How to Delete Text in Paint

Unlike other graphics applications such as GIMP or Photoshop, Microsoft Paint doesn't give you the ability to work in layers. After text has been added to an image in Paint, it can't be deleted. You can, however, remove the text by painting over it or copying other portions of the image and pasting them over the text. Another option is to crop the image to remove the area that contains text.

Painting Over Text

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Step 1

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Open the image in Paint. Click the Edit Colors icon above the image.

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Step 2

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Select a color by clicking the the rainbow-colored menu in the Edit Colors window. Alternatively, enter the Red, Green and Blue values for a specific RGB color or the Hue, Saturation and Lightness values for an HSL color. Click OK.

Step 3

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Click the Brushes icon and select a brush or pencil style. The Brush option, which is the first icon, should work for most images; however, the Airbrush and the Oil Brush may work well for textured surfaces.

Step 4

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Click the Size icon and select a thickness for the brush. In most cases, select the largest thickness.

Step 5

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Color over the text with the brush. For complex surfaces, you can break up the painted area by going over the text again with a smaller brush using a smaller brush size or by copying selections from the image and pasting them over the colored text.

Using Copy and Paste

Step 1

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Click the Select icon above the image. Drag the cursor over an area that resembles the area below the text. Press Ctrl-C to copy the selection and Ctrl-V to paste the copy. The copied selection appears in the upper-left corner of the image.

Step 2

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Drag the copied selection over the text. When you click anywhere outside the selection, it becomes part of the image and can't be selected and moved again. However, if you press Ctrl-Z to undo your previous edit, the pasted copy is removed, so you can start again if you make a mistake.

Step 3

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Zoom in and out of the image. If the pasted selection creates a noticeable border because of differences in texture or color, break up that boundary by copying and pasting smaller selections over the border.

Cropping

Step 1

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Click the Select icon above the image. Drag the cursor over the portion of the image that doesn't have any text in it.

Step 2

Image Credit: Screenshot courtesy of Microsoft.

Click the Crop icon. The unselected portion of the image is removed.