Factsheet
Videos
Is Google reverse image search accurate?
Not entirely. It depends on the type of image, how clear it is, and how much unique detail there is. The more unique the image, the more chance Google will find the exact one. But if it is a picture of a person with many things going on in the background, you may end up with hundreds of thousands of unrelated images that look vaguely similar.
Are there any alternatives to Google reverse image search?
There are many, although the results will vary. TinEye is probably the most well-known Google alternative, but a quick Google search will throw up dozens more.
Isn't Google Lens the same as reverse image search?
Yes and no — there is a subtle difference. Google Lens will identify objects, read text, scan barcodes, and more if you photograph that object. You’ll then get search results based on what it thinks it is. But it also finds visually similar images and has some of the reverse image search features.
Edit 2: As of today, February 12, 2025, this no longer works for me 😔.
New Chrome update finally the killed the flag that was allowing for old Reverse Image Search upon right click and ‘Search image with Google’. Now it's all just Google Lens. However, the functionality is still there (for now), you just need a way to access the URLs. Search by Image provides this.
https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/cnojnbdhbhnkbcieeekonklommdnndci
https://github.com/dessant/search-by-image
It actually does a whole lot more than just Google Images, but if you disable all the other searches, you can once again easily Google Reverse Image Search upon right click with ‘Search Google Images for image’. (If you don't disable the others then you'll have to go into a submenu.)
A couple other notes:
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Make sure to give it the file URL permission in Chrome's extension settings so that it can search downloaded images.
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If you are in the EU and subject to the DMA, you may need to make Google Search a linked service in your Google Account. As an American I didn't have to deal with this, but there was a whole issue thread about it. If it works without you doing this, then don't worry about it I guess.
Edit: Ah, yes, alternatively you can enable the flag that restores this flag and others, but those always get taken away in another 1 or 2 updates. IMO better to find a working solution like the above now. Of course, this solution may also stop working soon (maybe as soon as those flags are unrestoreable), but this is working for me for now, and that's what matters.