How to Do a Reverse Image Search on iPhone [Step-by-Step]

There are various methods to perform a reverse image search on your iPhone, which include:

• Visual Lookup;
• Google Images through Safari;
• third-party apps.

Each of them can be an excellent fit based on the purpose of your search.

Whether you want to check facts, find someone by picture, identify objects, shop, or spot scams through a picture, this article will help you figure out the best way.

Note: All the tools were tested using iPhone 13, iOS 17, and iPhone 16 Pro Max, iOS 18.5.

1. Use Apple AI – Visual Lookup

Best for: identifying objects, landmarks, plants, animals, artworks, and similar visual elements in your own photos.

The Visual Lookup feature on the iPhone is a built-in tool powered by Apple’s AI that helps users identify objects in photos, such as plants, animals, landmarks, and even artworks. It essentially functions like a reverse image search, only smoother and more intuitive.

When you want quick, on-device info without uploading images to a browser, like recognizing a dog breed, naming a flower, or learning more about a historical building you’ve photographed, go for this one!

Note: Visual Lookup isn’t universally compatible. It requires iOS 15 or later and is only available on iPhones with at least an A12 Bionic chip or newer. This means that models like the iPhone XS, XS Max, and XR, as well as later models, can use this feature. Devices with older chips, like the iPhone 8 or X, do not have the required processing power for Visual LookUp. In addition, availability depends on region and language, so some users may not see the feature. It currently supports English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, and Spanish.

I tested the Visual Lookup feature on my iPhone 13 running iOS 17. Here’s exactly how it went, step by step, along with what worked and what didn’t:

Step 1: I opened the Photos app to select a clear, well-lit photo of a squirrel I had taken earlier.
This is the default app where all my iPhone images are stored.

Step 2: Once the photo opened, I noticed that the Info (i) icon at the bottom of the screen had sparkles; this is a sign that Visual Lookup is available for that image.

Step 3: I tapped the sparkling Info icon, which showed a panel showing image details.
There, a “Look Up” option appeared.

Step 4: I tapped “Look Up”. A new menu slid up with a visual analysis of the photo.
It showed suggestions related to the breed of squirrel, including links to websites, images of similar squirrels, and other informative results.

2. Use Google Reverse Image Search on Safari

Best for: identifying the origin of an image, verifying authenticity, finding higher-quality versions, or discovering visually similar content online.

This method of reverse image search for iPhone lets you surf the internet using an image instead of words. By uploading a photo or pasting a URL, you can find out where the image appears online, identify people or objects in it, validate the originality, or find matching images.

It’s especially useful for checking sources, identifying unknown items, or spotting fake content.

Note: On iPhone, Google Reverse Image Search works through Safari, however, after you tap on the camera icon, it will take you to the Google App (which you have to download from the App Store in case you don’t have it already), since there’s no built-in image search like on Android.

While Apple Visual Look Up focuses on providing information about the picture content, this method is a better choice for look-alike image search.

If you’ve decided that Google Reverse Image search is a yes for you, here’s how to use it:

1. Open a new tab on Safari and access Google Lens by tapping the camera icon in the search bar.
   
2. Choose Your Method:
   • Upload an image: Select a photo from your iPhone’s camera roll.
   • Paste an image URL: If the image is online, just copy and paste the link.
   • Take a photo or screenshot: You can use a live camera shot or a recent screenshot from your Photo Library.
     
     Use the moving frame to choose the specific area on the photo.
     For example, I took a photo of a flower and narrowed the frame down to the flower itself to show what object in the picture I’m interested in.
3. You can add text to narrow the results. For example, “type” or “buy”, depending on whether you want to know the type of flower or a shop to buy it.
4. Tap “Search” and explore the provided image search results.
   

3. Try Online Reverse Search Tools

Apart from the above-mentioned tools, there are other options without an app for reverse image search on iPhone, such as Lenso AI, TinEye, or PimEyes. Each tool serves different purposes and offers varying features, so understanding their strengths can help you choose the right one for your needs.

Lenso AI is an image search service, powered by artificial intelligence, designed to find visually similar images and identify objects or people within photos. This option can come in particularly handy if you want to discover pics related by content rather than just exact copies.

I have tried searching for pictures, and the website worked perfectly fine, giving relevant results.

Additionally, you can try searching for faces and people. The service gives multiple results for famous and regular people.

On the other hand, TinEye specializes in finding the original source of an image by using a unique digital fingerprinting technology. Unlike AI-based tools, TinEye focuses on searching for exact or near-exact matches of the image across the web. Additionally, it helps users locate where else an image can be found.

Finally, PimEyes.com is a website that uses facial recognition technology to identify people in photos by scanning publicly available images from social media, news, and other sources. It enables us to track where the images appear online or conduct identity verification.

To sum up, each reverse image search tool serves a unique purpose. Depending on your goal, be it finding inspiration, verifying originality, or protecting privacy, all platforms offer distinct advantages, with varying levels of free access, and require no app.

4. Check Reverse Image Search Apps for iOS

In addition to this, I have decided to test the reverse image search apps offered on the App Store. Overall, this kind of app isn’t really popular. I tried the first two results from the App Store: Image Search (Reverse image search for Bing) and Reverse Image Search & Finder.

The free version of the first one uses the Google image search only.

The Pro version should be more effective with simultaneous searches in several search engines (Bing, Yandex, TinEye).

Meanwhile, Reverse Image Search & Finder claimed to find both: objects and faces, and provide information on them. It should be helpful when you want to find someone with a picture. With a premium subscription, it should help to search news, analyze Instagram profiles, and do some other types of research.

I have tested all the free search options; however, unfortunately, only the shopping one worked. Image Search and Clone Finder didn’t give any results.

Thus, you can try to find a good reverse image search app in the Apple Store, but, as you see, we haven’t been able to find one.

Conclusion

To wrap up, there are many ways to reverse image search on an iPhone. The most common and accessible one is Google Reverse Image Search. But if your goal, region, and iOS version allow for it, I’d recommend Apple’s Visual Look Up since it is a quick, accurate, and available feature directly on the device.

Alternatively, Lenso AI or TinEye are good enough image search engines, especially suitable for professionals who know the aim of their search, and they have good free access opportunities and provide precise findings.