How to Add a Person to a Photo on iPhone (No Extra Apps)

Last Updated: 2026-01-27 18:44:19

Someone missed the meetup. A relative couldn't make the holiday photo. You may be mocking up a meme or making a profile photo with a single-color background for social media or resumes. In all of these cases, you can add a person to a photo on iPhone without installing any additional apps. In this guide, you'll explore two native options, a fast Sticker approach for quick socials and a more flexible Shortcuts overlay for cleaner placement.

Why You Might Add a Person to a Picture

Sometimes a great image needs one more face. Here are practical reasons you might add person to photo on iPhone:

Complete the squad: A friend couldn't make the meetup? Add people to photo so the whole group appears in one frame.
Family keepsakes: Include a relative who missed the holiday or reunion to finish a memory you'll print and share.
Event recaps: Build a single team shot from multiple images when schedules didn't overlap.
Meme or gag edits: Place someone where they obviously "shouldn't" be for a playful post. One of the best reasons to add a photo to a photo is for humor.
Travel/story continuity: Keep the same cast across a trip carousel when some stops were taken solo.
Background redo: You love the people but hate the scene. Move a cutout to a cleaner backdrop instead of reshooting.
Brand/layout needs: Create consistent headcounts or spacing for posters, invites, and thumbnails.
Profile photo: Create a professional headshot by placing the cutout on a single-color background. Ideal for LinkedIn, resumes, portfolios, or ID badges.

Method 1: Add People to Photo via Stickers (Fast, but Limited)

Placing stickers is a quick way to add a person to a photo on iPhone in the Photos app using Markup. This is great for casual posts and stories. But the Stickers/Markup panel works best with standard photos in your library. It may not appear for certain file types (document scans, screenshots/PDFs).

Steps: Create & Place the Sticker

Open the source photo (the one with the person). Touch and hold the person until the subject "lifts" and you see a glowing outline.
Choose Add Sticker from the options that pop up on the screen (or Share → Add Sticker) to store it in your sticker tray.
In the photo you want to edit, tap Edit → Markup (pen icon) → + icon → Add Sticker, then select your saved sticker.
Resize, rotate, or position the subject, and tap Done to save.

After placing, nudge Exposure and Shadows, or add a subtle filter, so the sticker doesn't look "pasted on".

Method 2: Add a Photo to a Photo via Overlay (Versatile)

If you are learning how to edit someone into a picture on iPhone because you want to do it repeatedly for different subjects and photos, or you want cleaner control than Stickers, then set up a simple Shortcut that overlays one image onto another.

Part A - Prepare the Subject (Save as a Background-Free Image)

Open the source photoand touch & hold the person to lift the subject.
When options appear, choose Share → Save Image. This saves a cutout (identical to a PNG with transparency) to your Photos.

Part B - Build the Overlay Shortcut

The following is a One-time setup that will only take a few minutes:

Open theShortcuts app on your iPhone, which is available by default. Tap + on the top right corner to create a new shortcut.
Search and add Select Photos as an action (this will be your firstimage picker).
Add another Select Photos(this will be your second image picker).
Search and add Overlay Image as the third action.
Now comes the most important part. Press and hold the first button in overlay image action, choose Select Variable, and tap the first Select Photos action you added.
Similarly, press and hold the second button in the overlay image action, then choose Select variable, and tap the second Select photos action you added.
Finally, search and add theSave to Photos action at the end.
Rename this shortcut as Overlay Imagesif you want, and tap Done to save it.
Optionally, you can open the details of this shortcut, enable Show in Share Sheet, or add it to the Home Screen.

Part C - How to Crop People into Pictures

Run the Overlay Images shortcut.
Select the cutout subjectyou saved (according to Part A).
Select your target photo(the background).
On the overlay screen, move/scale/rotateand adjust opacity until it fits. Tap Done to save your composite straight to Photos.

You can also open the newly created photos and edit them to make them seem original or natural. Gently match Temperature, Tint, Exposure, and Shadows to the scene. A slight Vignette hides hard edges and ties the layers together. Add any filters if they improve the final look.

Bonus: Add A Person to A Picture On Desktop with HitPaw FotorPea

Sometimes working on a bigger screen simply gives you more control to insert person into photo. If you want cleaner edges, better tone matching, or you just prefer editing on a laptop or PC, HitPaw FotorPea is a strong option. It combines editing tools with AI features that make adding people to pictures faster and more forgiving.

Key features that help with this kind of edit include:

AI Canvas

Open multiple images in the same workspace, overlay a person onto a new scene, remove backgrounds, upscale quality, and run AI fixes to refine color and detail. It works on the same principle as the iPhone overlay method, but with more room to fine-tune the final result.

Face Swap

Swap the face of your provided subject with any subject in a photo and let the software automatically adjust lighting, skin tone, and color so you look like you were always part of the shot.

Background Remover / Replacer

When a simple overlay still looks fake, you can cut the subject out and drop everyone into a new background. Changing the environment often makes the composite feel far more natural.

Steps to Add a Person in a Photo using AI Canvas:

Download and installHitPaw FotorPea from the official HitPaw website, then open the program on your computer.
Click on AI Photo Editor to access AI Canvas.
Upload the destination image in which you would like to add your subject.
Add the image of the subject in the AI Canvas by clicking on the "+" option and then "Add Image".
Select the image that contains the subject, and from the pop-up menu select BG Remover.
Drag and adjust the subject on the destination image. While for some projects this would be enough, some other projects (like the one in the image) would need the following steps for better results.
Select the destination image and remove its background as well.
Now adjust both background-removed images as you want them to, and layer the images in a way that would hide the weak points.
Finally, add a background to make this image more realistic. Add a background image and then crop and layer it according to subjects.
Select the "Choose" option from the menu, click and drag the arrow across all these layers, and select the "Merge Layers" option.
Right-click on this newly formed image and hit export to download it.

Conclusion

When you need to add a person to a photo on iPhone, choose the workflow that fits your goal. For quick social posts, the Sticker method is fast and simple. For repeat use and cleaner control, the Overlay Shortcut gives you a reusable, versatile tool that keeps blends believable. And if your project calls for natural and fast photoshop, HitPaw FotorPea handles the ai editing with convincing tone and shadow matching. With these options, adding people to photos on iPhone becomes a straightforward, repeatable skill, no extra apps required.