What is Imgur? Imgur Review

Imgur is a free image sharing website founded in 2009. It provides a simple and direct online image sharing service with editing functions, with formats such as jpeg, gif, png, bmp, etc. After users successfully upload images, they can link to blogs, forums or other websites through sharing codes.

Function

Users can apply for an account to gain more website features, such as photo albums and privacy settings. Imgur previously limited the number of uploads for free users, but now the limit has been lifted. There are only restrictions on file size and upload frequency: 1) For static image types, the file size cannot exceed 20 MB; 2) For dynamic images (such as gif) and videos, the file size cannot exceed 200 MB; 3) Only 50 images can be uploaded per hour.

Imgur provides free image space, and the overall interface and operation are quite simple. It provides direct links and can bind images externally. It also supports a variety of common image formats, such as JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, BMP, PDF, and XFC (GIMP), but it must be noted that TIFF, BMP, PDF, and XFC files will be converted to PNG format after uploading. Any file that is not a picture is not allowed to be uploaded to Imgur, or exceeds the file size limit (10MB). In addition, users cannot upload files that violate the rules of use on Imgur, such as: the file is not illegal or may violate the law; the file infringes on copyright; non-image files; the file is for advertising certain commercial products (such as goods or services sold), or any commercial activities, sponsor banner ads, etc.

After understanding the relevant rules of Imgur, you can immediately go to the Imgur homepage to upload pictures without registration. After clicking Browse and selecting the picture you want to upload, a box will appear asking the user whether to edit it. If you want to edit the picture later, don't forget to check Edit. When uploading pictures, a real-time percentage will be displayed to tell the user the upload progress. After the upload is completed, if the edit box was checked just now, the image editing options will appear. In this simple image editor, users can flip, resize, crop or compress the image. Finally, the relevant links of the image will appear, including direct links, HTML and BBCODe syntax. You can adjust the image size below and choose the size that best suits your use, such as original images, small thumbnails or large thumbnails. If you upload more than one photo at the same time, you may not be able to find the links to other pictures. Don't rush to press the green button below! Slowly find the position near the middle, where there are the first picture and the second picture. After clicking, you can switch to other pictures to get hyperlinks. When the images uploaded by users on Imgur are viewed more than 4,000 times within a week, they will be automatically included in the image library. In addition, you can also see some related data on the Imgur statistics page.

Image Format

Imgur supports JPEG, GIF, PNG, TIFF, BMP, PDF, XFC (GIMP). TIFF, BMP, PDF and XFC formats will be converted to PNG format after uploading.

The image size limit is 10 MB (non-animated images). When the image exceeds 1MB, it will be forcibly compressed to 1 MB for optimal browsing quality. The maximum size of dynamic image files is 2 MB (such as GIF and PNG).

Imgur has no image traffic limit. Whether you link to Imgur to browse images or browse directly, you can use unlimited traffic. When an image is not viewed for 6 months, it will be automatically removed from the Imgur system.

Founding Background

Imgur was founded in 2009 by Alan Schaaf, a junior at Ohio University, and quickly gained a lot of attention.

More than 500,000 images are uploaded to Imgur every day, and more than 1 million images are viewed every day, which is a 1,200% increase over the same period last year. Founder Schaaf said that if Facebook or Flickr are regular photo albums and photo gathering places, Imgur is the place for screenshots, PS pictures and various funny pictures. Imgur supports logging in through Facebook, Google, Twitter and Yahoo accounts, and you can also register an account to log in.

Development History

-In February 2009, Alan Schaaf founded Imgur in Athens, Ohio, USA. It was actually just a side project of Alan Schaaf's computer science class at Ohio University. The original designer planned to send it to Reddit, but later the website quickly became famous, with a daily hit of one million in the first five months. This may be due to the influence of related websites such as Reddit.

-In 2011, the company moved its headquarters from Ohio to San Francisco, California, and won the "Best Bootstrapped Startup" in the TechCrunch "Crunchies" awards.

-In 2013, self-serve advertising was introduced and Imgur had 100 million monthly active users.

-In March 2014, Imgur received $40 million in funding from Andreessen Horowitz.

In 2015, Imgur had 150 million monthly active users.

-In 2015, Imgur won the Webby Awards for Best Social Media and Best Community Website.

-In 2017, Imgur had 250 million monthly active users.