How to remove your ex-boyfriend from a photo

To remove your ex-boyfriend from a photo, upload it to Remove Your Ex and describe him, like “the man in the navy coat”. You don’t brush or outline him: you say who should go, and you download the edit. If he’s small or off to one side, the free eraser on your phone may be enough on its own.

Before

After AI-edited

Describe him

In a couple photo, a few words about him are all you need. Here’s the whole process:

1. Upload the photo. JPEG, PNG, WebP, AVIF, and HEIC all work, up to 20 MB each.
2. Under “Who should disappear?”, describe him in your own words, something like “the man in the navy coat”.
3. Download the edit when it’s ready.

If the first edit isn’t right, the second edit is free. It’s included in the 1 credit the photo costs. If an edit fails, the credit goes back to your account automatically.

If there are other people in the shot, describe him clearly enough that it can’t be someone standing close to him, for example by what he’s wearing and where he’s standing.

When his arm is around you, or you’re holding hands

This is the photo most people want fixed, and it’s also the hardest case for any tool. When he has an arm around your shoulders, or your hands are linked, removing him means rebuilding part of you too: a shoulder, a sleeve, the hand he was holding. Free erasers that fill from the surrounding background often smear here, because the background behind him is partly you.

A few things help:

• Start with photos where there’s some space between you. Even a small gap makes a cleaner edit more likely.
• Describe him by what he’s wearing. “The man in the navy coat” points at the right person and the right edges, even when you’re pressed together.
• Use the free second edit. If the first try leaves a stray hand or a shadow, run it again with a more specific description.

Couple photos vs. group photos

In a photo of just the two of you, a short description like “the man” is the simplest choice. Group photos need a little more, because people overlap and stand close together. Describe him by position and clothing, like “the man second from the right in the white shirt”.

Group shots have their own quirks, especially weddings, where you might not own the original. The group and wedding photo guide covers those.

When he’s only part of the photo

Not every photo puts him front and center. Sometimes he’s half out of frame at the edge, walking a few steps behind, or one face in the back of a crowd. These are easier, because there’s less of him and more real background around him.

• At the edge of the frame: say where he is, like “the man cut off at the left edge”.
• In the background: describe where he is and what he’s doing, like “the man in the red cap standing behind me by the railing”.
• Only his hand or shoulder shows: describe that part, like “the arm on my shoulder in the black sleeve”.

Small, separate figures like these are also the case where your phone’s free eraser does best, so they’re a good place to try it first.

Can you use your phone’s free eraser instead?

Yes, and for some photos it’s the right call. iPhone Clean Up, Google Photos Magic Eraser, and Samsung Object Eraser can all remove a person if you tap, brush, or circle them yourself. They work one photo at a time, and they do best when he’s small or off to one side.

Where they struggle is the close-up couple shot: he fills half the frame, or he’s touching you, and the fill can look warped or smudged. That’s where describing him instead of tracing him helps. Remove Your Ex also takes up to 10 photos in one batch, so you can work through a whole trip together.

For step-by-step instructions for each free tool, see how to remove your ex from a photo.

No need to do it all at once

You don’t have to fix every photo tonight. Pick a handful you miss seeing, the ones with the view, the friends, or the moment you still like remembering, and start there. Your originals and edits are stored privately for 90 days, then deleted.

When you’re ready for more, there are guides for vacation and trip photos, a photo for your dating profile, and for deciding whether to delete, hide, or edit photos of your ex.