How to Blur Out Part of a Picture on iPhone & iPad

This guide shows you how to hide sensitive information or unwanted objects in a photo directly on your iPhone or iPad. You can blur a face, a license plate, a house number, or any part of an image using the built-in Markup tool, which requires no third-party apps. The process takes less than a minute once you know where to tap.

What You’ll Need

• An iPhone or iPad running iOS 17, iPadOS 17, or later (earlier versions have a similar but slightly different interface).
• The photo you want to edit saved in your Photos app, or open in an app that uses the standard share sheet (like Mail or Messages).
• No additional apps or purchases are required.

Step-by-Step

1. Open the photo. Launch the Photos app and tap the image you want to edit. If the photo is in another app (e.g., an email attachment), tap the image to open it full screen, then tap the Share button (the square with an arrow pointing up).
2. Start editing. In Photos, tap the “Edit” button in the top-right corner. In other apps, tap the Share button, then scroll down and tap “Markup” (the icon looks like a fingertip inside a circle). If you don’t see Markup, tap “More” and enable it in the list of activities.
3. Enter Markup mode. In Photos, once you are in the Edit screen, tap the Markup icon (a circle with three dots at the top, or a pen tip inside a circle, depending on your iOS version). This opens the drawing toolbar at the bottom of the screen.
4. Select the magnifier tool. In the Markup toolbar, tap the “+” (plus) button at the bottom right. From the pop-up menu, choose “Magnifier”. A large circle with a lens effect will appear in the middle of your photo.
5. Position the blur. Drag the magnifier circle (by touching inside it) to cover the exact area you want to blur—for example, a face or a license plate. The circle will magnify whatever is underneath it, so you need to adjust it to cover the whole object.
6. Adjust the size. Use the blue dot on the edge of the circle to resize it. Drag the dot outward to make the blur area larger, or inward to make it smaller. Make sure the circle fully covers the part you want to hide.
7. Increase the blur strength. The magnifier by default shows the area enlarged, not blurred. To actually blur it, drag the green dot on the circle’s edge. Dragging the green dot inward increases the magnification (and thus the blur effect), making the area look like a smudge. Drag until the content is unrecognizable.
8. Fine-tune the position. If you need to move the blur after resizing, touch and hold inside the circle and drag it to the correct spot. You can also pinch the circle with two fingers to scale it more precisely.
9. Save your edit. Tap “Done” in the top-left corner to save the marked-up photo. If you are in the Photos Edit screen, tap “Done” again to save the edited version. The original photo is preserved—you can revert the blur later by opening the photo, tapping Edit, and tapping “Revert”.

Common Mistakes

• Using the wrong tool. Many people try to use the pen or highlighter tool and draw over the area. That covers it with a color, not a blur, and hides the image completely. You must use the Magnifier tool.
• Not increasing the magnification. If you just place the magnifier without dragging the green dot, the area stays clear and readable—just zoomed in. The blur only appears when you increase the zoom level significantly.
• Blurring too little. A slight magnification still shows shapes and colors. To truly hide a face or a number, you need to drag the green dot until the area looks like a solid smudge, not just a slightly fuzzy version.
• Forgetting to resize the circle. If the circle is smaller than the object, part of the face or plate remains visible. Always check the edges of the circle against the object you are hiding.
• Saving the wrong copy. If you edit a photo from the Photos app, the blur is saved as a new edit layer. If you use Markup from the share sheet, it may create a new photo or overwrite the original depending on the app. Check your camera roll to see where the file went.

Tips

• Blur multiple areas. You can add more than one magnifier. Tap the “+” button again and choose “Magnifier” to add a second circle for a different part of the image.
• Use the loupe for precision. The magnifier is actually a loupe (a magnifying glass). If you need to blur a very small area like a single letter, zoom in on the photo first (pinch to zoom), then add the magnifier. The circle will be relatively larger and easier to position.
• Check on a bright screen. Blur strength can look different on a dim screen. Increase the brightness or zoom in on the photo to confirm the area is truly unreadable before saving.
• Revert anytime. Because the blur is non-destructive in the Photos app, you can always go back to the original. Tap Edit, then tap “Revert” to remove the blur completely.
• Use for screenshots too. The same Markup tool works on screenshots. Take a screenshot, tap the thumbnail, then follow the same steps to blur out a notification or a name before sharing.

Troubleshooting

• I don’t see the “Magnifier” option in the “+” menu. This happens on older iOS versions (iOS 16 or earlier) where the tool is called “Loupe” instead. The function is identical—look for a circle with a magnifying glass icon. If you still don’t see it, make sure you are in the Markup editor, not the regular photo editor.
• The blur disappears when I tap Done. This usually means you accidentally tapped the “+” menu, added the magnifier, but then tapped elsewhere to dismiss the menu without actually placing the tool. Make sure you drag the circle onto the photo and adjust the green dot before tapping Done.
• The circle is not moving. You might be touching the blue or green dot instead of the inside of the circle. Touch the center of the circle (where the image is) and drag. If it still won’t move, tap “Done” and re-enter Markup—the tool may be stuck in a selection mode.
• I blurred the wrong area. In the Photos app, tap Edit, then tap the Markup icon again. You can drag the existing magnifier to a new spot, or tap the “+” menu and delete the magnifier (tap it, then tap “Delete” in the pop-up). Then re-add it correctly.
• The blur is not strong enough even at maximum zoom. The magnifier has a limit on how much it can zoom. If the area is still readable, try a different approach: use the pen tool with a thick black line to scribble over the area, then use the eraser to clean the edges. It is not a blur, but it hides the content.
• I can’t find the edited photo. If you used the share sheet in an app like Mail, the edited image is usually saved as a new photo in your camera roll. Check the “Recents” album. If you edited in Photos, the edit is saved to the same photo file, not a duplicate.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I blur a face automatically without doing it manually? No, the built-in Markup tool does not detect faces. You must manually position the magnifier over the face. For automatic face blurring, you would need a third-party app.

Does this work on Live Photos? Yes, the blur applies to the still image. When you play the Live Photo, the blur stays on the frozen frame, but the motion part may show the unblurred area briefly. To be safe, convert the Live Photo to a still photo first (tap the Live button and select “Off”).

Will the blur be permanent? In the Photos app, no. The edit is non-destructive, and you can revert it anytime. If you share the photo or export it to another app, the blur becomes permanent in that copy.

Can I blur text in a screenshot? Yes, the same steps work on screenshots. Open the screenshot in Photos, tap Edit, then Markup, and add the magnifier over the text.

Is there a way to blur a rectangular area instead of a circle? The magnifier is always a circle. For a rectangle, you can use the pen tool with a thick stroke and draw over the area, then use the eraser to straighten the edges. There is no built-in rectangle blur tool.

Does this work on iPad with an Apple Pencil? Yes, the Markup tool works with Apple Pencil, which gives you more precise control when dragging the magnifier or adjusting the green dot. The steps are identical to the iPhone.

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