An illustration is an inventive and imaginative expression that illuminates a text, concept, or process. This type of creation has become so popular in web design, and for good reason so.
They provide a visual contextualization to every story or message that you are telling and give it just the right amount of personal touch that we are all longing. Studies show that our brains handles visual content faster than textual contest and remember facts that are shown visually better than facts only in text format.
There is a clear distinction between a designer and an illustrator. A designer relies upon rich media to collect and engage them in appealing composition. While illustrators produce the imagery itself.
Besides adding value and visual context, the reason illustrations have an instant appeal and will transform your website style and framework. Illustrations have been proven effective when placed strategically, it can help you convey a message much faster and they add a unique branding element into your website.
In this article, we will collect some of the best online resources from where you can download free illustrations and integrate them in your website to stand out from the crowd. The internet is full of resources you just need to know where to look for.
DrawKit
We will start the list with an amazing source of illustrations that is DrawKit. The beautifully appealing hand-drawn vectors come completely free, and their list of free illustrations is endless.
All the illustrations come in 100% vector, fully-customizable SVG files. Both PNG and PSD formats are included as well. You can choose monochrome illustrations and fill in the colors of your website to make it your brand.
Explore their amazing and vast collection either by searching your specific niche or using their built-in filters to find what you are looking for.
Paid illustrations can be made on a voluntary basis, that is why the author has left it open the possibility of you to set the price you think the sketch deserves.
You can sign up for their weekly collection which you can download for free or you could send requests to the authors on what their next creation should be.
If you are looking to download amazing illustrations and design them to your liking as to match your style and brand of your site, DrawKit proves to be a generous source.
Humaaans
As the name accentuates Humaaans is another illustration source that has a surfeit of beautiful collection of people drawn out in multiple events and situations. You can download their fascinating compilation for free for personal or commercial use. To get the free illustrations collection, you need to put the value 0 in the price box, but you can also decide to fund the project willingly.
You can create your illustrations, you can design their clothes, hair, or even environments. Design the bodies by rotating and positioning elements or take them to the beach, a concert, a club. It is all up to your creativity and imagination.
If you are in a hurry and in need of a pre-made free illustration you can choose from their templates and make slight changes and you are ready to go. You can create your characters by using any product design tool like Sketch, Figma, XD, or Studio to mix nested components.
Streamline Icons
Illustrations come in different forms and shapes, and we made sure to have an all-inclusive list of free illustrations, that is why StreamlineUX is included. They create an outstanding icon and vector illustrations that will enrich your website and give it a fresh cool look.
They come in three styles for every project: Multicolor, Duotone, and Line and have included 45 categories form which you can choose a tone and settings for your illustration.
Multicolor illustrations are filled in and with colors and beautiful visualizations, the Duotone illustrations include strokes, accent fillings, and background while the Line illustrations are drawn out in lines without any shadow and color.
Their extensive library of 3000 illustrations comes at a fair price of $199, but they include free illustrations stock as well. You can download 500 illustrations chosen from the editor free of charge, or you could purchase one category of your choice for $10.
For all the neat freaks out there, their library comes perfectly categorized with each file being placed in a specific collection.
unDraw
unDraw is a cool full-stacked website for downloading free illustrations of all kinds, either for personal or commercial use. You can download all their amazing collections free of charge, no need for an account, or any donation. Simply find the illustration you are keen on and download it on your computer.
Scroll down the page to find the illustration you are looking for. You can search by using a specific keyword and right next to the search bar you have the color picker from where you can choose a color for your illustration. The color of the illustration will instantly change allowing you to download illustrations that will match your site’s interior.
You can download illustrations in SVG format when you are creating your projects or PNG format for when using them in blog posts or social media. unDraw is an open-source illustration library that allows you to obtain copyright-free SVG files that you can customize, edit, and combine together many illustrations to create the story you want to share.
Ouch by Icons8
Ouch by Icons8 website is a boundless source of inspiration and vector illustrations that inexorably will elevate your website or project with their stunning collections.
Ouch’s team of professional designs and draws illustrations so that you don’t have to. They provide free illustrations and have so far completed 32 styles for 23 typical UX screens.
You can filter all the illustrations by a vector subject like 404 error, design, animal care e-commerce, or any unorthodox category you might think of, they provide the list at the beginning of the page. You can also search for certain vector illustrations based on their styles.
