Amazon's image rules, first hand
Amazon image requirements: almost every rule applies to one image.
White background, no text, no props: that is the main image. For every other image, Amazon sets only a few hard limits, mostly around reviews, shipping promises and Amazon badges. Here is what Amazon actually checks, where you have room and where it ends.
Of the 14 reasons Amazon gives for suppressing images or listings, 11 apply only to the main image. Just three apply to every image: blur or pixelation, a product that is too small, and prurient content. Knowing this, you can use the gallery as selling space and make deliberate choices for the main image.
Source: Amazon Seller Central, “Image suppression”, table of common reasons; our own count.
01 / Overview
Main image, gallery, A+: three areas, three sets of rules
Amazon doesn't treat a listing's images the same. The main image appears in search results and is tightly regulated. The other images are selling space with few restrictions. A+ Content goes through its own review with its own rules.
On small screens, swipe the table sideways.
| Question | Main image | Other images | A+ Content |
|---|---|---|---|
| Background | Pure white (RGB 255, 255, 255) | Free | Free |
| Text, logos, graphics | Not allowed | Allowed, without the claims in section 5 | Allowed, without promotional language or pricing |
| People | Only as a standing model for adult clothing | Allowed | Allowed |
| Scenes and props | Only what is included; a lifestyle scene only for a few product types | Allowed | Allowed |
| Never allowed | Customer reviews, five-star graphics, claims such as free shipping, Amazon logos and badges such as “Best seller” | Shipping details, warranty and guarantee information, competitor comparisons, links, QR codes | |
| If you break the rules | The listing can be suppressed from search until a compliant main image is in place | Amazon can remove or modify the image | The content is rejected; review takes up to seven business days |
Source: Amazon, “Product image guide”, sections on the main image and all product images.
Source: Amazon, “A+ Content guide”, guidelines and technical requirements.
02 / Reality check
What is often claimed and what Amazon actually says
Many guides copy rules from each other without checking the source. We compared the most common claims with Amazon's current guide. Amazon's statement comes first, our practical take below it.
“Text isn't allowed on Amazon images.”
Amazon bans text, logos and graphics on the main image; the swatch image also can't carry text or pricing. For the other images, Amazon bans specific content, not text as such.
What this means: Infographics, dimensions and comparisons of your own variants belong in the gallery. That is where they sell.
“You need at least 1,000 or 1,600 pixels.”
Amazon accepts uploads from 500 pixels on the longest side. Zoom starts at 1,000 pixels, which is why Amazon recommends that size. Amazon advises against artificially enlarging small images.
What this means: Today's cameras and AI images are far above that. What matters is whether details stay sharp in zoom. Blur and pixelation get any image suppressed.
“The product must fill 85% of the image.”
The 85% is part of Amazon's main image rules. Amazon lists “Product too small” as a suppression reason, and for every image.
What this means: The point is a product that looks large and clear in search results. A long, flat product will always leave white space in a square. Solve that with pose and angle, never by stretching.
“People and lifestyle scenes are off-limits.”
On the main image, Amazon only allows people as a standing model for adult clothing, and a lifestyle scene only for a few product types. For the other images, Amazon explicitly lists “product in use” as an image type.
What this means: Show use, size and results in the gallery. For photorealistic AI-generated people, add the disclosure to the metadata.
“AI images aren't allowed on Amazon.”
No such ban appears in Amazon's guide. Amazon requires every image to represent the product accurately. For photorealistic, fully AI-generated people, Amazon requires a metadata disclosure.
What this means: Product accuracy is what counts, not the technique.
“Premium A+ requires approved A+ pages first.”
Amazon's current A+ guide for the UK lists no additional eligibility criteria for Premium A+. Basic and Premium A+ come at no extra cost; the ASINs must be registered to your brand.
What this means: Check in A+ Content Manager whether Premium modules are offered to you before you plan in the smaller basic format.
Source: Amazon, “Image suppression”: reasons and affected images.
03 / Suppression
When does Amazon suppress an image or listing?
