How to Use Object Eraser and Photo Assist on a Samsung Galaxy

Samsung Galaxy phones have image editing features that let you erase people (or shadows) you didn’t intend to photograph. On newer Galaxy phones, you can even reposition subjects within an image.

Samsung has changed the names of these features a few times since 2021, so the exact steps vary a bit depending on which Galaxy phone and version of One UI you’re using. Here’s everything you need to know about finding and using the right feature on your Samsung Galaxy phone.

Object Eraser, Generative Edit and Photo Assist

Launched alongside the Galaxy S21 series back in early 2021, Object Eraser was brought to even older devices like the Galaxy S10 and A52 (as well as gaining additional features, such as reflection and shadow erasing abilities) after a software update to Gallery around a year later. According to various Galaxy-specialised websites, Object Eraser is processed on-device.

Introduced on Galaxy S24 devices in January 2024, Generative Edit used Google’s Imagen 2 image generation model and was processed via Google Cloud, according to Samsung (meaning an internet connection and logged-in Samsung Account were required). It also had the ability to select a person/object and move or resize them, with the gap AI-generated. After rolling out to Galaxy S23 series and Galaxy Z Fold5/Flip5 devices with One UI 6.1 around spring 2024, Samsung also confirmed in April that the feature would come to Galaxy S22 series and Galaxy Z Fold4/Flip4, too.

Debuting on Galaxy S26 series devices (announced 25 February 2026) and rolling out to older Galaxy handsets from 6 May onwards, One UI 8.5 reworks Galaxy AI’s Photo Assist menu (which previously housed Generative edit) into four separate features, namely AI eraser, Move, Create and Style, according to SamMobile. Object Eraser is still present, albeit disabled by default; a moderator on Samsung’s online community assured a user back in June 2026 that it had merely been relocated.

As per Samsung’s One UI webpage, One UI 9 offers the same four Photo Assist options with the addition of being able to dictate photo editing instructions and view side-by-side comparisons of images pre/post-editing. Our One UI 8.5 photo features guide and One UI 9 changes cover the rest of each update.

Which Galaxy phones get which tool

Galaxy AI-powered phones that support Photo Assist will need to be running One UI 8.5 or higher. As of writing, Samsung’s official statement on One UI 8.5’s availability mentioned that the Galaxy S25 series, Galaxy S25 FE, Galaxy S24 series, Galaxy S24 FE, Galaxy Z Fold7, Galaxy Z Flip7, Galaxy Z Fold6, and Galaxy Z Flip6 will receive the update, although the availability of some Galaxy AI features may vary by device and region. Newer models like the Galaxy Z Fold8 and Galaxy Z Flip8, however, come with One UI 9 out of the box. Other Galaxy AI-powered devices that haven’t received One UI 8.5 still have access to Generative Edit, in which you long-press an object in your photo to select it before repositioning or resizing it, according to Samsung’s instructions.

Samsung’s Galaxy A phones have access to a smaller set of tools, dubbed Awesome Intelligence by Samsung, but according to SamMobile, most of these features aren’t generative AI-powered. Object Eraser is available on the Galaxy A57 and Galaxy A37, according to Samsung’s statement announcing the phones back in March 2026, but Photo Assist wasn’t mentioned. Our Galaxy A57 and A37 camera guide takes you through everything else you need to know about shooting with your phone’s camera app, but on those phones Object Eraser is the tool to learn.

Internet, Samsung Account and on-device processing

While Galaxy AI-powered features in the Gallery app require an active Samsung Account and internet connection according to Samsung’s support page (its Galaxy AI footnote says Photo Assist might require both), in One UI 8.5 Samsung introduced the option to use two of the tools we’ll cover on-device. According to SamMobile, that includes a toggle in Photo Assist’s settings menu that’ll let your phone perform the AI eraser and Move features locally as opposed to having to connect to Samsung’s servers, which it describes as a way to erase objects in pics without sending your photos to the cloud.

Photo assist’s AI eraser and Move page can be found in Settings > Galaxy AI > Photo assist > AI eraser and Move (menu name and locations may vary depending on phone model and One UI version), and has its own Process data only on device toggle. Turning on the more general Process data only on device toggle on the Galaxy AI page disables all Photo assist features (at least on One UI 7, according to SamMobile). Samsung’s advice on using Object Eraser doesn’t mention needing a Samsung Account or internet connection.

Samsung’s Galaxy AI page (checked 4 November 2026) says that basic Galaxy AI features from Samsung are free to use, with enhanced Galaxy AI features/services potentially being offered for a fee in the future. Previously (according to SamMobile in January 2026), it said the service would be free until the end of 2025. It’s not clear which features are ‘basic’.

How to erase an object with AI eraser

1. 1

   Open Photo Assist

   In Gallery, open the photo you want to edit and tap the Galaxy AI icon. Alternatively, you can use the steps on Samsung’s US support page, which tell you to tap the pencil icon and then tap the Photo Assist icon (a blue circle with stars).

2. 2

   Pick AI eraser

   Select AI eraser (shown on Samsung’s support page as an icon with a circle and an eraser in the top right corner).

3. 3

   Mark what has to go

   Tap the item you want to remove, or trace around it. Be sure to encompass any shadows, or they may remain.

