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Turn Any Photo into a Cartoon: 25+ Stunning ChatGPT Prompts You Must Try

Author: Andy Samue | 2025-07-08

If you’ve been anywhere near social media lately, you’ve probably seen photos turned into charming cartoons, cinematic 3D characters, or nostalgic hand-drawn sketches. From Ghibli anime to retro pixel games, everyone’s remixing portraits and pets into wildly different cartoon aesthetics, and it’s all powered by ChatGPT’s new image generation features.

Whether you want to transform your selfie into a Pixar-style hero or give your dog a South Park makeover, this prompt list makes it easy to achieve incredible cartoon-style remixes. This curated list includes over 25 of the best ChatGPT photo to cartoon prompts. Let’s dive into the cartoon wonderland.

Best ChatGPT Photo to Cartoon Prompts

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt

The image above is the base photo used for every style shown below. I’ve curated 27 of the most creative cartoon looks, each paired with a custom prompt so you can easily recreate the effect yourself.

Ghibli

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 1

Also Read: How to Make a Ghibli Image In ChatGPT?

Prompt:

“Transform this image into a scene inspired by Studio Ghibli, with a painterly anime aesthetic. Emphasize soft watercolor textures and rich, verdant landscapes. The characters should have large, expressive eyes that convey deep emotion. Capture a mood of gentle nostalgia with warm, ambient lighting, delicate magical elements, and tender, brushstroke-like detailing throughout.”

Pixar 3D

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 2

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image with a delightful 3D animation flair, featuring sleek and stylized character models enhanced by nuanced, expressive facial movements. Use cinematic warm lighting and thoughtfully framed compositions to create a polished, high-end visual. Prioritize storytelling through body language, emotional expression, and shot composition, maintaining a wholesome and heartfelt atmosphere with refined textures and visual clarity.”

Disney Classic

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 3

Prompt:

“Recreate this image in a classic mid-century fairytale animation style, evoking the charm of traditional 2D cel animation. Highlight characters with large, emotive eyes and elegant, flowing poses. Set them against delicately hand-painted backgrounds with smooth color transitions and enchanting light effects. Capture the nostalgic, storybook feeling reminiscent of animation’s golden era.”

DreamWorks

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 4

Prompt:

“Render this photo in DreamWorks style with exaggerated facial features, vibrant 3D animation, and playful storytelling.”

Rick and Morty

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 5

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image in a surreal, science-fiction cartoon aesthetic, flat 2D visuals with uneven, sketchy outlines and wildly distorted proportions. Emphasize bizarre facial expressions, twisted humor, and otherworldly environments filled with interdimensional portals and chaotic alien landscapes. Use a subdued color scheme punctuated by vibrant electric accents to bring out the eccentric, offbeat energy.”

South Park

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 6

Prompt:

“Redraw this photo in the South Park animation style: blocky shapes, minimal shading, paper-texture look, and sarcastic expressions.”

Looney Tunes

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 7

Prompt:

“Transform this photo into Looney Tunes-style animation with rubbery limbs, expressive eyes, and vintage hand-painted backgrounds.”

Hanna-Barbera

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 8

Prompt:

“Recreate this image in Hanna-Barbera style with bold lines, flat colors, mid-century character design, and simple stylized backgrounds.”

Fleischer Studios

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 9

Prompt:

“Recreate this image in the whimsical style of 1930s rubber hose animation, with surreal, stretchy movements and lively, jazz-inspired character designs. Feature pie-cut eyes and fluid, looping motion to evoke classic hand-drawn charm. Incorporate vintage backgrounds with a film grain overlay, and stick to a black-and-white or early Technicolor palette for an authentic retro vibe.”

Lego Style

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 10

Also Read: 10 Best ChatGPT Photo Editing Prompts

Prompt:

“Rebuild this image in the distinctive Lego aesthetic, using fully plastic brick structures with modular, blocky forms and clearly visible stud textures. Render the scene in a playful 3D toy-like style, with vivid primary colors throughout. Characters should feature classic Lego traits like rounded yellow faces and claw-shaped hands, capturing the charm of a miniature, buildable world.”

Low Poly 3D

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 11

Prompt:

“Recreate this image using a low poly 3D aesthetic, characterized by minimal geometric detail, sharp angular forms, and flat, untextured color shading. Apply simple, understated lighting to enhance the clean, retro-inspired feel of early 3D graphics.”

Cel Shading

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 12

Prompt:

“Reimagine this photo with cel-shaded animation style, bold outlines, flat shadows, and anime-style lighting.”

Claymation / Stop-Motion

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 13

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image in a Claymation-inspired style, featuring tactile clay surfaces with handcrafted textures, including subtle fingerprints and natural imperfections. Highlight slightly irregular shapes and sculpted, expressive faces to evoke a stop-motion charm, complemented by gentle lighting that enhances the handmade, organic feel.”

Felt Texture

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 14

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image with soft felt textures, pastel colors, sewn details, and gentle handmade charm.”

Crayon Drawing

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 15

Prompt:

“Transform this photo into a crayon drawing, with scribbly lines, childlike proportions, and rough color textures.”

Cyberpunk

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 16

Prompt:

“Remix this photo in cyberpunk cartoon style with neon glow, dark techwear, and rainy city background.”

