The ideal Shopify product image size is a 2048 x 2048 px product image size.
However, merchants may add more than just images to the Shopify Products section.
This guide tackles other crucial dimensions, such as video formats and 3D models, as well.
Shopify Product Media vs Shopify Media
“Product images” in this guide refer to images merchants add to the Shopify product listings in the Products tab from the admin panel.
Source: Shine theme
These aren’t the static images that can be seen on homepages, the hero banner image, Shopify slideshow images, or media & text sections.
Product images can be seen on their respective product pages and "You May Also Like" upsells. Site visitors browse through these images to get a better idea of the product.
Your product media can also be found on your Shopify POS. These images will represent the inventory item internally and externally.
The Ideal Shopify Product Image Size
Source: Electro theme
It’s highly recommended that merchants use square images (1:1) for their Shopify product images. These Shopify image sizes maintain uniformity across the product images and also make them easy to lay out on the product page.
5000 x 5000 pixels and a 20 MB file size are the limits for all Shopify images.
But Shopify recommends a 2048 x 2048 px size.
This is an interesting suggestion, considering that the most common desktop screen resolution is 1920 x 1080 (source: Statcounter).
And 360 x 800 is the most common mobile screen resolution. (source: Statista)
How could site visitors appreciate the Shopify image size if it is bigger than the screen?
We can think of a few reasons why.
First, high-resolution images ensure optimal image quality.
Next, Shopify image sizes must be higher than 800 x 800 pixels for Shopify’s zoom functionality to work.
Shopify’s zoom functionality allows site visitors to “zoom in” on a product, allowing them to see it closer and appreciate its smaller details. This can be useful for seeing the weave pattern of a jacket or the grain of a piece of woodwork.
Higher-resolution images can take full advantage of this zoom functionality, showing close-ups with high image quality.
A 2048 x 2048 px image can be digitally zoomed with a 1920 x 1080 screen (or smaller) to highlight the image’s nooks and crannies.
Also, unlike Shopify images such as slideshow images and background images, the product image serves as a tag for the Shopify product.
It tells search engines what the product looks like and is displayed on Google Images and featured snippets.
Shopify Product Image File Type
We highly recommend using PNG image formats for product images.
Yes, PNG.
Next to that is JPEG.
While it’s common knowledge that all the images should be JPEG and WebP since they’re smaller and hence have a faster load speed, Shopify product images function differently.
Shopify images (e.g., slideshow images, background images, the hero banner image, etc.) must have a JPEG or WebP image format for a better site experience.
On the other hand, Shopify product images represent the product listing on both the Shopify website and the Shopify POS. So, it would actually be better for your SEO to have a high-resolution, PNG image format for your Shopify product.
This gives your product better detail and improved clarity among both algorithms and humans.
How to Add Media to your Shopify Products
From the Shopify admin panel, click on Products.
Click on a product you wish to add media to.
If you don’t have any products yet, you may click on Add product.
Either of these steps will allow you to edit the inventory item where you may add images to the Shopify product.
Under the Media section, you will see the buttons Upload New and Select Existing if the product you selected doesn’t have media yet.
Clicking on Upload New will allow you to use a photo from your local machine.
But selecting Select Existing will allow you to use photos that are already in your Shopify files (e.g., previously uploaded photos).
Check the checkboxes for the photos you wish to add and click Done.
Finalize the other areas for the listing, such as the name and description, then click Save.
Great! You’ve successfully added photos to your Shopify product.
Other Media Types You Can Use for Shopify Products
Apart from images, Shopify merchants may also add videos and 3D models to their Shopify products’ media.
Video
Adding videos to the Shopify product gives its product page a moving element.
Also, keen-eyed shoppers will get to see the product in action instead of relying solely on photos.
Ideal Video Specifications for Shopify Product
The maximum video length for a Shopify product is 10 minutes.
The maximum file size is 1 GB.
Lastly, the maximum resolution is 4096 x 2160 px and the supported file types are .mp4 and .mov.
However, it’s implausible that a 4K video can reach 10 minutes without breaking the 1 GB limit.