4. 4

   Tap Erase and check it

   Tap Erase, and Galaxy AI will fill in the blank space. You can tap Previous to undo or redo changes, and Show previous to view the original image.

5. 5

   Save a copy

   When you’re finished, tap Save copy to save the image. The original image will also remain in Gallery next to the edit, at its full resolution.

Using the classic Object Eraser

On One UI 8.5, head to Settings > Photo editor settings in Gallery (via the menu button at the bottom right) and toggle on Object eraser. According to a moderator at Samsung, it should then be available again behind the four-circle icon when editing a photo, although they warn that it could be disabled again with a factory reset or large update. Select it and tap on whatever it is you want erased before tapping Erase.

How to move or resize a subject

1. 1

   Choose Move

   Launch Photo Assist for the desired image and select Move (in Samsung’s instructions for One UI 8 and below, this step is labelled Generative edit, with a slight difference in how the object is selected, which is a long press).

2. 2

   Drag or resize

   Reposition, resize and rotate the object as required (Samsung’s older guide also includes a lever for tilting the image).

3. 3

   Tap Generate

   Select Generate and Galaxy AI will recreate the area vacated by the moved object and attempt to blend it in with the rest of the image. Examine the boundary between the moved object and its new surroundings closely before saving the edited image as a copy.

Moving will work better with a defined subject and some whitespace around it. For example, if there are two people and one’s arm is in front of the other person or if a person’s feet are cropped out, Move has to make up more of the image, and you’re likely to see evidence of that.

Removing shadows and reflections

Press your lens right up against windows and other glass surfaces when shooting to minimise reflections.

To remove shadows and reflections later, swipe up on any image in Gallery to see details and tap Edit suggestions – Erase reflections might be an option.

Alternatively, enable Object Eraser (classic) to access the Erase reflection and Erase shadow buttons – according to Samsung’s instructions, the latter analyses the selected area and intelligently decides which shadows should be kept and which should be removed.

If you’re using Photo Assist’s AI eraser in One UI 8.5, Samsung’s instructions don’t mention a dedicated shadow/reflection eraser, but you can trace around reflections and shadows and ask it to erase them like any other object.

BeforeAfter

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The watermark, content credentials and file size

AI-edited pictures saved from Photo Assist will have a visible watermark (according to Samsung’s footnote, to indicate that the image was created using AI; Samsung’s support page for Canada indicates that the watermark is placed in the bottom-left corner). Pictures edited using AI features in Gallery on One UI 7 and newer will have Content Credentials (the C2PA standard for metadata), and the Galaxy S25 was the first phone series to support Content Credentials. According to SamMobile’s article from August 2025, the Gallery app will show a button labelled Content Credentials next to the Contains AI-generated content label, and tapping on it will tell you details like which device and AI tools were used and when the edit was made.

AI-edited pictures may not be full resolution. Samsung’s support page says that pictures edited using Generative Edit will be resized (up to 12MP), and the footnote for Photo Assist (currently) simply says that pictures may be resized. So, if you’re taking 50MP or 200MP pictures, we’d recommend keeping the original around and saving/sharing AI edits as separate pictures. Our guide to 12MP, 50MP and 200MP explains when the bigger modes are worth using.

Undoing an edit and getting the original back

If you used Save copy when editing an image, the original file won’t be affected. Inside the editor, use Previous to undo actions and Show previous to see the starting point.

There’s also a new edit history in Photo Assist with One UI 8.5, letting you undo or bring back past edits, according to SamMobile.

To restore an edited photo to its original state, open the picture in Gallery, tap Edit and then Revert, select Revert to original and tap Save. The original image will replace the edited version in Gallery. Note this option may not be available on all models or One UI versions, per Samsung.

Tips for a cleaner result

• It’s best to remove an object in multiple stages instead of in one go. Start with the main body then zoom in and remove any smaller items you may have missed e.g. shadows, feet sticking out etc.
• Leave a small boundary around the object you want removed as AI can struggle filling in areas that have been selected right up to the edge of an object which can result in a ghostly outline of the object remaining.
• Once you’re happy with your edit, zoom back in and double check your work particularly in areas with repeating patterns e.g. railings, tiled walls, etc as this is where AI struggles the most.
• Sometimes it’s best not to use an AI eraser at all! If possible wait a few seconds and take another photo if there are people walking through your shot.

When Snapseed or Lightroom does it better

For small jobs, such as dust spots or a wire over a clear sky, a brush-based solution is often going to give you more control over what you're removing. One free option is Snapseed's Healing tool, where Google suggests you brush or tap over blemishes you want gone. It's a good fit for phones without Galaxy AI, and our Snapseed guide shows where Healing sits among its other tools. Similarly, if a copied print is scratched or dusty, see our guide to restoring old photos for the workflow from copying the print to adding colour.

If you're already editing DNG files in Adobe's Lightroom mobile app, then its Remove tool includes a Firefly-backed Generative Remove option, rolled out to all of Adobe's versions of Lightroom (including mobile) in May 2024. However, it's included under Premium features, so isn't available with the free version of the app. The Lightroom vs Snapseed comparison covers the rest of the trade-off.