Vaporwave

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 17

Prompt:

“Transform this image with a Vaporwave aesthetic, immerse it in neon pink and purple hues, reflective chrome surfaces, and glowing digital sunset gradients. Incorporate retrofuturistic elements from the 1980s, including wireframe grid landscapes and surreal, nostalgia-drenched visuals that blur the line between past and future.”

Graffiti Street Art

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 18

Prompt:

“Recreate this image with a graffiti-inspired look, featuring vibrant spray paint effects, thick contour lines, and a striking mix of neon and high-contrast colors. Set the scene against a gritty urban wall, complete with tags, drips, and paint splatters that channel a raw, rebellious street art vibe.”

Gothic Lolita

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 19

Prompt:

“Render this image in Gothic Lolita cartoon style with frilly outfits, dramatic lighting, and Victorian fashion influences.”

Retro Pixel Game

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 20

Prompt:

“Reinterpret this image as true low-res pixel art, capturing the essence of classic 8-bit or 16-bit era video games. Render all elements with sharp, blocky pixels, no outlines, anti-aliasing, or smoothing effects. Stick to a tightly restricted color palette, using visible dithering and bold contrast to convey depth. Emulate the look of vintage NES or SNES sprites with clean, sprite-based visuals, and add subtle retro UI touches like pixelated hearts, coins, or a score bar in the upper corners to complete the nostalgic game screen feel.”

Doodle Art

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 21

Prompt:

“Recreate this image in a whimsical doodle art style, filled with loose, spontaneous sketches and quirky cartoon-like exaggerations. Emphasize a hand-drawn look with overlapping lines, irregular forms, and an improvisational layout that feels casual, energetic, and creatively unfiltered.”

Dollar Bill

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 22

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image in the style of an old-fashioned banknote, featuring detailed engraved linework and a monochromatic green palette. Incorporate ornate decorative borders, finely hatched shading, and a stately portrait framed in a traditional, symmetrical layout. Add elements like official seals or emblems to enhance the formal, currency-inspired presentation.”

Pop Art

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 23

Prompt:

“Recreate this photo in pop art style with speech bubbles, bold colors, and comic-strip vibes.”

Keith Haring

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 24

Prompt:

“Recreate this image as a vivid and bold piece of street-style graphic art. Use heavy black contours paired with flat, eye-catching colors. Depict abstract human figures using only basic silhouettes, completely faceless, with no eyes, nose, or mouth. Convey lively movement through the use of motion lines, squiggles, and repeating iconography. Keep the overall style flat and high-impact, avoiding gradients or shading to maintain a clean, rhythmic energy.”

Picasso

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 25

Prompt:

“Reimagine this image as a Picasso-inspired cartoon with geometric distortion, bold colors, and cubist structure.”

Surrealism (Dalí-Inspired)

 chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 26

Prompt:

“Reinterpret this image through the lens of Surrealism, with dreamlike visual distortions and fluid, melting forms. Introduce levitating objects and bizarre, illogical pairings to evoke a sense of the uncanny. Draw inspiration from Dalí-esque imagery, using symbolic elements and irrational compositions to create a reality-bending, otherworldly scene.”

Ukiyo-e

chatgpt photo to cartoon prompt 27

Prompt:

“Recreate this image in the style of Ukiyo-e, echoing the look of classic Japanese woodblock prints. Use delicate ink linework and flat, harmonious color fills. Incorporate traditional motifs such as stylized waves, swirling clouds, or patterned textiles, and arrange the composition in a historically inspired layout that reflects the elegance and balance of Edo-period art.”

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Conclusion

With just one prompt, ChatGPT can turn any ordinary photo into a stunning cartoon masterpiece—from painterly Ghibli scenes to blocky Lego avatars or vintage Ukiyo-e prints. Whether you’re reimagining yourself as a Pixar character, building a retro pixel game sprite, or just exploring new aesthetics for fun, these 27 curated styles give you everything you need to get started.

And if you ever need to check whether an image was AI-generated, don’t forget to use Tenorshare AI Image Detector for quick, accurate results. It’s the perfect companion to your creative journey. Now it’s your turn, grab a prompt, upload a photo, and watch your cartoon world come to life.

FAQs

Can ChatGPT turn a photo into a cartoon?

Definitely. With the right prompt, ChatGPT can turn any image into a cartoon in seconds.

How do I turn my photo into a cartoon image?

Upload your photo in ChatGPT, then use a style prompt like the ones in this article to generate a cartoon version instantly.

Can ChatGPT make a caricature?

Yes. Just describe the caricature style in your prompt (e.g. “exaggerated features, comic distortion”) and ChatGPT will create it.

What cartoon styles can ChatGPT do?

ChatGPT supports a wide range of cartoon styles, from soft Ghibli animations and Pixar 3D to edgy graffiti art, retro pixel games, and even surreal Picasso-like portraits. This article lists 27 of the best.

How to turn a photo into Ghibli?

Use this prompt: “Transform this image into a scene inspired by Studio Ghibli, with a painterly anime aesthetic. Emphasize soft watercolor textures, lush nature, expressive eyes, and gentle magical realism.”

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