animated GIF and WebP backgrounds keep their animation, with the overlay on every frame
- Processing
- On our servers with ImageMagick, not in your browser. No AI or third-party service is involved. A job can run for up to 15 minutes.
- Watermark
- None
- Storage
- Uploads and results are deleted automatically after 48 hours for guests and after 30 days for free accounts. Paid plans can keep files longer.
Frequently asked questions
How do I overlay a logo on a photo?
Use a transparent PNG logo as the Overlay. Choose the bottom-right corner in Anchor, then use negative Offset X and Offset Y values to move it inwards from those edges. Try a Scale of 10% to 20% and an Opacity of 40% to 70%, checking visibility on your photo. For a text watermark, use Add Text to Image.
Why is there a white box around my overlay?
The overlay file has no transparency. JPG cannot store any, and many logos are exported on a solid background. Remove it with Remove Background; the transparent PNG then appears in the Overlay dropdown here. For a dark logo on plain white, the multiply blend mode also makes the white disappear.
Can I overlay an image on a GIF?
Yes. Choose it as the Background, and the result is saved as a GIF again. An animated GIF keeps its animation, with the overlay on every frame. GIF holds at most 256 colours, so photos or overlays with soft gradients can look banded.
Can I layer more than two images?
Yes, one layer per run. Every result is added to your files, so after the first run choose the result as the Background, pick the next image as the Overlay and apply again. With a JPG background, each run compresses the image again, so keep the number of runs low or start from a PNG. To place photos side by side instead of on top of each other, use Collage Maker.
Why is the result larger than my original file?
The whole composition is decoded and saved again. HEIC photos become lossless PNG, which can be larger depending on the image. WebP or AVIF backgrounds are re-encoded at quality 92, which can exceed the source setting. Try Compress Image afterwards and compare the actual output size; a fixed reduction is not guaranteed.