For developers

This page describes how our background removal service works from a technical perspective. We offer a free web tool — use it in your browser with no API key or signup. If you're building an app or script, the examples below show the request and response format; for most users, the web tool is the simplest option.

Request

POST https://api.background-remove.online/v1/remove
Content-Type: multipart/form-data
Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY

Body (form-data):
  image_file: (binary)  — your image (JPG, PNG, or WebP, max 12 MB)
  size: (optional)     — "auto" | "preview" | "full" (default: auto)

Response

Success: 200 OK
Content-Type: image/png
Body: PNG image with transparent background

Error: 4xx/5xx
Content-Type: application/json
{"error": "error_code", "message": "Human-readable message"}

Code examples

cURL example

curl -X POST \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY" \
  -F "image_file=@/path/to/photo.jpg" \
  https://api.background-remove.online/v1/remove \
  --output result.png

Python example

import requests

url = "https://api.background-remove.online/v1/remove"
headers = {"Authorization": "Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"}
files = {"image_file": open("photo.jpg", "rb")}
r = requests.post(url, headers=headers, files=files)
with open("result.png", "wb") as f:
    f.write(r.content)

Best practices

Keep your API key secret. Use environment variables or a secrets manager, never commit keys to git.
Respect fair use. Our free tool is intended for normal personal and commercial use.
Handle errors. Check the status code and parse the JSON body on 4xx/5xx to show a clear message to users.
Use the right size. "preview" is faster and uses fewer credits; "full" gives maximum resolution.

For most use cases, the free web tool is enough: no keys, no server setup, and the same quality. Use the API when you need to automate large batches or integrate into an existing backend. See Tools & API for an overview.

When to use the web tool instead

If you only need to remove backgrounds occasionally or from a small number of images, the free web tool is the fastest path: open the page, upload a file, download the PNG. No API key, no code, no deployment. Many developers use it for quick tests before integrating the API into their product.

Use free tool Tools & API overview