How to Get an Image URL: A Complete Guide for Websites & Social Media

Learning how to get an image URL is an essential skill for anyone working with digital content. Whether you’re a blogger, social media manager, or website developer, image URLs allow you to embed pictures without downloading them. This comprehensive guide will walk you through multiple methods to find image URLs across different platforms and explain how to use them effectively.

Table of Contents

• What Is an Image URL?
• How to Get an Image URL From a Website
• How to Get Image URLs From Social Media
• How to Get Image URLs From Google Images
• How to Get Image URLs From Cloud Storage
• How to Use Image URLs Properly
• Conclusion and Next Steps

What Is an Image URL?

An image URL (Uniform Resource Locator) is the web address that points directly to an image file on the internet. Instead of uploading an image file to your website, you can use its URL to display it. This is particularly useful for:

• Embedding images in websites without using storage space
• Sharing images on forums or social media
• Creating dynamic content that pulls images from other sources

Image URLs typically end with file extensions like .jpg, .png, .gif, or .webp. When you understand how to get an image URL, you gain more flexibility in how you work with digital media.

How to Get an Image URL From a Website

There are several methods to find an image URL on most websites:

Method 1: Right-Click on Desktop

1. Navigate to the webpage containing your desired image
2. Right-click on the image
3. Select “Copy image address” (Chrome/Firefox) or “Copy image location” (Edge)
4. The URL is now in your clipboard, ready to paste

Method 2: Inspect Element

1. Right-click the image and select “Inspect” or “Inspect Element”
2. In the developer tools panel, look for the img tag
3. Find the src attribute containing the URL
4. Right-click the URL and select “Copy”

Method 3: Mobile Browsers

On mobile devices, the process varies by browser:

• Chrome (Android): Long-press image → “Open image in new tab” → Copy address from address bar
• Safari (iOS): Long-press image → “Copy” (some sites) or “Share” → “Copy”

How to Get Image URLs From Social Media

Each social platform has slightly different methods for finding image URLs:

Facebook Image URLs

1. Click on the image to open it in full view
2. Right-click (desktop) or long-press (mobile) the image
3. Select “Copy image address” or similar option

Instagram Image URLs

1. Open the post containing your desired image
2. Tap the three dots (…) in the top right
3. Select “Copy link” (this copies post URL)
4. Paste into a browser and add /media/?size=l to the end

Twitter Image URLs

1. Click the tweet containing your image
2. Right-click the image and select “Copy image address”

How to Get Image URLs From Google Images

Google Images requires a specific approach to get direct image URLs:

1. Go to images.google.com and search for your image
2. Click on the image thumbnail to open the preview panel
3. Right-click the image in the preview and select “Copy image address”
4. Alternatively, click “View image” first, then copy the URL from your address bar

Important note: Many Google Images results are protected by copyright. Always verify you have permission to use an image before embedding it via URL.

How to Get Image URLs From Cloud Storage

Popular cloud services make it easy to generate shareable image URLs:

Google Drive

1. Right-click the image file in Drive
2. Select “Share” → “General access” → Set to “Anyone with the link”
3. Click “Copy link”
4. Modify the URL: replace view?usp=sharing with uc?export=view&id=FILEID

Dropbox

1. Right-click the image in Dropbox
2. Select “Share” → “Create a link”
3. Click the link to open in browser
4. Change the end of the URL from ?dl=0 to ?raw=1

How to Use Image URLs Properly

Now that you know how to get an image URL, here are best practices for using them:

• Hotlinking considerations: Some websites disable hotlinking (embedding their images via URL)
• Copyright issues: Only use images you have rights to or that are clearly marked for reuse
• Performance impacts: Embedded images load from their original server, which may be slower than your site
• Broken links: If the source image is moved or deleted, your embedded version will break

For WordPress users, you can insert an image URL by:

1. In the block editor,