An object floating in space (or on your page), and text blending with the background. Find out here how to make the background transparent in Paint 3D and remove visible background from your images.
First, Pour Yourself a Glass of Water
What you see is as common as it is unusual—and possibly two different liquids.
For what it’s worth, the two-liquid model of water can explain much of its (or their) odd behavior. Instead of one very strange liquid acting extravagantly, you might see two ordinary liquids acting quite within the norm—with the typically strange behavior that ensues when they interact.
Now, back to the “seeing” part; because one liquid or two, what you see is often not only the water but also what’s behind. Let’s turn images in Paint 3D into a kind of water (or waters) with translucency:
How to Make the Background Transparent in Paint 3D
Using MS Paint? How to Make the Background Transparent in Paint
Time needed: 5 minutes
To make the background transparent for an image in Paint 3D for Windows:
- Open the image in Paint 3D.
Here’s how: Click on an image with the right mouse button in Windows Explorer, for instance, and select Edit with Paint 3D from the context menu or select Menu | Open in Paint 3D.
- Select Canvas in the top toolbar.
- Turn On the toggle for Transparent canvas.
No sidebar: If you do not see Transparent canvas and other canvas options automatically, click Canvas in the sidebar.
Permanent sidebar: You can also set the Paint 3D sidebar to always show.
- Optional: Make the background or part of your image transparent.
Here’s how to add transparency: See below for how to use the Eraser and Magic select to add transparency.
- Save the image as a PNG or GIF file when you are done editing.
Important: Only the PNG and GIF image formats support transparent background.
Now that you’ve removed from the background, add to the foreground: How to Add Grain Texture Effect to a Photo in Paint 3D
How to Remove the Background in Paint 3D and Make Part of the Picture Transparent
Using Paint 3D Magic Select
To make the background transparent and set your subject free with alpha blending using Paint 3D Magic select:
- Set up the image to use a transparent background. (See above.)
- Choose Magic select in the Paint 3D toolbar.
- Highlight (part of) the background you want to remove.
Foreground: If selecting the object in the foreground is easier, this also works, albeit with an additional step; see below. - Click Next.
- Adapt the selection if necessary to include all the background you can easily capture in a continuous selection.
- Turn off Autofill background.
- Click Done.
- Now click Delete in the Paint 3D sidebar to remove the selection.
- Optionally, repeat with other background areas to add more transparency.
To set an element free (and paste it onto transparent background) in Paint 3D:
- Use Magic select to select the subject.
- Select Copy under Edit in the sidebar once the subject is selected.
- Select Menu | New to create a new canvas.
Tip: You can also start a new instance of Paint 3D, of course. - Do set the image to use a transparent canvas.
- Press Ctrl V to paste the foreground object.
Using the Eraser
To add transparency to a region or part of an image you are editing in Paint 3D and remove the background:
- Make sure the background is set up for translucency in the image you are editing in Paint 3D. (See above.)
- Select Brushes in the Paint 3D toolbar.
- Now pick the Eraser brush in the sidebar.
- Use the eraser to replace content with transparency.
Only 2D: You can only erase on the canvas and in 2D with the eraser; to add transparency to three-dimensional objects, see below.
- Make sure you save the image using the PNG or GIF formats.
Remove a 3D Object
To delete an object from your 3D creation in Paint 3D:
- Select 3D Shapes in the Paint 3D toolbar.
- Now make sure Select is chosen in the toolbar right below.
- Click the three-dimensional object you want to remove from your canvas.
- Now click Delete under Edit in the 3D selection sidebar.
How to Make the Background Transparent in Paint 3D: FAQ
Can I make a 3D object transparent in Paint 3D?
No.
While you can change the color, shading, and lighting for an object in Paint 3D, you cannot currently make it translucent.
What happens to the transparent background if I save the image as JPEG?
If you save an image with a transparent background as a JPEG or TIFF image (anything other than PNG and GIF) in Paint 3D,
- the background will be saved as you see it with Transparent canvas enabled—typically gray.
Can I make the background transparent in MS Paint?
While Paint does not allow transparency in the same way Paint 3D does (and cannot save transparent PNG or GIF files), you can still make the background transparent with a bit of tinkering.
(How to make the background transparent in Paint 3D tested with Paint 3D 6.2305; updated September 2023)