In this digital age of content creation, visual media is everywhere. Even when publishing an essay for your blog, you need graphic elements to spruce it up! Pictures and videos are attention-grabbing and can pull in viewers. They also make it easier to convey the message and demonstrate your content optically.

But hiring a graphic designer, photographer, or illustrator to enhance your content may not always be within your budget. Here, royalty-free vector art resources can save the day. Luckily, many websites source free vector illustrations and trendy drawings.

You might be worried that these options only hold repetitive stock photographs. The same old pictures you’ve seen on every other website and social media memes can get boring quickly. On the contrary, these sites offer unique, refreshing graphics and high-quality illustrations. These can make your content captivating.

They also offer vector images, which can be cropped or zoomed in without ruining their resolution. Thus, adding a visual element can help with conciseness, connections, and versatility. Let’s check out the following abundant resources offering royalty-free illustrations:

1. Freepik

Freepik is a search engine that stores high-quality vectors, photos, drawings, and icons. They create content and accept material submitted by users. Illustrations are available in various styles, ranging from clip artwork to cartoons. They also offer templates for presentations, brochures, business cards, social media posts, greeting cards, etc.

After choosing the illustration category or searching for art, you can filter drawings by color, file type, and orientation. Several kinds of pictures are available, like kids’, hand-drawn, geometric, doodles, and others. You can get watercolor, 3D, or isometric illustrations as well.

Freepik app

Once you do a basic keyword search and find pictures, you can edit and customize further. You can save these in SVG, AI, or EPS formats, according to your requirements. The content from Freepik is best suited for infographics and web design, including landing pages.

Since these pictures are open source, you can use them for free without copyright issues. All you need to use to download these vector graphics is to create a free account. But you must credit and link their website using the line “Designed by Freepik.” You can remove this attribute with a premium account at €9.99 monthly.

2. Pixabay

Pixabay hosts over three million royalty and copyright-free photos, drawings, footage, and music. The range is incredible since it includes content from hundreds of other websites. Their creative community offers vector images for presentations, websites, and videos. You can choose from various styles to add icons, sound effects, GIFs, etc.

Pixabay app

This illustration search engine is easy to use, as you can pull up open snapshots with a simple keyword search. After you search for drawings or choose the ‘Illustrations’ folder, you can sort the results by size and color. You can get digital illustrations, hand-drawn art, cartoons, background patterns, etc by simply searching for them in the search engine.

They buy these stock images under the Pixabay License. So, you can use them for free, for personal or commercial purposes, without giving attribution. Many recommend Pixabay for branding and marketing.

3. Depositphotos

Depositphotos is a search engine with over 261 million files in its database. Of this, 8 million are illustrations, paintings, and clipart. The rest includes royalty-free drawings, photographs, vector images, videos, and music. The collection of high-quality stock material covers a range of topics in any size.

Under the illustrations folder, you can find traditional and digital art in categories. These include cartoons, pop art, watercolor, vintage prints, mosaics, etc. You can also find graphic designs for greetings, wishes, tattoo designs, backgrounds, landscape views, and more. When you look up drawings, you can sort by angle, type of portrait, number of people, etc.

Depositphotos

Depositphotos develop its content through AI and licensed authors. These include over 100k contributors. Buyers and users can enhance their creative projects through these materials. Even many leading corporations, such as Bosch, Yves-Rocher, and Saint-Gobain, use this website!

They offer different subscription plans based on whether you want to save photos, vectors, videos, or music and SFX. It also depends on the number of downloads per month. The primary image plan costs $8.99 per month for ten downloads. The web interface is user-friendly, and they offer good customer service facilities.

4. FreeImages

FreeImages is a stock content marketplace offering 100% free graphic resources. Additionally, they offer illustrations, vectors, clipart, and icons. You can get pictures of pets, food, nature, tattoos, backgrounds, sports, etc.

Templates for things like cards, flyers, and brochures are also available. When you look up drawings, you will see line drawings, architectural sketches, crayon colorings, doodles, children’s illustrations, etc.

FreeImages

They have a community of talented photographers who contribute to their collection. Their copyright-free illustrations are available in JPG, GIF, PNG, PSD, and CDR formats. Although membership is free, you can upgrade your account for premium images. The site holds 400,000 hand-picked photographs that hundreds of users access each day.