You can download all the packages of free illustrations with a simple click no account needed, but they will come only in PNG format, meaning you can not edit or make changes to the illustrations.
If you wish to download the files in SVG format to mix and match, design, change the colors or positions then you would need to upgrade to a paid plan starting at $19.90 per month.
ManyPixels
We will move onto our next source of illustration. ManyPixels comes crashing the list with a lavish and plentiful stock of free illustrations to create the most specials projects or embellish your website.
You can find many similarities to the unDraw site they provide a full-stacked collection of illustrations that are free to use without having to credit the author or making any payment.
The team behind ManyPixels is diverse, meaning you will find an extensive diversification of free illustrations and designs, increasing the chances to find something beautiful and unique.
You can download, customize, and use all the illustrations as you please, simply search via a keyword or scroll down the extensive library to find one that suits your website and style.
To make matters better you can use the color pickers to determine a color for the illustration and that should be it. Download it either as an SVG or PNG and complete your project.
Illustrations
What started as a #100daysChallenge transformed into a flourished open-source of illustration kit. As the creator of Illustrations Vijay Verma denoted, he was willing to offer his work to the world for everyone to have access and download it for free.
In his vast collection of free illustrations, you can find astounding and beautiful items that you can use either for personal projects or commercial purposes. You won’t need to credit the author or pay anything to get your hands on these amazing illustrations.
They are available to be downloaded in all formats AI, SVG, ESP, and Figma. Design and customize each illustration to match your style and your project. Simply click upon the illustration, choose the format and it will magically appear on your computer.
You can download the whole package for free as well. Just click on the Download All button at the top of the page.
Absurd Design
Eccentric and beautiful at the same time. These are the adjectives you would use to describe Absurd Design’s illustrations, but somehow we are fascinated by them.
Their ludicrous illustrations are on par with a sense of rationality and creativity and the final products are some of the most uncommon and unique illustrations you can find.
You can download their illustrations for free, but there are some limitations. You will need to attribute the owners with the lin included, you can only have 11 + 4 free images and they only come in PNG format, which you can not alter or modify.
To get rid of these obstacles and download the illustrations without any restriction you will need to become a member for a fee of $57 and gain the privileges to remove link attribute, download SVG illustrations in SVG formats, unlimited access, and many more cool features.
Iconscout
Iconscout presents another pack-rich of free illustrations for every occasion. They offer a highly organized illustration pack, depending on their usage, you have Landing Page Illustrations, Business Illustrations Delivery Services, Holiday and the list goes on.
Iconscout images will include both illustrations and stock photos, they come in kind of formats SVG, AI, EPS, and JPEG/PNG and high-resolution quality. They provide 902 Royalty-Free to download Illustrations that can be used for a personal project or commercial purposes.
You can search the free illustrations by category or and once you find one that you can masterfully use simply click on the download button, which will be available only in PNG format. To gain access to other formats and liberties you would need to have a premium package in play.
And if you can’t seem to find the right illustration for your project or campaign Iconscout will custom design your illustration. Evidently when running on a premium plan.
ITG Digital
ITG Digital is a true gem among the resources for downloading free illustrations. Not only they provide alluring illustrations in their ample library, but you can also custom design an illustration that will be authentic to your project or website. The biggest illustration library containing over 1,500 vector illustrations and 1,000,000 unique combinations.
This is the place you can find whatever illustration you are looking for. Simply search by composition or element to discover captivating illustrations in her prodigious assortment.
Editing and designing illustrations are done via their online editor where you can change its color, remove or replace elements, edit characters to match your needs and download it straight away either in JPG, PNG, or SVG format.
ITG Digital offers three main plans assorted from the Free package which will grant you unlimited customization access to design and edit illustrations, downloads in JPG format, and link attribute must be included. The offer also, monthly and yearly plans with editable SVG illustrations and unlimited downloads.
Glaze
Glaze is yet another substantial source of illustrations, that includes a considerable range of collections. If you go through their extensive library you will most definitely find what you are looking for. They have got categories for people, background, business & commerce, teamwork, places, and the list goes on.
To get your hands on any of their marvelous illustrations you can download them for free, but you’d get the file in PNG format, and also you would need to add the attribute link as it is the case with many of the sources.
Only with a standard or premium account, you will be able to edit and download the full illustration containing the source file, multiple colorways, and larger sizes without any attribution included.
