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Introduction
One of the amazing things about the internet is the amount of freebies you can get. Whether it’s music, videos, or graphics, there are tons of free resources that you can use for personal as well as for commercial use. Royalty free vectors and designs can fall under certain categories as well.
Sometimes, websites allow you to use vectors and graphics on promotional posters, brochures, etc but prohibit any free usage on merchandise. Merchandising is also divided into two major parts: physical and digital. Another factor that comes into play is that sometimes usage of vectors requires giving credit to the author. In other cases, you can use the resource only after permission is granted by the author.
Pixabay
What is great about Pixabay is that the resources available here can be used on digital products as well. There are not many stock libraries that can provide users with so many freebies. You do not need to credit the authors nor do you require any sort of permissions etc. If you are in a hurry, Pixabay is the place to go. The collection is also large enough to keep you enthralled by its choices. Pixabay is one the best, if not the best, entries on this list for the simple fact that uploaders have waived all copyrights of their resources. You are free to manipulate the vector as per your wish.
PngTree
You can only use those vectors and PNGs that are marked for commercial use and that too, in promotion-based domains. As far as merchandises are concerned, you need to be a paid user to avail those benefits. Even then, the design cannot be used as a main element in your product. A ‘from PngTree’ tag is also required for usage. The collection of resources is large and there is optimum variety. You can also search designs and graphics through a series of tags and filters. The website also offers several templates to work with such as posters, business cards, brochures, flyers, logos, etc. You can also get nice backgrounds from PngTree.
Vexels
Vexels is one of the best vectors and graphic stock libraries on the internet. You can use their resources for promotional work but not on commercial products. One of the best things is that you do not need permissions from the original author of the design. Giving due credit to the specific author or a general attribution is, however, required. Vexels allows you to place design requests as well. You can download PNGs and PSDs as well as generate mockups with their new tool. There is also a t-shirt maker tool that is amazing for making merchandise especially if you are an influencer or a YouTuber.
FreeVectors
As the name suggests, this website offers a lot of flexibility when it comes to downloading free media resources. Most resources are usable on promotional campaigns as well as on physical and digital products. Some resources might come with a license though and you need to look out for that. It is also recommended to ask the author for permission before using his/her work. Crediting the author is also recommended and is highly variable from resource to resource.
FreePik
You can use FreePik’s resources for promotional campaigns and marketing advertisements. However, any usage needs to be in conjunction with a ‘designed by Freepik’ disclaimer or it needs to be attributed to a particular author. You do not need permission from the website though which is great for quickly deploying designs. As far as merchandising goes, designs and vectors can be used as backgrounds to a main, different design. Freepik does not allow you to use its vectors for commercial use on digital products. The library of resources is large enough to cater to general designing needs.
Pexels
Pexels is not exactly known for vector graphics and is more popular as a collection of stock photographs by community photographers. However, you can find some amazing images and designs in this library. You can use these images for promotion as well as in products but due credit to the author is recommended. The collection on Pexels is rich and vibrant and you will enjoy browsing through the different designs and images.
ShutterStock
Another huge source for royalty free vectors and graphics, the website receives more than 2 million submissions every day as claimed by its tagline on Google’s search results. Not only is the platform amazing for vectors, you can download free stock images in high quality and resolution. ShutterStock is one of the most popular places where businesses find useful images to use on their promotions, merchandise, and their personalized websites.
VectorStock
With a grand library of 23 million and more royalty free resources, VectorStock is one of the ebay places to visit if you are designing landing pages, an ecommerce product page, or a simple about us web page. You can search by the trending vectors or sort the collection by the newest additions. The collection is diverse and the tags are accurate enough to get what you are searching for. You can use the images for free if you intend to use them for promotions. Otherwise, there are pricing plans that you can check out. Each resource is priced differently just like an online store.
Vecteezy
Vecteexy provides users with good quality vectors and graphics. You can use their resources for advertising purposes except the ones which are tagged otherwise. The same goes for manufacturing or drop shipping merchandise with designs from this website. Also, it is mandatory to credit the author before using any resource on Vecteezy. If you do purchase a premium license though, you can use the resource without attributing it to the author.
Unsplash
Albeit last on the list, Unsplash is one of the best sources to download royalty free graphics. You can also find high quality vectors on Unsplash. Unsplash’s criterion for accepting submissions by contributors is good and only the best works are published on the website. You can filter by color tones of the images, their orientation, and their relevance factor. The stock library has some of the best captured images as well.
Conclusion
Ethics are important in everything that you do in life and your activities on the internet should not cross boundaries as well. The immensely helpful community on the internet has put in efforts to make free resources for everyone and it is our job to credit the authors where it is required and to ask them for permission as well. Royalty free resources can help you kickstart those marketing campaigns that were in the pipeline due to lack of funding or other budget issues. The best part is that when you do use these free resources and services, you do not have to compromise with quality.
About the Author:
Gurpreet Singh – Gurpreet is the Founder of Pixpa – an all-in-one website builder for photographers and creators to showcase, share and sell their work online. Trusted by creatives around the world, Pixpa enables you to create a stunning portfolio website in minutes, complete with built-in client galleries, online store, and blog.
