Strip Image Metadata
Strip potentially sensitive metadata from JPG, WebP and AVIF images on upload or via bulk processing.
Solid choice
Strip Image Metadata is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 200+ sites, is rated 5/5 and was last updated 1 month ago, and scores 72/100 on our health check.
- Tested with the latest WordPress (7.1)
- Small user base (200+ active installs)
- Very few reviews so far
How does it stack up?
Side-by-side on installs, updates, ratings & support
Daily downloads
Download spikes usually follow a new release — each site that auto-updates counts as a download.
Rankings
Where Strip Image Metadata stands todayWordPress.org search rankings
Live position in the plugin search, top 100| Keyword | Position |
|---|---|
| exif | #37 |
| image | >100 |
| metadata | #14 |
| privacy | >100 |
| strip | #2 |
Version adoption
Share of active sites per release.
Rating breakdown
★★★★★★★★★★ 5 from 1 reviews
About Strip Image Metadata
From the official readme · v1.8.0Description
WP Strip Image Metadata is a privacy focused WordPress plugin that helps in removing potentially sensitive metadata from your uploaded images. It strips image metadata on upload or via bulk action, and view image EXIF data.
This Plugin is based on the Plugin “WP Strip Image Metadata” from the WordPress.org plugin repository here: https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-strip-image-metadata/
This Plugin extends the Functionality of “WP Strip Image Metadata” with the following Functions:
Extended Functionality
- Handle AVIF and WEBP-Images, too.
- set / add / change Copyright, Artist or Credit Information in JPG and WEBP images Files.
- Set an upper Size Limit for the Stripping. All Files with Width greater than Size Limit won’t be stripped.
- Show some more Information in the Image Edit Panel
- Set a Minimum version for Imagick (3.4.4) and Gmagick (2.0.5) to handle files at all. Gmagick is still limited in functionality.
Preparation of Copyright Template Files
Both Imagick and Gmagick do not allow to set EXIF-Metadata directly. The author of this plugin does not know an Open Source PHP or WordPress Function with appropriate License to set metadata in an Image File. So a Template File is used that has to be prepared by the user. It’s only possible to use one template File for
one Artist, only! The Plugin uses one Template File for the whole site. So, if you are on a Multi-User-Site this Plugin is not for you.
- Prepare a JPG, WEBP and AVIF File with very small size, e.g. 100×100 or so. Image dimensions do not matter, here.
-
Strip all Metadata with exiftool (current version writes avif and webp, too):
exiftool.exe -all= ./yourfile.jpg -o copyright.jpg
exiftool.exe -all= ./anotherfile.webp -o copyright.webp
exiftool.exe -all= ./aviffile.jpg -o copyright.avif -
Add the Copyright (or other) EXIF-Metadata you prefer with Exiftool like so
exiftool.exe -copyright="Copyright by User of the Plugin and Site" ./copyright.jpg
exiftool.exe -artist="User of the Plugin and Site" ./copyright.jpg
The other functionality of the Plugin was not changed so the original Readme follows herafter.
Original Description
Strip image metadata on upload or via bulk action, and view image EXIF data.
WP Strip Image Metadata is a privacy focused WordPress plugin that helps in removing potentially sensitive metadata from your uploaded images.
What is image metadata?
Image metadata is extra information embedded in image files. This information is stored in a variety of formats and contains items like the model of the camera that took a photo.
However, image metadata may also contain identifying information such as the GPS location coordinates of an image taken with a smartphone for example.
This plugin provides an easy enabled/disabled setting so you can make the call on when image metadata should be removed.
Note: this plugin requires the “Imagick” or “Gmagick” PHP extension to function. Imagick is much better.
Installation
- Install the plugin through the WordPress plugins screen.
- Activate the plugin on the WordPress plugins screen.
Configuring
EN: You configure the plugin in Settings > Strip Image Metadata.
DE: Die Konfiguration erfolgt in Settings > Metadaten entfernen.