The wide variety of fee illustrations and styles make this website an amazing source for your next project or your website. If you wish to include 3D illustrations, Glaze stores in its library a variety of amazing illustrations that provide a sense of depth and realism to all your projects.
LS Graphics
Among the amazing sources we listed in this article, they all presented unique styles in regards to illustrations thus giving us a variety of designs and styles.
LS Graphics made our list because they illustrate a specific niche, which can be extremely helpful and time-saving when searching through the large pile of illustrations. LS Graphics designs illustrations for SaaS projects.
On account of drawing illustrations for a specific niche, you will be able to explore their library and find exactly what you are looking for. They provide paid and free illustrations depending on their specifications. To gain unlimited access to all their products you must hold a premium account for $99 per year.
Besides illustrations, LS Graphics offers device mockups, brand mockups, and scene creations, all related to software delivery projects and websites.
Once granted unlimited access you will be able to download all the illustration you need and us top-notch design apps like Sketch, Figma Illustrations to edit and design the creations.
Blush Design
We added to the list Blush Design, a comprehensive and well-stacked source of illustrations. This wondrous platform offers an unlimited download of free illustrations, no credit card required nor a trial period. The free download of Blush Designs grants you Small or Medium PNG illustration files.
You create and customize files in Blush Designs and create outstanding illustrations using your favorite design tools like Figma or Sketch. The platform offers plugins for both of the design tools that help stream the workflow and ease the process.
Simply search the vast collection available on Blush Design to find every component you need for your next project. Customize the art provided by designers around the world and make it custom to your design.
All the publications on Blush can be used for free on either your personal as well as commercial projects. Also you can use the illustrations to create an end product for your or your client, but what you cannot do is re-sell, or re-distribute the illustrations available on Blush. or use them as the basis for merchandising. Check our Blush for more inspiration and information.
Freepik
Freepik is a large repository is design files where you can find just about anything. Freepik covers over 800.000 free illustration vectors and it’s library grows larger over time. Use the advanced search filters to land on the illustrations you need, whether that’s animals, humans, icons, and more.
It’s as simple as creating an account with Freepik and you can start downloading all the digital items you need for your projects. As far as licensing is concerned, if you are using files from Freepik there is no need to attribute the source.
The variety of formats that Freepik allows you to download is amazing, you can get digital assets in formats such as AI, SVG, or EPS. providing you the freedom to edit and customize each file with the designated design tools.
Use the advanced filters to easily find all the assets you need for your next project. Freepik offers a vast collection, and won’t leave you short-handed on any occasion.
The Noun Project
The Noun Project presents an outstanding collection of royalty-free vector icons, including a curated list of over two million icons, one thing’s for sure, the endless sea of vector icons here will be the beloved solution for every designer.
You can find a diverse set of icons, giving you the opportunity to find everything you are looking for in your project. You can easily download the assets included in the platform, as well as integrate them into the Google suite software.
The large collection is available for free and paid members available on The Noun Project, only if you download the icons without an active paid membership you would need to credit the designer.
As the website beholds the slogan of “the most diverse collection of icons”, this is the place where you will find all the most diverse collection of vector icons designed by a global community
Storytale
Storytale is another amazing source of free illustrations that offers a bountiful of options and solutions for every designer and creative. Search through their collection of freebies to find free vector illustrations that you can edit and customize with various design tools and sotfwares.
In terms of licensing Storytale provides a paid membership that grants full access on the entire library, but the freebies collection allows you to download illustrations for both personal and commercial projects.
Download the assets either as SVG or PNG files. Find all the most high-quality illustrations to bring your projects to life. Find the category of items you need either 404 page, services, relationships, or any type of activity.
Final Thoughts
The internet is a colossal derivation of sources of all kinds, and as evident illustrations are no exceptions either. In this article, we aimed to collect all the best resources to help you find the next illustration for your project.
Some of the illustrations we presented can be obtained entirely free, some have restrictions regarding ownership and will need to pay to get the results you’d like. Nevertheless, depending on your style and the aesthetic you want to give your website or project, you can opt for either source we listed and not leave empty-handed.
Illustration speaks volumes to whatever message or story you want to share and it would be only fair to be highly picky of the creations you want to include. Go through our list and decide exactly the style and design that suits you to make the right choice.