With this in mind, you can keep the video short and succinct. The video should, ideally, be no longer than one minute. This ensures that site visitors watch through the entire thing. Plus, the shorter the video, the smaller the file size.
As for resolution, note that zoom functionality doesn’t work with videos. So, you won’t need to render in 4K.
It’s recommended that you maintain a square aspect ratio for uniformity with the other square media. But you may adopt any common aspect ratio for media consumption as you please (e.g., 16:9; 4:3; 4:5).
3D Models
3D models allow site visitors to drag the digital 3D model of the product around, providing a complete 360 perspective of the physical product from the visitors’ own homes.
Source: Shopify
If the Shopify theme supports Shopify AR, visitors can see the represented physical product through their phones’ cameras, allowing them to digitally perceive and assess the product in their physical space.
This gives potential customers a more engaging site experience and a better experience of the product’s scale.
Ideal 3D File Specifications for Shopify Product
Shopify accepts GLB and USDZ file types and up to a file size of 500 MB for 3D objects.
But make sure your 3D object has a 1:1 scale with the actual object it represents. That way, when visitors use the Shopify AR function to view the item in their space, the 3D model will properly reflect the actual item's dimensions.
Provide specific scale instructions to your 3D designer. Or, check your measurements as you’re designing the item.
Pro tip: In Blender, click the Mesh Edit Mode Overlays dropdown and tick on Edge Length.
This allows it so that when you select the models’ vertices, you’ll see the distance between vertices, making it possible to see the actual scale of the digital model.
What Images Should Your Shopify Product Contain?
Here are some images that we highly recommend your product listing contain.
Remember, the images added to your Shopify product are meant to provide a complete idea of what the product is. This is good for both conversions and SEO.
The product from various angles
You should ideally have photos of the product taken from various angles against a plain, solid background.
Take photos of the product from the front, back, and sides, and from 45-degree angles.
Having product photos taken from these angles will give your visitors a complete idea of what the product looks like.
The product in use
It would also be useful to have photos of the product in use.
This includes a shirt being worn, a mouse with a hand resting on it, a keyboard being typed on, or a water bottle being drunk from.
These photos help showcase the nature of the product even more and may improve traffic from relevant Google image searches.
The product in a home setting
Source: Honey Bear Home LTD
In addition to the solid color background photos we mentioned earlier, it is also tremendously useful to showcase the product in its natural setting.
For example, a keyboard in front of a monitor. A table centerpiece on a set dining table. Or a sofa in the living room.
Having these photos highlights the products in their “natural habitat,” allowing potential customers to perceive the product in a home setting.
Lifestyle images
Lifestyle images showcase the product in a setting familiar to the brand’s demographic, albeit with some creativity and artistry involved to evoke the brand identity.
These images are commonly seen in clothing, apparel, and lifestyle products.
FAQ
Shopify product image size too big
The Shopify images' size limit is 5000 x 5000 pixels and 20 MB. So, if Shopify images are too big, either compress them so that they're smaller than 20 MB, re-export them at a resolution smaller than 5000 x 5000, or do a combination of both. The recommended Shopify image sizes are high-resolution square images. Specifically 2048 x 2048 px.
Best product image size for shopify
The best product image size for a Shopify product is a 2048 x 2048 pixel PNG image. This allows optimal clarity for the product images for both internal and external use, and enables the zoom function on Shopify product pages.
Note that Shopify product images are not to be confused with the product photos embedded on the homepage, product pages, and the rest of the site.
What is the product image size limit for Shopify?
The product image size limit that Shopify allows is 5000 x 5000 pixels and a 20 MB file size. Anything larger than any of these limits can’t be uploaded onto Shopify and, hence, can’t be used for Shopify product images or embedded static photos.
Conclusion
Shopify product images are NOT Shopify images. These are two completely different photos.
While it's crucial to keep Shopify image sizes to a minimum to improve site load speed, Shopify product image sizes perform better with a PNG file format and relatively higher image sizes.
Also, square product images work best if you want to maintain uniformity and consistency across your product page layouts.