Amazon checks images when you upload them. Without a compliant main image, the listing can be hidden from search until one is in place. Amazon can remove or modify non-compliant images, for example by removing a watermark. These are the reasons Amazon gives:
| Reason | Applies to |
|---|---|
| Text, logo, graphics or watermarks | Main image |
| Background not pure white | Main image |
| Main image missing or incorrect | Main image |
| Additional items not permitted for the product type | Main image |
| Product cropped | Main image |
| Product in packaging or with brand or swing tags | Main image |
| Props inside, around or obscuring the product | Main image |
| Several views of the same product | Main image in clothing |
| Human model for a product that isn't clothing | Main image for shoes, bags, jewellery, watches, kids' products |
| Mannequin or hanger | Main image in clothing and accessories |
| Model sitting, kneeling, leaning or lying down | Main image in clothing |
| Blur or pixelation | Every image |
| Product too small in the frame | Every image |
| Prurient content | Every image |
A separate error covers images that don't match the product title (error 100239). Amazon requires this for every image. Check it especially for colour variants: the image shows the colour named in the title.
How to lift a suppression
Find the affected listings
Amazon shows them in Seller Central under the Fix tab in Manage Products. Rejected files are listed under Submission status with the Content compliance issues report type.
Replace, don't delete
Upload a new main image with the MAIN variant code instead of deleting the old one. Amazon recommends this explicitly.
Allow a day
It can take up to 24 hours for the change to appear.
Source: Amazon, “Image suppression”.
Source: Amazon, “Product image guide”: requirements for all product images.
04 / Main image
The main image: meet the rules or take a deliberate risk
The main image is the only image shoppers see in search results. That is why it is tightly regulated, and why it pays to decide most carefully here.
What Amazon requires
- The real product, realistic and professional quality, in the correct scale, quantity and colour.
- A pure white background with RGB 255, 255, 255.
- The whole product, exactly once, not cropped. Plus only what is included.
- Packaging only if it is an important product feature, such as a gift basket.
- No placeholder, not even temporarily: the first image uploaded defines the product identity.
- Fashion has its own rules: adult clothing on a standing model, a single shoe facing left at a 45-degree angle, clothing accessories and multipacks flat without a model.
Source: Amazon, “Product image guide”: main product image requirements.
What we make of it in practice
In search results, the main image is a small tile, usually on a phone. So our yardstick is not a measurement but the thumbnail test: can you tell at a glance what the product is and what comes with it?
- Show the product in three dimensions: slightly angled, with directional light and shadow, not laid flat and shot from above.
- For sets, the full contents belong in the image, as a tight group rather than scattered.
- Soft products show their in-use shape: the filled bag, the glove with volume, not the flat storage shape.
- Fit long, flat products to the format with pose and angle. White space is fine, stretching never is.
Check your main image's background, size and framing for free →
The deliberate exception
In many categories you see main images in search with packaging next to the product, flying ingredients, tags or coloured shapes. That goes against Amazon's main image rules, and Amazon can suppress such images at any time. It can still be a sensible choice if the tile clearly works better.
If you do it, do it deliberately: with a compliant replacement image ready and an eye on suppression status. Not negotiable: inaccurate product representation, parts that aren't included but look like they are, reviews, prices and Amazon badges.
05 / Other images
The other images: few restrictions, lots of selling space
Amazon recommends at least six additional images and one video. For these images, only the rules Amazon sets for all product images apply:
- They show exactly the product you sell and match the product title.
- No customer reviews, no five-star graphics, no claims such as free shipping and no information that only applies to you as a seller.
- No Amazon logos or trademarks and nothing that resembles Amazon's badges, such as “Amazon's Choice” or “Best seller”.
- No nudity; children's underwear and swimwear only lying flat without a model.
Source: Amazon, “Product image guide”: requirements for all product images.
What we also leave out
Prices, discounts and deadlines go out of date as soon as the offer changes, and Amazon explicitly bans them in A+. We also leave out unsupported superlatives such as “best in test” or “No. 1” and absolute promises such as “100% protection”. A specific, verified claim such as a tested standard works better.
