Remove XMP and IPTC metadata from an image

What is in a JPEG’s XMP and IPTC

• XMP is an XML packet (an APP1 segment). Editors such as Lightroom and Photoshop write creator, copyright, rights, and creator tool here. The IPTC AI source type is an XMP property too.
• IPTC is the older binary block in the Photoshop segment (APP13): By-line, copyright notice, caption, keywords.
• EXIF is separate: camera, lens, time, GPS. See Remove EXIF.

Test 1: XMP and IPTC, All metadata

The JPEG has an XMP packet (creator, creator tool, rights, credit, AI source type) and an IPTC block (By-line, copyright notice, caption, keywords). No EXIF and no GPS, so only these two are in play.

Before (what the tool listed)	After (re-scan of the download)
AI / provenance XMP: Matched “DigitalSourceType” in XMP XMP metadata: APP1 XMP (3608 bytes) IPTC / Photoshop IRB: APP13 (108 bytes)	Nothing found. Banner: “Cleaned. 3 fields removed — your picture is unchanged.”

• Download: JPEG, 2400x1600, 1.17 MB.
• Second opinion (ExifTool 13.25): 11 metadata tags before, 0 after.
• Pixels: decoded RGB values identical to the original (compared in Python).
• Time in the tool: 130 ms in headless Chrome on a server CPU. A phone will be slower.

Both blocks removed, and ExifTool counted 11 metadata tags before and none after. The picture is the same.

Test 2: the same file in AI only mode

Before (what the tool listed)	After (re-scan of the download)
AI / provenance XMP: Matched “DigitalSourceType” in XMP XMP metadata: APP1 XMP (3608 bytes) IPTC / Photoshop IRB: APP13 (108 bytes)	IPTC / Photoshop IRB: APP13 (108 bytes)

• Download: JPEG, 2400x1600, 1.17 MB.
• Second opinion (ExifTool 13.25): 11 metadata tags before, 5 after (IPTC:Keywords, IPTC:By-line, IPTC:CopyrightNotice, IPTC:Caption-Abstract, IPTC:ApplicationRecordVersion).
• Pixels: decoded RGB values identical to the original (compared in Python).
• Time in the tool: 129 ms in headless Chrome on a server CPU. A phone will be slower.

AI only removed the XMP packet that holds the AI source type and left the IPTC block. ExifTool still listed By-line, CopyrightNotice, Caption-Abstract, and Keywords. That is the right mode if you want to keep a visible IPTC byline and only drop the AI marker; it is the wrong mode if the IPTC holds a client name or a caption you do not want to ship.

One caution: when a file has no AI marker, the tool does not stop at “nothing to do”. It removes every metadata block it lists, so XMP and IPTC go too. Read the After list instead of assuming the mode kept anything.

The ExifTool equivalent, tested

ExifTool 13.25. Add -overwrite_original or ExifTool leaves a file.jpg_original backup that still has the data.

Keeping a copyright line

Cleaning removes your own credit as well. If you want the delivered file to carry your name, clean it first and then write back only what you choose. On our test, cleaning the JPEG and then running exiftool -Copyright="(c) 2026 Studio Test" -Artist="A. Photographer" file.jpg left just those two fields (and structure tags); the pixels still matched the original. The client-delivery view is on delivery metadata.

Steps

1. Drop one JPEG, PNG, or WebP. The Before list shows an XMP row and an IPTC / Photoshop row if they exist.
2. Use All metadata to remove both. Use AI only when you want IPTC to stay and the file has an AI marker.
3. Press Clean this file and read the After list.
4. For a whole delivery set, one ZIP with Pro.

Other formats

The same fields can be inside a PNG (XMP in an iTXt chunk) or a WebP (an XMP chunk). Those pages have their own measured runs.

What stays

• Pixels, including watermarks.
• Any copy already posted or sent. A client who has the old file still has the old fields.

If the IPTC or XMP field that worries you is the AI source type on a photo you edited in Lightroom, see Lightroom Content Credentials.

Questions

What is the difference between XMP and IPTC in a JPEG?

XMP is an XML packet stored in an APP1 segment. The older IPTC block is a binary record stored in an APP13 segment (the Photoshop block). Creator, copyright, caption, and keywords can live in either, and many editors write both. A newer IPTC field, the AI source type, is stored in XMP.

Where is the AI source type stored?

In XMP, as the IPTC DigitalSourceType property. In our test file it sat in the XMP packet; removing that packet removed it. It is separate from a C2PA manifest, which is a signed record in its own segment.

Does AI only remove my copyright and caption?

Not when the file has an AI marker: on our test JPEG AI only removed the XMP packet and left the IPTC block, and ExifTool still listed By-line, CopyrightNotice, Caption-Abstract, and Keywords. If a file has no AI marker, the tool removes everything it lists, so check the After list. The tool has no mode that removes IPTC and keeps EXIF.

Can I remove only XMP and IPTC and keep EXIF?

Not in this tool. With ExifTool, the command exiftool -XMP:all= -IPTC:all= file.jpg removed both on our test files and left the EXIF block (including GPS on the file that had it). If you want the location gone, add -GPS:all= or use All metadata here.

Can I keep my copyright line in the delivered file?

Clean the file, then add the line back with ExifTool, for example exiftool -Copyright="(c) 2026 Studio" -Artist="A. Photographer" file.jpg. On our test we cleaned a JPEG and added those two fields; ExifTool then listed only Artist and Copyright (plus structure tags) and the pixels were unchanged.

Does it also work for PNG and WebP?

Yes. In a PNG, XMP is stored in an iTXt text chunk; in a WebP it is an XMP chunk. The PNG and WebP pages show the results: remove metadata from PNG and from WebP.

Can I clean a folder of delivery files?

One image is free. Pro is a one-time unlock for unlimited images and one ZIP. See the bulk page for a measured run.

Related guides

• Clean photographer metadata before delivery
• Remove EXIF and GPS
• AI metadata remover
• All metadata-removal guides by file type and device
• Open the Remove AI metadata tool on the homepage if you want the general cleaner.
• Short Instagram upload workflow if you only need the four-step version.