You can use them for your personal and professional needs. But always remember the rules highlighted in the Image License Agreement. It states that the images are free, but sometimes you must inform the artist or credit them. Despite these minor restrictions, the site is easy to use and provides copyright-free pictures.

5. Rawpixel

Rawpixel works with a social-impact vision through its assorted range of stock photos and illustrations. Their team of artists, photographers, and curators collaborate rather than coexist. They offer over a million high-resolution vectors, mockups, templates, and other free resources.

It includes PNG elements, graphics, patterns, backgrounds, artwork, wallpapers, and more. You can get aesthetic vector artwork from any period, from modern creations to classical drawings! These include digital art as well as traditional hand-drawn sketches and watercolor paintings.

Plenty of original and museum illustrations have been compiled, enhanced, and licensed for public use. You can sort them by file and type. You can also download specific elements in different categories. These could be textures, tape, emojis, frames, etc.

Rawpixel

Rawpixel has a Public Domain collection as well as a Free collection. The difference is that you cannot resell or redistribute the images from the latter or use them in logos. But, if you make it unique with significant modifications, you can proceed with such actions.

Regardless, all images have royalty-free licenses for personal and commercial use. Those with identifiable humans even have signed model releases. So, these pictures are free and safe to use for as long as you want.

In the free version, you can save unlimited photos from Public Domain and five pictures daily from the Free collection. Ensure that you attribute the content to Rawpixel. The Premium version costs $ 8.99 each month. Additionally, 10% of their income goes to the Hope For Children Foundation. You can thus make a positive change using these free design resources.

6. Dreamstime

This search engine is another excellent resource, with over 206 million stock snapshots in its collection. They create these stock vector illustrations primarily through AI, but you can also access traditional creations. You can get pencil drawings, sketches, paintings, watercolors, and other kinds of art.

Under Illustrations, there are vast categories, such as Abstract Art, Designs, People, Fashion, Architectural, Travel, Education, and more. In the art category, you can find drawings in subtopics such as Still Life, Surreal, Minimalist, Paintings, and Cartoons. You can also get textures, patterns, icons, clipart, and background images.

There are many options in the other categories, too. They offer photographs, vectors, illustrations, footage, audio, and editorial images that professionals create. You can access infographics, logotypes, artwork, 4k videos, music, and sound effects. Dreamstime is considered the largest stock photo community in the world.

Dreamstime

Since they have the Royalty- Free License, you can access each HD image for multiple uses at a small one-time fee. But to save the pictures, you must either pay per download or subscribe. Signing up for a membership is complimentary, while a single ‘Credit’ costs as low as $0.77. Moreover, you need to add a visible credit line to attribute the author or agency of the photo.

There are a few restrictions to remember as well. Only the buyer can use the image, which cannot be transmitted to someone else. You should get multiple licenses for use by many employees in your company.

You can use them personally or commercially. For example, you can use these illustrations on websites, magazines, presentations, and so on. However, you might need Extended Licenses for using pictures for resale and print distribution.

7. Adobe Stock

This search engine hosts an abundance of royalty-free HD stock assets that you can view through a keyword search. It ranges from photos, templates, vector art, and illustrations to stock music and audio. You can use these images personally and professionally in brochures, magazines, blogs, ads, and more.

Search ‘drawings’ or choose the Vector Art and Illustrations folder. You can find paintings, digital art, textures and patterns, and cartoons here. You will also see technical drawings, abstract illustrations, and futuristic designs.

You can access some of this content, such as the artist-made templates, through the Adobe Creative Cloud. These include desktop apps like Photoshop, InDesign, and Illustrator. The graphics are available on topics like nature, food, business, technology, sports, science, and entertainment.

Adobe Stock

Pick from Standard, Enhanced, or Extended licenses according to your requirements. You cannot resell or redistribute these standard stock assets to other parties or transfer ownership. The Standard License subscription starts at $29.99 monthly, and other credit plans exist. Before you commit, you can download a watermarked image to test its quality.

8. Shutterstock

This classic stock website offers over a billion images, videos, music, 3D models, templates, and other resources. It hosts over 300-400 million royalty-free graphics. These are aided by the contributions of more than a million creators. You can find cartoons, pencil doodles, digital creations, fine art, and other drawing styles here.