On top of that: consumer law in the UK and EU
Amazon's rules come on top of consumer law. Two points affect product images most often:
- Rights every buyer already has by law must not be presented as a special feature of your offer. A statutory right to return is not a selling point.
- For food and supplements, health claims are only allowed if they are authorised; in Great Britain, they have to be on the GB nutrition and health claims register.
Source: Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, Schedule 20, paragraph 11.
Source: Great Britain nutrition and health claims (NHC) register.
Source: EU: Directive 2005/29/EC, Annex I, point 10.
Source: EU: Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006.
Mandatory and safety information has its own image slots
For warning and safety information, Amazon provides dedicated image types (PS01 to PS06). They appear in the “Safety and product resources” section. There are separate types for ingredients and energy labels too. A factual information image in the gallery can still make sense, for example dosage for a supplement: there it builds trust.
Source: Amazon, “Product image guide”: image variants.
Which job each gallery image does: planning your Amazon image set →
06 / A+ Content
A+ Content: its own review, its own rules
Amazon reviews A+ Content separately, for up to seven business days. Once approved, it goes live within 24 hours. Basic and Premium A+ come at no extra cost; Amazon lists no additional eligibility criteria for Premium A+.
| Feature | Basic A+ | Premium A+ |
|---|---|---|
| Image size | 970 × 300 pixels | 1,464 × 600 pixels |
| Modules per detail page | 5 | 7 |
| Module selection | 14 | 19 |
| Video and hotspots | No | Yes |
| Navigation carousel | No | Yes |
Technically, Amazon requires JPG, PNG or BMP in RGB colour space, under 2 MB per file and at least 72 dpi. Animated images, watermarks, QR codes and links are not allowed.
What gets A+ rejected
- Time-sensitive references
- Promotional language and pricing
- Competitor comparisons; comparison charts of your own products are allowed
- External links and contact information
- Warranty and guarantee information, shipping details
- Small, unreadable text
- Images that already appear in the gallery
The last point is often missed: A+ needs its own visuals. Also check every module in A+ Content Manager's mobile preview. Text that fits on desktop quickly gets too small on a phone. For AI-generated people, Creative Assets offers an “AI-generated people” option when you upload.
Source: Amazon, “A+ Content guide”.
Frequently asked questions
How many images does an Amazon listing need?
One compliant main image is required. Amazon also recommends at least six additional images and one video.
Which file format and size should I upload?
Amazon recommends JPEG; TIFF, PNG and non-animated GIF work too. The longest side needs at least 500 and at most 10,000 pixels, and zoom starts at 1,000 pixels. RGB is the preferred colour mode.
Why isn't my uploaded image showing?
Amazon selects and arranges images from multiple selling partners, so uploading doesn't guarantee display. It can take up to 24 hours for a selected image to appear. Rejected files show up under Submission status with the Content compliance issues report type.
Can the main image show the packaging?
Only if it is an important product feature, such as a carrying case or gift basket. A product in its packaging or with a swing tag is a suppression reason of its own.
Are the rules on Amazon.co.uk the same as on Amazon.com?
The requirements for main and other images are the same in the UK and US versions of the product image guide, checked on 5 October 2026. Differences exist for country-specific image types such as energy labels. Amazon also refers to style guides for individual product categories.
Can I upload AI images to Amazon?
Yes, if they show your product accurately. For photorealistic, fully AI-generated people, Amazon requires the keyword contains-synthetic-performer in the dc:subject (XMP) metadata field. This doesn't apply to real people who were only edited with AI.
Before you upload
- The main image passes the thumbnail test on a phone.
- The main image background is pure white, and the product is shown whole and exactly once.
- Every image matches the title, including colour variants.
- No reviews, stars, shipping promises, prices or Amazon badges.
- If your main image departs from the rules on purpose, a compliant replacement is ready.
- Photorealistic AI people are disclosed in the metadata.
- A+ uses its own visuals and is readable in the mobile preview.
Plan your main image, gallery and A+ with SellerVisuals: 10 images free, no account →