Frequently asked questions
Does it work with the new Client-Side Media Processing (WP V7.1+)
No. Currently, the plugin does not process images that WordPress generates using Client-Side Media Processing when uploading images directly in the Block Editor. The plugin continues to work normally when images are uploaded through the Media Library. By default, WordPress removes EXIF, IPTC, XMP, and therefore also embedded copyright information from the generated image sizes. This also applies to the -scaled image created when an uploaded image exceeds the WordPress big image size threshold (2560 px by default). In this case, the original image may still contain the metadata, but the…
How will I know if I have the required Imagick or Gmagick extension on my site?
If you aren’t sure, after installing the plugin, in WP Admin navigate to: Settings > Strip Image Metadata Under “Plugin Information” it will show if the required extension is active on the site or not and it the minimum required version is met. If a compatible extension is not found, try asking your webhost or system administrator if either one can be enabled.
Can I remove metadata from images uploaded before installing this plugin?
Yes, there is a bulk action included. In WP Admin navigate to the Media library and make sure you are using the List view. Select which images you’d like to strip metadata from and then select the “WP Strip Image Metadata” bulk action. NEW: This is controlled now by the client (browser) and manages many files, too. But with some drawbacks: Leave it running once it has started. It shows a status message at the top. It will stop if you close the Browser, Browser Tab or Window. See assessment in changelog. OLD: This can be a resource intensive process, so please only select a handful of images…
Will this work for all generated image subsizes (thumbnails)?
Yes, if metadata stripping is enabled then all generated subsizes, depending on Size Limit, at the time of upload will have the metadate removed. The included bulk action will also remove metadata from all subsizes as well, depending on Size Limit.
How do I know it’s working?
In WP Admin, from your Media library you can select an image and click “Edit” (in List view) or “Edit more details” (in Grid view). On the Edit page for the image, there will be an admin notice at the top with the “expand for image EXIF data” text. The Top Line shows, without expansion, the number of bytes for the different file sizes. This should work for jpg/jpeg, avif and webp files, but other image types may not display EXIF info. You might try uploading a test image with the “Image Metadata Stripping” setting disabled, and then the same image again with the setting enabled to view the…
Once image metadata has been stripped, is it reversible?
No, removing image metadata is permanent. If you would like the metadata kept, you should keep an offsite backup copy of your images.
What file types does this plugin work for?
By default the plugin will process jpg/jpeg, avif and webp files.
What do the plugin settings do?
Image Metadata Stripping: whether image metadata is stripped from new uploads. Preserve ICC Colour Profile: whether to keep image colour information which is helpful to some applications. Preserve Image Orientation: whether to keep image orientation which can help rotate images as intended. Set / Keep Copyright: whether to set / change or keep Copyright Information based on Template Files. Size Limit: Only strip Images Files which width is SMALLER than size Limit. Log Errors: whether to log error output which can be helpful for debugging purposes.
Changelog
No need to upgrade right now, if you don't use Images in Avif-Format.
1.8.0 – 2026-08-25
- bug fix in method ‘get_gps_data’ from BinaryExifExtractor for wrong formatted tags.
1.7.0 – 2026-08-13
- Update Readme and add some project documentation
- Changed file handling for Bulk Meta Stripping: Now treated by single requests from the client (browser). Errors and failure are now handled in browser. Assessment:
Advantages
— No dedicated background process required
— Progress can be displayed immediately in browser. Users can immediately see which image is currently being processed
— A single error does not stop the entire batch process
— No long-running requests
— Works even if WP-Cron or loopback requests are disabled
— Short Request ID without all Media-IDs.
Disadvantages
— The browser tab must remain open during processing
— Navigating away from or closing the tab interrupts the process immediately
— Network interruptions require retry and resume logic
— Multiple administrators or multiple tabs may start competing batch processes
— Processing is not truly asynchronous on the server side - improve EXIF-Meta Output in Admin and consistent usage of settings[‘strip_active’]
- Replace setting of Orientation-Tag by rotating the final image. Only done for imagick! Reason: imagick can’set the orientation tag in images without any metadata.
- Update Translations for de_DE
- Test with WP 7.1 RC3.
