How to Remove Text from a Picture in Photoshop

To remove text from a picture in Photoshop, select the Remove tool, set the brush a bit larger than the letters, and paint over or loop around the text. Photoshop fills the area with matching background, as Adobe explains in its Remove tool guide. If the text is on its own type layer, delete that layer instead. In older versions such as CS5, use Content-Aware Fill or the Clone Stamp tool.

Only remove text or watermarks from images you own or have permission to edit.

What you need before you start

• Photoshop on desktop. The steps below follow Adobe’s current documentation for Photoshop on Windows and Mac. Older versions have fewer tools, and some menu names differ.
• A copy of the image. Most of these tools change pixels permanently once you save and close the file, so work on a duplicate layer or a copy of the file.
• The Layers panel. If you cannot see it, open it from the Window menu, or reset the Photoshop workspace to restore the default panel layout.
• An internet connection for some features. The Remove tool may need to download components the first time you select it, and its cloud-based generative AI mode needs a connection.

Check whether the text is an editable layer

Look in the Layers panel first. A layer with a T thumbnail is a type layer, which means the words are still live text that sits above the picture. Select that layer and press Delete, or turn off the eye icon next to it to hide the text without deleting it.

You only need the tools on this page when the text is part of the photo itself, such as a JPG or PNG with a caption, date stamp, or sign baked into the pixels. In that case there is nothing to delete. Photoshop has to rebuild the background that the letters are covering.

Remove text with the Remove tool

The Remove tool is the shortest route in current versions of Photoshop. You mark the text and Photoshop replaces it.

1. Open the image with File > Open.
2. Select the image layer in the Layers panel and choose Layer > Duplicate Layer, then select OK. You now have a spare copy underneath. The same command can also copy a layer to another image.
3. Select the Remove tool in the Tools panel. A small floating bar called the Contextual Task Bar appears with the most common controls.
4. In the options bar at the top, set the brush slightly larger than the height of the letters.
5. Paint over the text, or draw a loop around it. You do not have to fill in the loop.
6. Release the mouse button. If Remove after each stroke is turned on, Photoshop fills the area right away. If it is off, you can mark several words before the removal is applied.
7. Go back over any leftover marks with a smaller brush.

The Contextual Task Bar also has Add to and Subtract from controls for adjusting the marked area, and a Create new layer option that puts the repair on a separate layer so the photo underneath is not changed. Adobe’s Remove objects page explains every control.

Choose whether the Remove tool uses generative AI

The Mode option in the options bar controls how the fill is created. Auto lets Photoshop pick a method and may use generative AI. You can also turn generative AI on or off yourself. When it is on, you can choose Cloud processing or Device, which runs on your own computer after a one-time model download. The Device option is unavailable if your computer does not meet Adobe’s hardware requirements for the Remove tool.

Remove text with Content-Aware Fill

Content-Aware Fill replaces a selected area with pixels sampled from the rest of the picture, and it lets you decide which parts of the picture are used. It is a good choice for a large caption or a block of text.

1. Select the text with a selection tool. You can use the Object Selection tool, the Quick Selection tool, or the Magic Wand tool. A loose outline drawn with a Lasso or Marquee tool also works.
2. Choose Select > Modify > Expand, enter a small value such as 2 or 3 pixels, and select OK. This pushes the selection just past the edges of the letters so no outline is left behind. Photoshop accepts values from 1 to 100.
3. Right-click inside the selection and choose Content-Aware Fill. The Content-Aware Fill workspace opens with a preview.
4. Adjust the sampling area, which is the part of the image Photoshop is allowed to copy from. Take out anything that should not be repeated, such as a face or another line of text.
5. Select OK to apply the fill.

Adobe’s steps are in Remove objects with Content-Aware Fill. For a faster version with no settings, right-click the selection and choose Delete and Fill Selection, which removes the selected area and fills it in one step.

Older versions of Photoshop do not have this workspace. Look for a content-aware choice in the Edit > Fill dialog box instead. The exact wording depends on your version.

Paint over text with the Clone Stamp tool

The Clone Stamp tool copies pixels from one spot and paints them onto another. It is slower than the automatic tools, but you control exactly what covers the text, which helps on patterned backgrounds such as brick, fabric, or grass. It is also available in old versions.

