Add a Photo Timestamp Online

Guide

How do you add a timestamp to a photo?

You add a timestamp by selecting photos, checking the detected date, choosing a format and position, then exporting a new JPEG. The result stays visible for review before download.

1. Select photos. Choose JPG, JPEG, or PNG files. A thumbnail and preview appear for the active photo.
2. Check the date. Review the EXIF capture time or the fallback shown when usable EXIF metadata is missing.
3. Style the stamp. Pick a date pattern, choose one of nine positions, adjust the edge distance, and inspect the preview.
4. Export a copy. Download the current photo, all selected photos, or a ZIP. Each processed image is a JPEG, and the source file remains unchanged.

Start with one representative image before applying the same settings to a group. Check whether the chosen corner contains a face, sign, or bright sky, then try an edge-center preset if the text competes with the subject. The distance control accepts pixels or millimetres, including zero, and the preview scales that spacing to the displayed photo. A quick test export is useful when the original is much larger than the on-screen preview.

Every position control is a regular button, so it works with a mouse, touch input, or keyboard. The active preset remains selected while you move among thumbnails. This makes the layout repeatable: a set of event photos can use the same bottom-right placement, while a mixed archive can be reviewed one image at a time before download.

Can capture time be detected automatically?

Yes. The editor reads embedded EXIF metadata and automatically recognizes the capture year, month, day, and time when the camera stored them. It checks DateTimeOriginal, CreateDate, and ModifyDate fields so you do not have to type the date by hand.

When metadata is missing, the tool proposes a fallback date from the file's last-modified time. Pro controls let you edit the working date, shift a batch by days or hours, or apply one date to every selected photo. The visible stamp always reflects the value you confirm in the preview.

Where does the working time come from?

The photo date comes first from embedded EXIF metadata and otherwise falls back to the file's last-modified date. The parser checks common capture fields, including DateTimeOriginal, CreateDate, and ModifyDate, and the preview identifies files for which an EXIF date was not found.

A fallback date helps with screenshots, scans, and edited copies, but it may reflect a file change instead of the photographed scene. Check it before export. Pro controls let you replace a working date, apply one date to all photos, or shift a batch. For images already taken or scanned, the picture date stamp guide and tool explains a date-first workflow.

The status distinguishes two situations that need different checks. "EXIF missing" means the reader was available but found no usable capture date in that file. "EXIF reader unavailable" means the browser could not load the parsing code within the upload wait, so the tool continued instead of leaving the controls stuck. Both cases use the file's last-modified value as the working date, but neither should be treated as proof of when the scene was photographed.

Camera dates can also be wrong even when EXIF exists. A clock may have been left in another time zone, reset after a battery change, or set incorrectly. Compare the preview with a trusted record before marking important evidence, legal material, or archival masters. Timestamp is an editing aid; it does not authenticate the date stored by a camera or supplied by a file system.

Which timestamp formats can you use?

You can use dot, ISO-style dash, slash, US, European, Chinese, compact, 12-hour, 24-hour, and custom timestamp formats. Presets include date-only choices and options with minutes or seconds, such as YYYY.MM.DD, YYYY-MM-DD HH:mm, MM/DD/YYYY, and DD/MM/YYYY HH:mm.

The custom format editor accepts year, month, day, hour, minute, second, and AM/PM tokens. Its preview helps catch a swapped month and day or an unintended 12-hour clock. These controls change visible text, not original metadata.

Match the precision to the reason for adding the stamp. A date-only format is usually calmer for family albums and progress records. Minutes can separate nearby travel or inspection photos, while seconds are most useful for technical sequences. ISO year-month-day order avoids regional ambiguity in shared archives; a US or European preset may be easier for a known local audience. Use one convention across a batch so readers do not have to reinterpret each image.

Can you add timestamps to several photos at once?

Yes, the free batch editor can add a visible stamp to up to 20 images in one browser session. Each file keeps its own detected or fallback date, while the selected format and placement apply across the export.

Inspect dates through the thumbnails, export one photo or the batch as JPEG downloads, or request a ZIP. If ZIP support cannot load, the page reports that outcome so you can use the separate JPEG export instead. Pro raises the session limit to 200 and reveals batch adjustment and fixed lower JPEG quality controls. This static activation is session-only: it creates no account and verifies no server payment.

A batch can contain files with the same base name, such as photo.jpg and photo.png. ZIP export gives those processed JPEG entries distinct names so one result does not replace another. If an individual photo cannot be rendered, the final message reports a partial result and includes only successful files; if none can be rendered, it reports failure instead of downloading an empty archive. Review that message and open a few outputs before moving or sharing the whole set.

Are your photos uploaded anywhere?

No, this browser editor does not upload selected images to our server. Your browser reads each file, builds the preview, draws the timestamp on a local canvas, and creates the JPEG for download on your device.

The page may fetch JavaScript libraries for EXIF reading or ZIP creation, but photo pixels remain in the local workflow. There is no account upload or cloud gallery. The finished copy goes to your browser's download location.

Selected files are represented by temporary browser object URLs while the page is open. Clearing the list releases the URLs created for the photos and thumbnails, and closing or reloading the page ends the current editing session. Downloads are ordinary local files, so their later storage, backup, or sharing follows the choices and browser settings on your device.

Optional GA4 analytics starts only after you accept it. It records site usage metadata; Google Analytics never receives your selected images or their pixels. Use Analytics settings to reject or withdraw consent.