BOARD vs Cleanup.pictures
Both tools remove objects from photos. Neither requires Photoshop. But they take fundamentally different approaches, and the right one depends on what you are trying to remove.
What each tool is built for
Cleanup.pictures and BOARD occupy the same category: tools that fill in areas of a photo that you want gone. But the workflows are different enough that they suit different jobs.
Cleanup.pictures is a brush-based removal tool. You paint over the area you want removed and the AI fills it in. This approach gives you precise control over exactly which pixels get targeted, which matters when the thing you want gone does not have a clean boundary. Think of a coffee stain on a table, graffiti on a wall, or a shadow that bleeds across multiple objects. You can paint as precisely or as broadly as you need.
BOARD is an object-detection tool. When you upload a photo, BOARD analyzes the scene and identifies discrete objects: people, cars, signs, furniture, animals. You hover to see what it found, click the object you want removed, and run removal. You never touch a brush. This is faster when the thing you want gone is a recognizable object with clear edges.
How Cleanup.pictures works
You upload a photo and select a brush size. Then you paint over the area you want removed. The AI fills in the painted region with a plausible reconstruction of what should be there. The tool does not try to identify objects, so it does not need to. You paint, it fills.
The free tier exports at low resolution, which is not suitable for professional or print use. To get full-resolution output you need a subscription at $7 per month. There is no pay-per-use option, so if you only need to clean up one photo, you still need the subscription for a month.
How BOARD works
You upload a photo and BOARD runs object detection in the background. Within a few seconds the scene is mapped: every recognizable element is identified. You hover over any element to see it highlighted, then click to select it. BOARD outlines the object and asks you to confirm before running removal. Click remove, BOARD fills the area, you download the result.
There is no brush. No painting. No selecting a region size. The AI locates the object boundary automatically. BOARD gives 5 free edits with no account required. After that, edits are approximately $0.50 each. No monthly subscription is required.
Side-by-side comparison
| Feature | Cleanup.pictures | BOARD |
|---|---|---|
| Detection method | Manual brush (you paint the area) | AI auto-detection (objects identified on upload) |
| Removal method | AI fills the painted region | AI removes the selected object and fills background |
| Free tier | Yes, low-resolution output only | Yes, 5 full-resolution edits, no account needed |
| Paid pricing | $7/month subscription for HD | ~$0.50/edit, no subscription required |
| Devices | Web browser, iOS app | Web browser (mobile-friendly) |
| Best for | Irregular areas: stains, spills, graffiti, shadows | Distinct objects: people, cars, signs, wires, furniture |
When to use Cleanup.pictures
Cleanup.pictures is the better tool when what you want removed does not have a clear object boundary. If you are dealing with:
- Spills, stains, or smudges on a surface
- Graffiti or writing on a wall
- Lens flares or lighting artifacts
- Shadows that overlap with objects you want to keep
- Irregularly shaped areas where you know exactly what to paint
Then a brush-based tool gives you control that object detection cannot. You decide exactly what gets filled. For these cases, Cleanup.pictures earns its subscription fee.
When to use BOARD
BOARD is faster when the unwanted element is a recognizable object with reasonably clear edges. Common examples:
- A person walking through a travel photo
- A parked car in a real estate shot
- A sign in the background of a product photo
- Power lines crossing an otherwise clean landscape
- A piece of trash or clutter on the ground
Because BOARD finds the object boundary automatically, you do not need to be precise. You click once, confirm the selection looks right, and run. For photos with multiple distracting objects, you can remove them one at a time in the same session.
If you can point at the thing you want gone and say "that car" or "that person," BOARD will probably detect it without any manual selection. If you want gone a stain or a painted region that is not a discrete object, Cleanup.pictures will give you more control.
Pricing, honestly
For occasional use, BOARD is cheaper. Five free edits cost nothing, and individual edits after that run around $0.50. There is no commitment. If you only need to clean up one photo this month, you pay for one edit.
Cleanup.pictures requires $7/month for high-resolution output. That is $84/year if you use it regularly. For anyone who processes more than 14 photos per month at full resolution, the per-edit math eventually favors a subscription. For casual or one-off use, paying per edit is more economical.
The honest verdict
Use Cleanup.pictures when
- You need to brush away stains, graffiti, or irregular blobs
- The thing you want removed does not have object-level boundaries
- You process enough photos monthly that $7/mo makes sense
- You want fine-grained control over exactly which pixels are targeted
Use BOARD when
- You want to remove a person, car, sign, or other recognizable object
- You want the fastest possible workflow: upload, click, done
- You need a few edits without a subscription
- You are working on travel photos, listings, or product shots
Both tools are legitimately good at what they do. Cleanup.pictures has more manual control. BOARD has less friction for object removal. Neither is a scam, and neither replaces the other completely. The best choice depends on whether the thing you want gone has object-level boundaries.
Frequently asked
Is BOARD a free Cleanup.pictures alternative?
BOARD gives 5 free edits with no account required. Cleanup.pictures has a free tier limited to low-resolution exports. For paid use, BOARD charges $0.50 per edit without a subscription. Cleanup.pictures HD quality requires a $7/month subscription.
Can Cleanup.pictures remove objects automatically?
No. Cleanup.pictures requires you to brush over the area you want removed manually. BOARD auto-detects objects in the scene so you can click to select them without brushing.
Which tool is better for removing a person from a photo?
BOARD is generally faster for removing a distinct object like a person, because it detects and outlines the person automatically. Cleanup.pictures can do this too but requires you to paint over the full area by hand, which takes more effort on complex shapes like hair and clothing.
Upload the photo you have in mind.
BOARD detects what is in the scene automatically. Click the object you want removed, run removal, download the result. Five edits free, no account.
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