Remove background

Remove background cuts the subject out of an image. Use it for product photos, avatars, and assets that go on other backgrounds. An SVG input returns an SVG.

$0.01

per request

PNG, JPG, WEBP, SVG

SVG in, SVG out. Up to 10 MB, 16 MP

POST /v1/images/removeBackground

endpoint

Try it

Get an API token on your profile page (it needs a positive API units balance) and set it once per terminal session:

export RECRAFT_API_TOKEN=your_token

Then run. The request removes the background from a public sample illustration:

curl https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $RECRAFT_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "image_url": "https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/655727fe69827d9a402de12c/679b82f54ef9617939df9d8e_motorcycle--going-fast.png"
  }'

# pip install requests
import os

import requests

response = requests.post(
    'https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground',
    headers={'Authorization': f"Bearer {os.environ['RECRAFT_API_TOKEN']}"},
    json={
        'image_url': 'https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/655727fe69827d9a402de12c/679b82f54ef9617939df9d8e_motorcycle--going-fast.png',
    },
)
if not response.ok:
    raise SystemExit(f'{response.status_code}: {response.text}')
print(response.json()['image']['url'])

// Node.js 18+, run as an ES module (file.mjs)
const response = await fetch('https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.RECRAFT_API_TOKEN}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    image_url: 'https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/655727fe69827d9a402de12c/679b82f54ef9617939df9d8e_motorcycle--going-fast.png',
  }),
});
if (!response.ok) throw new Error(await response.text());
const result = await response.json();
console.log(result.image.url);

# pip install openai
import os

from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    base_url='https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1',
    api_key=os.environ['RECRAFT_API_TOKEN'],
)

response = client.post(
    path='/images/removeBackground',
    cast_to=object,
    body={
        'image_url': 'https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/655727fe69827d9a402de12c/679b82f54ef9617939df9d8e_motorcycle--going-fast.png',
    },
)
print(response['image']['url'])

Response

{
  "created": 1759140000,
  "credits": 10,
  "image": {
    "image_id": "0e6a1b8c-5b1f-4a8e-9f3a-2c7d4e8b9a10",
    "url": "https://..."
  }
}

The result is a single image, not a data array. A raster input returns a raster file in the image_format you choose. An SVG input returns an SVG file.
Image URLs are temporary: files are kept for about 24 hours, so download them. See Limits and sizes.
credits is the number of API units charged for the request.

Parameters

Parameter	Type, default	Description
`image_url`	string, required in JSON	URL or data URL of the input image.
`file`	file, required in multipart	The input image, uploaded instead of `image_url`.
`response_format`	string, `url`	`url`, `b64_json`, or `multipart`. See Image inputs and results.
`image_format`	string, `webp`	`webp` (lossless) or `png`. Ignored for SVG results, which are always SVG. See Image format.

The input image must be PNG, JPG, WEBP, or SVG, under 10 MB, up to 16 MP, with sides between 256 and 4096 px. An SVG smaller than 256 px is scaled up before processing. An SVG over the size limits, or an unsafe SVG, is rejected. See Input images.

Examples

Upload a local file

curl https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $RECRAFT_API_TOKEN" \
  -F "file=@image.png"

import os

import requests

with open('image.png', 'rb') as image:
    response = requests.post(
        'https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground',
        headers={'Authorization': f"Bearer {os.environ['RECRAFT_API_TOKEN']}"},
        files={'file': image},
    )
if not response.ok:
    raise SystemExit(f'{response.status_code}: {response.text}')
print(response.json()['image']['url'])

Remove the background from an SVG

An SVG input returns an SVG, so the result stays editable and scalable. image_format doesn’t affect it.

curl https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $RECRAFT_API_TOKEN" \
  -F "file=@logo.svg"

Get the result as PNG

Raster results are lossless WebP by default. Set image_format to png for a PNG file.

curl https://external.api.recraft.ai/v1/images/removeBackground \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $RECRAFT_API_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "image_url": "https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/655727fe69827d9a402de12c/679b82f54ef9617939df9d8e_motorcycle--going-fast.png",
    "image_format": "png"
  }'

Vectorize

Turn the cut-out into an editable SVG.

Pricing

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Reference

Remove background

$0.01

PNG, JPG, WEBP, SVG

POST /v1/images/removeBackground

Try it

Response

Parameters

Examples

Vectorize

Pricing

$0.01

PNG, JPG, WEBP, SVG

POST /v1/images/removeBackground

​Try it

​Response

​Parameters

​Examples

​Related

Vectorize

Pricing

Try it

Response

Parameters

Examples

Related