Photo Editor · Windows 10 and 11
Flip or mirror an image
One command mirrors a picture left to right, another flips it top to bottom. It is the quick fix for selfies with backwards writing, and it happens on your own computer, with the original left alone.
How to flip an image
- 1
Open the selfie or picture
Open it in the Photo Editor with File › Open…, or drop it on the window.
- 2
Flip it
Choose Image › Rotate › Flip canvas horizontal to mirror it, or Flip canvas vertical to flip it top to bottom. Choosing the same command again flips it back.
- 3
Or flip one layer
To mirror only the photo and not text you put on it, click the photo in the Layers panel and choose Edit › Transform › Flip horizontal.
- 4
Export a copy
Press Export, pick JPG, PNG or WebP, and choose where the flipped copy goes.
Horizontal or vertical: which flip you need
Flip canvas horizontal mirrors the picture: what was on the left is now on the right, as in a bathroom mirror. A face looks much the same, but writing reads backwards and a person who looked left now looks right. This is the flip people want most often.
Flip canvas vertical swaps top and bottom, like a reflection in a still lake. It is not the same as turning a picture over. A photo that came out upside down needs Rotate 180° from the same menu instead; flipping it would leave it mirrored.
Flipping both ways gives exactly the same result as a 180° turn. Flips combine freely with turns, straightening and cropping, so one session fixes a picture that is mirrored and tilted at once.
Fixing mirrored selfies
The front camera shows you a mirror image while you frame the shot, because that is how you are used to seeing yourself. Some phones save the photo that way too. The result: the words on your T-shirt, a sign behind you or the cover of a book read backwards.
Flip it horizontally and the writing reads correctly again. Your face may look slightly unfamiliar to you, since you know it from mirrors, but that is how everyone else sees you. Some phones have a camera setting that stops selfies being saved mirrored, if you would rather fix it at the source.
Flip canvas turns every layer, text included. So flip first and write afterwards, or flip only the photo layer with Edit › Transform › Flip horizontal, and your words read normally. The same goes for webcam stills and screenshots of video calls, which are often mirrored as well.
Flipping for design, and when not to
Designers flip photos so the subject faces into the page: a person on the left of a flyer should look toward the text, not off the edge. A product shot of a shoe or a car can be flipped so it points into a slide rather than out of it, and a road or a river that runs the wrong way can lead the eye where you want it.
Skip the flip when something in the picture would give it away: writing, logos, license plates, clocks, a famous building, or a wedding ring that jumps to the other hand. Group photos are touchy too: everyone ends up on the other side, and the people in them notice. Check those spots before you export; Ctrl Z and Ctrl Shift Z switch between the two versions for a quick comparison.
Need only part of the picture mirrored? Select it, press Ctrl J to copy it to a layer of its own, and flip that layer. Videos flip too: the Video Editor has its own Mirror button, covered on the rotate video page.
Other ways on Windows
Paint can flip a picture: open it, choose Rotate, then Flip horizontal or Flip vertical. Saving with Ctrl S writes over the file you opened, so use Save as or make a copy first.
Octoolo's Export always asks where the new file goes, and the editor keeps your work as layers, so the flip is one step of several: mirroring a selfie, cropping it square and adding a caption, for example.
Either way the result is a mirror image of every pixel, so nothing is lost in the flip itself; only the format you export in decides whether the file is written with any loss.
Octoolo or an online tool?
| Detail | Octoolo | A typical online tool |
|---|---|---|
| Your files | Stay on your computer | Usually uploaded to the site's server |
| Without internet | Works | Does not work |
| File size | No limit | Often capped on free use |
| Watermarks and ads | None | Common on free plans |
| Cost | $4.99 a month, all 17 apps | Free with limits, or a plan per site |
Questions, answered
What is the difference between flipping and rotating?
Rotating turns the picture around its center, so writing stays readable. Flipping makes a mirror image, so writing reads backwards.
How do I mirror a picture horizontally?
Choose Image › Rotate › Flip canvas horizontal. Edit › Transform › Flip horizontal does the same to the selected layer only.
Does flipping lower the quality?
The flip itself loses no pixels. The copy is exported fresh as JPG, PNG or WebP; choose PNG, or JPG at 90 or more, to keep it looking the same.
Can I flip only part of a picture?
Yes. Select the part, press Ctrl+J to copy it to a new layer, and flip that layer with Edit › Transform › Flip horizontal.
Does the flip carry over to the next photo I open?
No. Each photo opens as it was taken.
Can I replace the original with the flipped picture?
Export asks where to save. Give the copy the original's name and folder and Windows asks before replacing it; otherwise you keep both.
Flip image, and 16 more apps.
Download for Windows7 days free, then from $3.99 a month for all 17 apps. Windows 10 and 11.