Lorem Picsum (picsum.photos) serves real photos from Unsplash, picked at random. placeholdr.dev generates an image that matches a description in the URL. Both are free, need no account or API key, and can return the same image on every load.
picsum.photos/seed/portrait/400/400placeholdr.dev/400x400/office%20portrait?seed=3Side by side
| Lorem Picsum | placeholdr.dev | |
|---|---|---|
| Images | Real photos from Unsplash | Generated by a FLUX model from your description |
| Choose what the image shows | No: random, or fixed by a seed or photo ID | Yes, with a description up to 120 characters |
| URL | picsum.photos/600/400, /seed/{seed}/600/400, /id/{id}/600/400 | placeholdr.dev/600x400/{description} |
| Same image on every load | With a seed or ID; plain URLs return a different photo | Always; saved images never change |
| Options | Grayscale, blur from 1 to 10 | Styles: photographic, digital art, anime; seeds 1–3 |
| Formats | JPEG, WebP | JPEG |
| Speed | Instant | 5–30 seconds the first time a URL is requested, then instant from the CDN |
| Free use | No limits stated | 30 new images a day per IP address and per live domain; saved images load without limit |
| Credits | Each photo has an Unsplash photographer, listed at /id/{id}/info | Generated images, no photographer to credit |
When Lorem Picsum is the better choice
- You want real photography and the subject doesn't matter: backgrounds, generic cards, galleries.
- You need many different images right away, with no waiting and no daily limit.
- You want grayscale or blurred versions.
When placeholdr.dev is the better choice
- The image has to show something specific: a product, a dish, a room, a person at work.
- A random landscape in a team-member card or a product grid would distract from the design.
- You want a consistent look across a page, or illustrations and anime art instead of photos.
Switching from Lorem Picsum
Replace the seed with a description of what the image should show:
https://picsum.photos/seed/team-1/400/400
https://placeholdr.dev/400x400/office%20portrait?seed=1- Lorem Picsum puts width and height in separate path segments; placeholdr.dev writes them as
400x400. - A Lorem Picsum seed picks any random photo. A placeholdr.dev seed (1, 2 or 3) picks one of three versions of your description.
- The first request for a new URL returns a temporary SVG while the image is generated. Reload after a few seconds.
More comparisons
- All placeholder image services
- placehold.co vs placeholdr.dev
- Pollinations vs placeholdr.dev
- Unsplash Source replacement
Try placeholdr.dev in the demo, or read the full API reference. Spotted something out of date? Write to hello@placeholdr.dev.