1.6.0 – 2026-04-05
- Rework of main class to strip metadata to remove static principles and to use separate file. Add an uninstall.php. Use PHPStan Level 8. Replaced Extractor by the shared Extractor.
- Test with WP 7.0.
- Renamed the Plugin to strip-image-metadata or ‘Strip Image Metadata’
1.5.0 – 2026-04-01
- Bugfix in extractMetadata.php
- Test with WP 7.0 RC2 locally.
1.4.2 – 2025-12-03
- Tested with WordPress 6.9.0.
1.4.2 – 2025-09-08
- Minor update for PHP deprecation message. Tested with WordPress 6.8.2.
1.4.1 – 2025-04-15
- Tested with WordPress 6.8. Works. No Changes.
1.4.1 – 2024-11-08
- Tested with WordPress 6.7. Minor PHP Bugfix.
1.4.0 – 2024-10-21
- added AVIF-support, increased minimum PHP-version following the WP recommendation,
- Minor PHP Bugfixes, e.g. updated focal length extraction for full-frame cameras.
- Changed the Imagick / GD check for supported files. Removed the version check completely.
- Tested with WordPress 6.6.2
1.3.0 – 2024-07-17
- Tested with WordPress 6.6.
1.3.0 – 2024-04-03
- Tested with WordPress 6.5.
1.2.0 – 2023-10-21
- Tested with WordPress 6.4. Bugfix for PHP 7.4 (mixed return type was wrong)
1.2.0 – 2023-08-09
- Tested with WordPress 6.3. First upload to Plugin-Directory.
1.2.0 – 2023-07-26
- Added checking of WP Nonces for security.
1.2.0 – 2023-07-26
- Formatting change for WPCS rules. Code change w/o functional change to follow plugin Plugin Rules. Mind: Semantic versioning will be changed correctly AFTER upload to the WP plugin directory.
1.2.0 – 2023-07-01
- Added a Button for stripping the image in media details view.
1.2.0 – 2023-07-01
- Updates for adding Plugin to WordPress.org official directory. (Escaping for 4 echo added.). Updated this readme.
1.2.0 – 2023-05-02
- Updates for translation including bugfixes and German translation added.
1.1.0 – 2023-05-01
- Updates for phpstan check with level 8. Only 8 error messages remain, but these are due to inconstent type definitions in WP functions. No functional changes. Readme update.
1.0 – 2023-04-27
- Initial plugin release based on the work of Samiff
Screenshots
For developers
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Best Strip Image Metadata alternatives
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FAQ
Strip Image Metadata: quick answers
Straight answers, pulled from live WordPress.org data.
Live data from WordPress.org · checked Sep 28, 2026
Is Strip Image Metadata free?
Yes. Strip Image Metadata is free to download and use from the official WordPress.org plugin directory.
Is Strip Image Metadata safe to use in 2026?
Strip Image Metadata is a solid plugin choice in 2026, with a few things worth checking first. It runs on 200+ sites, is rated 5/5 and was last updated 1 month ago, and scores 72/100 on our health check.
How many websites use Strip Image Metadata?
Strip Image Metadata is active on 200+ WordPress websites and has been downloaded 4,433 times since it launched in August 2023. It was downloaded 233 times in the last 30 days.
Does Strip Image Metadata work with WordPress 7.1?
Yes. The developer has tested Strip Image Metadata up to WordPress 7.1.2, the latest release. It requires WordPress 6.0 or newer.
What PHP version does Strip Image Metadata need?
Strip Image Metadata requires PHP 8.0 or higher. Most hosts run PHP 8.x today, so it works on any modern WordPress hosting.
When was Strip Image Metadata last updated?
The latest version, 1.8.0, was released on August 25, 2026 (1 month ago).
Who makes Strip Image Metadata?
Strip Image Metadata is developed and maintained by Martin von Berg.
What are the best alternatives to Strip Image Metadata?
The most popular alternatives to Strip Image Metadata are Meow Lightbox (10K+ installs), Image Rotation Repair (7K+ installs) and Image Rotation Fixer (1K+ installs).
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