How to Make Stickers From Photos on iPhone (Free)

Here's how to make stickers from photos on iPhone without downloading anything: open the photo in the Photos app, touch and hold the person (or pet, or object) until it lights up, let go, and tap Add Sticker. That's it. The sticker lands in your sticker menu, ready to drop into Messages, notes, or onto other photos.

Below: the exact steps, the effects, how to make animated stickers from Live Photos, and what to do when the button doesn't show up.

What do you need to make stickers from photos on iPhone?

You need iOS 17 or later. Creating stickers in Photos and Messages arrived with iOS 17, built on the "lift subject from background" feature Apple added in iOS 16, which only works on iPhones with an A12 Bionic chip or newer (iPhone XS, XS Max, XR and later), as MacRumors notes.

To check your version, go to Settings > General > About and look at iOS Version. If you're on iOS 16, you can still lift a subject and paste it as an image, just not save it as a sticker.

How do I turn a photo into a sticker in the Photos app?

Touch and hold the subject, release, and tap Add Sticker. Here are the steps from Apple's iPhone User Guide:

1. Open the Photos app.
2. Tap a photo to open it full screen.
3. Touch and hold the subject, then release. A glowing outline means iPhone found it.
4. Tap Add Sticker.
5. Optional: tap Add Effect to change the style.
6. Close the sticker menu when you're done.

The sticker appears in your stickers menu, which you can open from the iPhone keyboard or from the Markup tools.

Tip for best results: pick a photo where the person is clearly separated from the background, in focus, and not cut off at the edges. Busy backgrounds, hair blowing everywhere, or two people hugging can confuse the cutout. If iPhone grabs both people in a couple photo, that can actually be the cutest version.

What sticker effects can you add?

Apple offers a handful of looks under Add Effect, or you can keep the plain cutout:

• Outline: a thick white border, like a real die-cut sticker.
• Comic: turns the photo into a drawn, comic-style look.
• Puffy: a 3D, inflated look.
• Shiny: a holographic, foil-like look.

Apple's Messages guide mentions Comic and Shiny; the Photos guide mentions Outline, Comic and Puffy. The exact list can shift slightly between iOS versions.

How do I make an animated sticker from a Live Photo?

Use a Live Photo as the source. When you lift the subject from a Live Photo, the sticker can move. In current iOS versions, the Add Effect screen also lets you turn the Live Photo animation on or off.

On iOS 17, Apple's steps were slightly different: open the Live Photo, touch and hold the subject, slide it up until a duplicate appears, then release and tap Add Sticker. If one method doesn't work on your phone, try the other.

Animated stickers are perfect for a laugh, a head tilt, or someone waving. A two-second Live Photo of your partner cracking up becomes a reaction you'll use forever.

Can I make a sticker directly in Messages?

Yes. In the Messages app:

1. Open a conversation and tap the + button next to the text field.
2. Tap Stickers.
3. Tap the Live Stickers icon, then the + button.
4. Choose a photo. iPhone lifts the subject automatically.
5. Tap Add Effect if you want one, then confirm.

To send it, tap the sticker. You can also drag a sticker onto a message bubble, and rotate or resize it with a second finger. Apple notes that you and the person you're texting need iOS 17.2 or later (or matching versions on iPad, Mac, Watch or Vision Pro) to see stickers placed on bubbles.

How do I use my photo stickers in other apps?

Your stickers live in the sticker section of the emoji keyboard, so you can reach them anywhere the iPhone keyboard shows up. Tap the emoji key, swipe to the stickers, and tap one. How it arrives depends on the app: some treat it as a sticker, others paste it as an image.

You can also decorate photos with them. Open a photo, tap Edit, open the Markup tools, tap +, then Add Sticker, and place one on top.

For WhatsApp specifically, it has its own sticker maker that works a bit differently. See our guide on how to make WhatsApp stickers from photos.

Why isn't "Add Sticker" showing up?

Usually it's one of these:

• Your iPhone is on iOS 16 or earlier. Update in Settings > General > Software Update.
• Your iPhone is older than an XS or XR. The lift-subject feature needs an A12 chip or newer.
• You held for too short or too long. Touch and hold until the outline glows, then release. Don't drag.
• iPhone can't find a clear subject. Try a photo with one clear person or pet against a simpler background.
• You're in the wrong place. Lifting works in Photos, Safari, Quick Look and more, but Add Sticker is in the menu that appears after you release.

How do I delete a sticker I made?

Per Apple's steps: open a photo in Photos, tap Edit, open Markup, tap +, then Add Sticker. Touch and hold the sticker you want to remove and tap Remove.

Because your stickers sync with iCloud, deleting one removes it from your other devices signed in to the same Apple Account too.

Sticker ideas that hit different

A few that people actually use:

• Your partner's "I'm unimpressed" face, for when you send a bad pun.
• Your best friend mid-laugh, as the universal "LMAO" reply.
• Grandma holding up a thumbs-up, for family group chat approvals.
• Your dog looking guilty, for when you're late.
• A Live Photo of someone blowing a kiss, as an animated goodnight.

Looking for more photos worth turning into stickers? Our list of cute couple photo ideas has plenty of shots that cut out well.

Keep their stickers with the rest of them

Stickers of your people are tiny keepsakes, and they get buried in a keyboard drawer next to emoji. When Tucket launches, you'll be able to turn favorite photos of them into stickers inside a pocket just for that person, right next to their voice notes and favorite pics. It's built for couples first, plus besties and family.