1. Select the Clone Stamp tool from the toolbar.
2. In the options bar, check Opacity and Flow. Lower values build up the cover more gradually.
3. Open the Sample menu. Choose Current & Below or All Layers if you want to paint onto a new, empty layer above the photo.
4. Hold Alt (Windows) or Option (Mac) and click a clean area next to the text. This sets the source point.
5. Drag over the text to paint the sampled pixels on top of it.
6. Set a new source point often, so the same patch of background is not repeated in an obvious way.

The Clone Stamp tool does not work on adjustment layers, so make sure an image layer or an empty layer is selected. See Adobe’s Clone Stamp tool guide for every option.

Other ways to remove text

• Spot Healing Brush: press J or select the tool, choose Content-Aware from the Type menu in the options bar, make the brush slightly larger than the text, and drag over it. This tool works best for small elements on fairly uniform backgrounds, so use it for a date stamp or a short word. The [ and ] keys change the brush size.
• Patch tool: hold down the Healing Brush tool in the toolbar and select Patch. Draw around the text, keep Source selected in the options bar, then drag the selection to a clean area and release.
• Generative Fill: select the text, select Generative Fill, leave the prompt blank, and select Generate. Photoshop fills the selection using the surrounding pixels and offers variations in the Properties panel. This is a generative AI feature. Adobe covers it in Edit images with Generative Fill.
• Solid color background: if the text sits on one flat color, pick that color as the foreground color, select the text, and choose Edit > Fill with Foreground Color under Contents. For a repeating background, the same dialog can fill a selection with a pattern in Photoshop.

Which method should you use?

Situation	Try first	Why
Text is on a type layer	Delete or hide the layer	Nothing has to be rebuilt
Text over a photo, current Photoshop	Remove tool	Fewest steps
Large caption or text block	Content-Aware Fill	You choose the sampling area
Small date stamp or single word	Spot Healing Brush	One drag on a uniform background
Repeating pattern or texture	Clone Stamp tool	You choose every source point
Flat, single-color background	Edit > Fill	An exact color match

Check the result and undo mistakes

Zoom in on the repaired area and look for smears, repeated shapes, or a faint outline of the letters. Hide and show the edited layer with its eye icon to compare it with the untouched copy underneath.

• Press Ctrl + Z (Windows) or Command + Z (Mac) to undo the last action.
• Choose File > Revert to throw away every change since the last save.
• If you worked on a duplicate or a new layer, delete that layer to return to the original picture.

When you are happy with the picture, save it under a new file name so the original file with the text stays available. If the picture shows an item you are selling, these quick product photo edits in Photoshop can brighten it and clean up the background.

If you kept the repair on its own layer, you can also export each layer as a separate image.

Tips for a clean result

• Work in small sections on detailed backgrounds instead of removing a whole sentence in one pass.
• If a fill leaves a hard line around the area, feather the selection before you fill it.
• Combine tools. Let the Remove tool or Content-Aware Fill do most of the work, then tidy the edges with the Clone Stamp tool.
• Zoom in to check edges, and switch screen modes if you need more room.
• Want to add new words afterward? Here’s how to change the font in Photoshop.

Troubleshooting

The Remove tool is missing

The Remove tool is only in recent versions of Photoshop, so update the app through Creative Cloud if you can. It may also be grouped with the other healing tools in the toolbar, so click and hold that tool group to check. In a version without the tool, use Content-Aware Fill or the Clone Stamp tool.

A message says required components are being downloaded

The Remove tool downloads its components once. Wait for the download to finish and do not cancel it. If you see a download error, Adobe’s advice is to check your internet connection, make sure you have at least 1 GB of free disk space, then restart Photoshop and select the tool again. Fixes for crashes and other problems are listed in Remove tool known issues.

Content-Aware Fill is grayed out or missing from the right-click menu

The command works on a selection, so select the text first and right-click inside the selection. Also check that the layer holding the photo is selected in the Layers panel, not a type layer or an adjustment layer. If you are painting on an empty layer with the Clone Stamp tool, set Sample to Current & Below or All Layers.

Frequently asked questions

Next step

Open the Layers panel and check for a type layer. If there is none, duplicate the image layer and try the Remove tool on the text, then clean up anything it misses with the Clone Stamp tool.