Some vector illustrations they offer include icons, clip art, backgrounds, patterns, and logos. You can download them in AI, EPS, SVG, and PDF formats. If needed, you can further edit them in Adobe Illustrator or Photoshop. Materials from Shutterstock are most suited for commercials and informative videos, PSAs, and websites.

Shutterstock

When you look up illustrations in the Shutterstock search engine, you can use filters to view what you want precisely. For example, you can refine the results by orientation, color, artists, AI generation, and other technicalities and measurements. Shutterstock Editor, File converter, and Image Resizer are other tools they have.

Many files on Shutterstock are available for free. They have both Standard and Enhanced Image licenses, with the latter having more usage rights. While individual packs and team memberships exist, they recommend the All-in-one Subscription plan. It starts at $29 monthly and opens up access to premium content for one user.

9. Pexels

This search engine has a simple user interface and stores systematically organized free stock images and illustrations. You can find birthday and festival wishes, business videos, device wallpapers, and so on. The topics include food, texture, nature, landscape, technology, space, etc.

Pexels

You can look up drawings and illustrations to view background patterns, graphic designs, abstract art, cartoons, paintings, and more. You filter these by orientation, size, and hex code. A team of skilled photographers contributes to the high-resolution photos in their collection.

Additionally, users can upload photos for selection, and it sources more documents from other free websites. Pexels functions with the mission of “Empowering Creators.” So every visual on their site can be downloaded and used for free under the Pexels License. You do not necessarily have to give credit.

You can use the photographs personally and commercially. It includes blogs, ads, packaging, books, flyers, and social media posts. You can modify them, which is the only way to resell further or redistribute the images. However, take care not to use the models negatively, use them for promotions, etc.

10. Unsplash

Unsplash is another OG resource offering more than three million hand-picked visual elements. It powers other significant brands like Buzzfeed, Trello, and Squarespace. According to the website, their talented and giving community of 293,995 photographers gift them these free images.

You can download illustrations and drawings in different categories. For instance, paintings, doodles, modern art, murals, and scale drawing are some of these genres. You can also save photos in various categories like wallpapers, 3D images, nature, patterns, fashion, food, people, business, and more. These images and pieces are ideal for presentations, mockups, etc.

Unsplash

Through the Unsplash License, you can use these images entirely for free. Attribution is not compulsory, whether you use the photos for personal or commercial purposes. Reselling is only allowed if you edit and change the image noticeably. You can upgrade your free account to Unsplash +. It offers an unlimited subscription at $4 a month. It provides more exclusive content, features, and legal protection.

11. Vecteezy

Vecteezy has the most extensive vector illustration collection, with over 650,000 files in its database. It has a comprehensive interface with filters to sort the images by orientation, type, and color.

You can get any type of visuals, from digital illustrations and doodles to vintage sketches and etchings. If you look up ‘drawing,’ you can view line, hand, children’s, and other niche types of pictorial content. For example, architectural drawing, pencil drawing, crayon drawing, freehand drawings, etc., are available.

Vecteezy

You can also get stock photos and videos through this search engine. Vecteezy is best recommended for presentations and web design. Their creative community works with the vision of simplifying designers' processes. Even major companies like Facebook, Amazon, Google, and BBC have used their products and services!

Under their ‘Free License,’ you can use the image personally or commercially for free. However, Vecteezy requires you to credit them. Under the ‘Pro License,’ you get access to exclusive content that you can use without attribution. You will also get unlimited downloads and more usage rights. The Pro version starts at $6.00 per month.

12. iStock

iStock is another incredible website offering a variety of video, photo, and vector content, including illustrations. Their engaging visuals come under various topics like modern technology, background wallpapers, and business illustrations. AI powers the search engine, which yields results that over 160k talented artists have contributed to.

In their collections, you can view bold line designs, flat drawings, and hand-drawn designs. These vectors are also editable so that you can customize them. You can get pictures in categories like icons, landscapes, animals, patterns, food, people, and background designs.

iStock

These are available in different drawing styles like cartoons, technical drawings, line drawings, children’s style, and architectural sketches. You can sort them by color, mood, orientation, etc. Templates for brochures, cards, and infographics are also available. They have classified the images into ‘Essential’ and ‘Signature.’

In the other categories, you can get specially chosen HD and 4K clips, including timelapse videos. These stock photographs are also available across a wide variety of genres. iStock aims to provide inclusively content that celebrates diversity.

