An ExifTool alternative with no command line, and no upload either

ExifTool is the standard for reading and writing the metadata inside a file, and it is private: it runs on your own computer. It is also a command-line program, which is a hurdle on a locked-down work laptop, on a phone, or for anybody who has never opened a terminal. The usual way round that is a website that removes EXIF data, which means handing it the photo. Here is a third way: the common jobs, in a browser tab, with nothing uploaded.

EXIF reads the metadata in a photo (the GPS position, the time, the camera and its serial number, the editing software) and shows it, free. CLOAK shows the same and writes a clean copy with all of it gone, and can black out a face or a number plate in the same pass. CLEANROOM does a mixed pile of files at once, AVSCRUB does video and audio, and SCRUB does Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF. All of them run in the browser tab with nothing uploaded. Reading is free; saving a cleaned file is part of OBSCURA Pro. They do not write or edit individual tags, and CLOAK saves a newly encoded picture rather than leaving the image data untouched, which ExifTool can do.

What ExifTool is, and why people look for something else

ExifTool, written by Phil Harvey, is free, open source, and reads and writes metadata in a very wide range of image, video, audio and document formats. It is what forensic examiners, archivists and photographers reach for, and many other programs use it underneath. Because it runs on your own machine, nothing is sent anywhere. If you are comfortable with a terminal, it is excellent, and this page does not suggest replacing it.

The reasons people search for an alternative are practical. It has to be installed, which a managed work computer may not allow. It is driven by typed commands, and one mistyped option can rewrite a folder of originals. It does not run on a phone, which is where most photos are taken and shared from. So people end up at a website that promises to remove EXIF data, and many of those do it by uploading the photo and sending back a cleaned copy: the exact file, with its GPS position, that the person was trying to protect.

What happens here instead

A browser can read the bytes of a file you choose without sending them anywhere. EXIF and CLOAK walk the JPEG segments or PNG chunks in the tab's memory and list what they find: EXIF, XMP and IPTC, the three standards a photo can carry (what each one is), and the small preview picture EXIF keeps, which can still show what a crop took out. CLOAK then draws the pixels onto a fresh canvas and saves that, which is why nothing from the old file comes along. It works with the network switched off once the page has loaded, and on a phone.

ExifTool commands, and what does the same here

ExifTool	Here	Cost	Notes
`exiftool photo.jpg`	EXIF	Free	Every field in a JPEG or PNG, with the location shown plainly
`exiftool -all= photo.jpg`	CLOAK	Pro to save	EXIF, GPS, XMP, IPTC, maker notes and the thumbnail all go
`exiftool -b -ThumbnailImage photo.jpg`	CLOAK	Free	The embedded preview is shown on the page when there is one
`exiftool -r -all= folder`	CLEANROOM	Pro to save	Many files at once, images and documents mixed, with a list of what came out
Metadata in a video or recording	AVSCRUB	Pro to save	MP4, MOV, M4A, MP3, WAV, FLAC and Ogg, including timed location tracks; the file still plays
Metadata in Word, Excel, PowerPoint or PDF	SCRUB	Pro to save	Author, company, template, comments, tracked-change text
Black out part of the picture	CLOAK	Pro to save	Burned into the pixels, not laid over them
`exiftool -gps:all= photo.jpg`	Not here		CLOAK takes everything; it does not keep some fields and drop others
`exiftool -Artist="Name" photo.jpg`	Not here		Nothing here writes or edits a tag
Strip without re-encoding the picture	Not here		CLOAK saves a new JPEG at high quality, or a PNG
Read HEIC, WebP, AVIF or TIFF metadata	Not here		EXIF says so rather than guessing
Scripts, and other programs calling it	Not here

What is not here

Writing metadata. ExifTool can set a copyright line, correct a date or copy tags from one file to another. Nothing here writes a tag; these tools read and remove.
Choosing which fields go. CLOAK removes everything. If you want to keep the date and drop the location, ExifTool does that and CLOAK does not.
Leaving the image data untouched. ExifTool can strip a JPEG's metadata and leave the compressed picture exactly as it was. CLOAK redraws the picture and saves a new file, a JPEG at high quality or a PNG, so it is not bit-for-bit the same picture. For posting or sending, nobody will see a difference; for an original you must preserve, keep the original.
Every format. EXIF and CLOAK read JPEG and PNG. HEIC, WebP, AVIF and TIFF keep their metadata in containers these tools do not read, and they say so.
Automation. No command line, no scripting, no batch rules beyond what CLEANROOM does in one pass.

If any of those is your job, ExifTool is the right tool. If the job is making sure the photo you are about to post does not carry your address, it is here, without an install or an upload.

What is free, and what is Pro

Reading what a photo carries is free, in EXIF and in CLOAK, with no account. So is looking inside a video, a recording or an Office file with AVSCRUB and SCRUB. Saving the cleaned copy is part of Pro. OBSCURA Pro is $144 a year, which is $12 a month, or $15 month to month, with 7 days free first; a day pass is $5 and a week pass $9. For a team it is $69 a month or $690 a year for up to 25 people, with 14 days free.

Check a photo you are about to send. Open EXIF and choose a picture from your phone or your computer to see what it says about where it was taken. If it says too much, CLOAK writes a copy that says nothing.

Questions people ask about An ExifTool alternative with no command line, and no upload either

Is there an ExifTool alternative that does not need the command line?

Yes, for the common jobs. EXIF on this site reads the metadata in a JPEG or PNG and shows it, and CLOAK removes all of it and saves a clean copy. Both are web pages, so there is nothing to install and nothing to type, and both run in the tab without uploading the photo.

Do online EXIF removers upload my photo?

Many do: the photo is sent to their server, the metadata is taken out there, and a copy is sent back. Some run in the browser instead. The test is the same for any of them: load the page, switch the network off, and try it. A tool that still works did not need to send your photo anywhere.

Is it free?

Reading the metadata is free, with no account. Saving a cleaned copy is part of OBSCURA Pro, which is $144 a year ($12 a month) or $15 month to month, with 7 days free first; a day pass is $5 and a week pass $9. ExifTool itself is free, and if you are happy with the command line it remains a good choice.

Does CLOAK change the picture?

It saves a new copy of it. The pixels are drawn onto a fresh canvas and encoded again, as a high-quality JPEG for a JPEG and as a PNG otherwise, which is how every piece of metadata is left behind. You will not see a difference, but the file is not bit-for-bit the original, so keep the original if it matters.

Can it remove the location but keep the date?

No. CLOAK removes all the metadata in one go. Keeping some fields and removing others is something ExifTool does, with a command such as exiftool -gps:all= photo.jpg.