Guides · Finding copies · Updated 27 October 2026
How to use TinEye to see who posted your artwork first
Want to check your own artwork? Register it free and scan for copies. No credit card needed.
When you find a copy of your work, one of the first questions is: who posted it first? TinEye can help you answer it. This guide shows how to search, how to sort the results to see the earliest known copy, and what the answer does and does not prove.
General information, not legal advice. TinEye changes its pages from time to time, so look for the options named here rather than expecting the exact same screen.
Step 1: search with your image
TinEye lets you start a search in several ways:
- Upload a file with the upload button on its search page, or drop a file onto the page.
- Paste an image address (a URL) into the search box.
- Copy an image or its link, then paste it into the search box.
- Install a TinEye browser extension, right-click an image on any page and choose to search it on TinEye.
TinEye says it does not save the images you search with or add them to its index.
Step 2: sort by oldest
Results come with sort options: best match (the default), most changed, biggest image, newest and oldest. Choose oldest to see the earliest instance TinEye knows about. Other useful options:
- Most changed shows copies that have been edited the most, such as recoloured or cropped versions.
- Biggest image shows the highest-resolution copies, which is often where a clean download came from.
- A filter by website lets you check one shop or site.
- Clicking a result lets you flip between your image and the match to compare them.
Step 3: read the dates carefully
“Oldest” means the oldest copy TinEye found, not the oldest copy that exists. If your own post is in the list and is the earliest, that is a helpful record. If a copy appears to be earlier than yours, do not panic: your image may have been posted elsewhere first, or the date may only show when TinEye first saw it.
Take a screenshot of the results page with the date, and note the addresses. This is a record of what you saw, not proof of who made the work. For that, your working files and first-publication link matter more; see how to prove you made your artwork.
What a TinEye search cannot tell you
- TinEye says it does not index social media sites such as Facebook or LinkedIn, so copies posted there will not show up.
- No results means the image is not in TinEye's index. It does not mean the image is not online.
- TinEye cannot say whether a use is allowed. Only you, as the owner, know whether you gave permission or licensed the work.
Use it together with other tools
Every search tool has its own collection of the web. Repeat the search with Google Lens or Bing visual search, with a cropped detail and with a smaller version of your image. The step-by-step guide shows how, and what to do when you find a copy gives the next steps.
To stop doing this by hand, TraceMyAssets checks the artworks you register on a schedule and shows possible matches for you to review. We only see public pages that a search engine indexes, and a match is a possible match, never proof. See the plans.
Questions
Is TinEye free? TinEye offers searches on its website. Check its current page for limits and any paid options.
Does the oldest result prove I posted first? No. It shows the earliest copy that TinEye found. Keep your own dated records as well.
Related reading
Protect your first artwork
Register it, add an invisible watermark and review possible copies. You decide what to do. No credit card needed.