It offers Standard and Extended Licenses to access royalty-free visuals in any size and resolution. You can either buy credit packs or subscribe to one of their plans. The basic subscription, which gives access to the Essential images, starts at $29 monthly.

13. UnDraw

UnDraw is a straightforward search engine dedicated solely to illustrations and drawings. Illustrator Katerina Limpitsouni wholly owns this creation of hers. The site holds over 500 vector graphics in each different category. These are suitable for marketing, podcasts, web design, app development, etc.

These illustrations are customizable so that you can edit them to your requirements. The editing features include adjusting the color palette and scheme for your brand vision using the color picker tool. You can even combine different sketches and create unique pieces. Additionally, save your server requests by embedding codes straight in the HTML.

UnDraw

You can download these copyright-free drawings in a PNG or SVG format. You can resize the Scalable Vector Graphics (SVGs) and flip or mirror them according to your needs. Since they are vectors, this will not affect the resolution. It doesn’t take a lot of effort- you can directly edit from the website! You can also install plugins in Adobe XD to animate them.

You can use the open-source visuals personally or commercially without worrying about licenses or attributions. The illustrations mainly cover topics like people and technology. So they are most suitable for data infographics, projects, and branding.

14. Humaaans

Humaans is a unique app for accessing drawings because of its mix-and-match feature. You can remix the characters by changing their postures, hairstyles, tops, and bottoms. It also lets you rotate and reposition the human figures in the vector drawing and edit the backdrop. In these ways, you can animate story scenes!

Their illustration library holds images for greetings, invitations, tattoos, or any other occasion. You can design your landing page and enhance the ambiance of your web content with Humaans. It offers plenty of templates and grids for you to work with. You can use these resources for personal and professional purposes.

Humaaans

The site mainly focuses on human subjects. So, it is most suitable if you want to build emotional connections through your creative project. Humaaans also has a Figma plugin you can add. These flat icons are available in PNG and SVG formats, and you can also access a sketch board. With attribution, these are entirely free.

15. Many Pixels

This website offers over 2500 royalty-free vector illustrations and icons. These suit blogs, web design, newsletters, and other commercial or personal needs. You can find artwork for presentations, social media posts, ads, logos, and other requirements. You can choose the type of illustration, ranging from flatline, monochromatic, two-color, isometric, etc., in SNG and PNG formats.

In their illustration library, you can find drawings under categories like nature, cities, food, health, and more. You can also find more technical topics like finance, marketing, analytics, and science. You can filter the drawing by its shade codes and get the ideal results. You can use these free resources without attribution if you don’t sell or distribute them.

Many Pixels

They have a subscription-based system through which you can outsource your illustration needs. At $549 a month, you can get an on-demand creative team dedicated to your design tasks. They claim to work with urgency without sacrificing quality! You get access to unlimited requests and free stock assets with these plans.

16. Ouch!

Ouch contains free vector illustrations in 140 trendy and professional styles. These include 3D Business and Casual models, Experimental, Stickers, Lettering, Silky, Isometric, and other fun genres. Numerous exciting topic classifications exist, such as Character, Events, Food, Animal, Web Element, etc.

They frequently add animated visuals to their collection as well. You can use an image search for accuracy. Additionally, you can download stock photos, royalty-free music, AI content, and other stock assets and plugins. You can even find designs for UX states like Subscribed, Register, Message Sent, etc.

Ouch

Under the Free License, you can save and use the PNG image with one click. However, you must attribute it with a link to Icons8, which owns Ouch. Choose a paid plan to get high-res SVG drawings that you can use without attribution, starting at $9. Ouch allows you to use these images for merch, packaging, prints on books, clothes, posters, etc.

These are some of the many fantastic options that can meet your illustration and design needs. Sometimes, you might be looking for a reference image for your artwork. Generally, using copyright-free photos for drawing is not considered illegal. However, always be mindful of copyright laws, license policies, and the nature of the image (generic or specific) within your context.

If a photo or drawing is copyrighted, then you need special permission from the creator to recreate it in this way. If you don’t want to replicate the photo by hand, there are many apps to do the work for you. Or, you can get photographs turned into memorable hand-made drawings to make a unique gift or home decor piece.

Either way, you can access millions of resources through these sites. It is beneficial when you face a problem, like when are on a time crunch or stringent budget. At the same time, good quality and variety are guaranteed. So in your next project, check out these websites for free royalty-free illustrations and drawings.